Today was a fun-filled day – woke up and was treated to strawberry cream cheese crepes by Miss Jen, and then headed downtown for a day at the museums. Sarah and I both figured we wouldn’t get a chance to go to the Smithsonian Museums very often with E, and since it was a cheap day of fun, we went for it — snow, freezing temps and all. Made it downtown with relatively no problems, and Ethan was incredibly excited just to put his Metro ticket in the turnstile, ride on a train and call off all the stops. We actually could have rode the rails all day and I think he would have been quite happy.  :-)

First we decided to hit the American History museum — E was quite excited to see Dorothy’s ruby slippers, and we also saw Kermit, a Dumbo car from an early Disney ride, and a lot of “old cellos”. Son, a Stradivarius is a bit more than an old dusty stringed instrument… There was also one there called a Baryton which was the oddest thing I’d seen in a while — looked like a 6-string cello with another set of smaller strings actually strung about two inches beneath the first set — maybe for picking or plucking? What were those crazy 17th century dudes thinking???

Lunch and then on to the Air and Space Museum. Our main goal was to see a movie or show there. Found out it was gonna cost quite a bit, so we decided to let Ethan choose the one he wanted to see — and he chose the Planetarium show. Very cool… he kept saying “Ooohhh… Wow!” I think he really liked it… By this time he was fading fast (and so was Mommy and Daddy’s patience) so we decided to head home. By the time we got back, it was time for dinner, so we headed to Mamma Lucia’s, one of our favorite Italian joints while we were living here. It did not disappoint. The calamari was spot on as usual, and a good time was had by all.

I was gonna use Scenes from an Italian Restaurant, but in Ethan’s honor, I chose STARS by Switchfoot.

“When I look at the stars…
When I look at the stars… I feel like myself.”

Ah what the heck — I’ll post them both. Consider it my penance for yesterday’s missed post.  :-)

Listen to Scenes from an Italian Restaurant (Billy Joel)

Listen to Stars (Switchfoot)

I’m tired. Look up the lyrics on your own if you want. It’s not hard.  :-)

Missed the boat yesterday… no blog post. There was just way too much fun stuff going on… so I’m cheating and backdating this post so I can at least keep appearances up. Arrived in MD and spend some time with Dan & Jen before heading out to rehearsal with the JC crew! It was great to see the old crew and jam a bit in preparation for Sunday’s set that we’re helping out with. Afterwards we went to see Dan play some ice hockey with his team and didn’t arrive home until well after midnight… all in all, a full day. Oh yeah, did I mention there was snow too? Good times…

So since I didn’t have a chance to blog yesterday due to the time, I’m choosing “Apologize” for my entry today.

Listen on LaLa.com

Read Lyrics

So today is the last day in Philly after a nice LOOOOONG visit with Mom and Dad, Rich, Chris. Morgan, Colin & Tyler. I started looking for songs about Philadelphia, then family, then saying goodbye and along the way it morphed into something else. I was “this close” to using “Hard to Say Goodbye” by Boyz II Men, since they’re from Philly and all, but I resisted the urge. I’m sure you’ll all thank me for it.

During the trip so far I’ve had a great chance to catch up with extended family, friends and former co-workers. I got a chance to make some new friends, visit some old haunts and cruise the hometown streets again. We still have another few days to come and I’ll be seeing even more close friends, sharing a ton of laughs, recounting old stories, playing some music and having a stinkin’ good time all the while. I know a lot of who I am is because of who I’ve grown up with, and I’m sure that “because I knew you, I have been changed…”

The song for today is “For Good” from the musical Wicked. I knew I was going to use this song at some point during the year because it’s just so AWESOME, but I didn’t think it would be so soon.  :-)

If you haven’t heard it before, you’re in for a treat. Two of the best voices in musical theater today, and overall a great message. Enjoy.

Listen to “For Good” on LaLa.com — pick it up about 30-40 seconds in…

Read the lyrics

Started the day off today with a great breakfast at a place we found online at Yelp.com… this little “hole in the wall” was the combination of a greasy spoon, grandma’s kitchen and Cheers. When we walked in, we were greeted with “Hi Hon, you want some coffee?” Apparently everyone is named “Hon” or “Sweety”… cause she said the same thing to someone else that came in without even turning around. It was actually kinda cool. Within 3 minutes of coming through the door, we noticed the regulars sitting and the bar, talking to anyone within earshot. Ethan then exclaimed, “Hey, they don’t have any menus!” to which our server/host/cook/waitress/owner/who-knows-what-else said “Ah, I don’t have time to print any up doll… So what can I get you?” Apparently you can order ANYTHING and they’ll make it. Seriously. And they don’t write anything down. You also get your own refills on coffee. Mismatched silverware, plates and cups. Family photos on the wall and tons of Philly sports memorabilia.

We also found out there were no checks… they just kinda walk by your table and tell you how much you owe. Sometimes you can order the same thing and it will cost a little more, sometimes a little less. Very unique… and kinda cool to be honest. We had a great time… the food was pretty darn good, nice atmosphere, great people. As Sarah said, “The typical East Coast experience. I love it!”

To be honest, you can’t really order ANYTHING — Sarah wanted biscuits and gravy and they didn’t have that, but they did make Ethan a killer pancake, Sarah had eggs to order with homefries and toast and I had a ham & cheese omelette. Yum.

So in the spirit of this great little place, today’s song is Roy Orbison’s “You’ve Got It.”

Anything you want, you’ve got it
Anything you need, you’ve got it
Anything at all, you’ve got it…

Listen to Roy at LaLa.com

Read the Lyrics

Jamie Cullum via last.fm

Well, I now have seven days of official vacation. Sarah and I decided that today should largely be a day made up of doing absolutely nothing, and we seemed to accomplish that in a grand fashion. The only things we did today are things we WANTED to do… visit with good friends (and drink a Dogfish Head 60 Minute IPA and a Belgian Tripel), watch UP with the P’s and E, go to the mall for a little light shopping, play Wii (Lego Star Wars to be exact), and a few other odds and ends. All in all it was quite the non-day for which I was immensely grateful.

Since it’s pretty close to January 1 and New Year Resolutions and such, I think I’ve found the perfect song for today from my good friend Jamie Cullum. OK — I don’t really know him, but I sure do like his music, and would like to think that if I were British, cool, smoked and could play the piano like Harry Connick meets Ben Folds that he and I MIGHT be friends.

First time I heard this song I just about fell out of my chair. It’s a trip… there’s no such thing as a “quick fix”. Life is hard work and nothing comes without a price… there is no free ride. Anyone who tries to tell otherwise is as full of crap as the salesman hawking his cure-all in this song…  So do the work, make the call, put in the time. It will take longer than 7 days, but you’ll be all the better for it.

And if you’re in desperate need to lighten your wallet, I’ve got some beachfront property in Ohio I’d love to sell ya..

Read the Lyrics to “7 Days to Change Your Life”

Listen to “7 Days to Change Your Life” on LaLa.com

I bleed Green. Maybe not as much as those folks who pay $30 in parking, tailgate in sub-zero temps and paint their faces, but I live and die by my Eagles. Even though there was a lot on the line, it sure looked to me like they were out of sorts. The Cowboys shut them out and now, instead of getting a first round bye in the playoffs and a week off, they have to play Dallas AGAIN in Texas and don’t get a home game during the playoffs. Definitely not the way to start 2010.

My brother, being the Dallas fan that he is, thought I should choose Sunday Bloody Sunday by U2 for today’s post… but I didn’t want to give him the satisfaction, so I’m choosing something else. (Actually, he was quite humble…even after a threw his Dallas pillow on the ground during the game cause I couldn’t stand the sight of it…)

Today’s song — “Love Hurts” by Nazareth. Discover it again for the first time. The lyrics are PERFECT for today… and I’ll still be there next week singing another one of my favorites… “Fly Eagles Fly, on the road to vic-tor-y…”

Bonus song! While searching for the lyrics for this song, I also had a chance to check out a song of the same name by Incubus. Not bad… might have to purchase it on iTunes!

Party today… good times had by all. Had a great time hanging out with the family, eating, drinking, playing games… Aunts and Uncles made a trip over to see us, and it was nice to see everyone. Family is really what it’s all about… that, and a well-poured Guinness. But I digress…

Even though it was BOOTY COLD today (and windy) and not at all resembling beach weather, the carefree time we all had today reminded me of all those days and nights at Dewey Beach playing with Flip Like Wilson. One of the songs we used to cover (and SLAM) was Dave Matthews Band’s “Trippin’ Billies.” A fairly unknown song off of Under The Table and Dreaming, this song says it all…

“So why would you care to get out of this place?
You and me and all our friends, such a happy human race
Eat, drink and be merry, for tomorrow we’ll die…”

Now keep in mind — we definitely weren’t “tripping” any “billies”… just having a good time. There were no drugs smoked, ingested or snorted — either then or now. And definitely not during the typing of this blog entry.  :-)

Read the Trippin’ Billies Lyrics here

Listen to Trippin Billies on Lala.com

I’ve been talking about doing this for about a month now, and feeling a bit inspired by Penn State’s win today and the adventures of Julie in Julie and Julia, I’m restarting this blog up again and will attempt to post daily for the entire year.

The idea is simple — I am going to choose a song each day that attempts to sum up the feelings of the day. Sometimes the choices might be reflective, sometimes descriptive, and sometimes just silly… and maybe along the way I may introduce some of you to some new music.

It would be too easy to choose “New Year’s Day” by U2 for today… so I think I’ll start with a deep Billy Joel cut off of Cold Spring Harbor, his first album. In many ways, this album’s failures could have sunk many artists. One main problem with the album is that when it was mastered, everything was about a quarter step fast, making Billy’s early stuff kinda sound like it was being sung by Alvin and the Chipmunks. No lie.

The song I’m choosing for today is called “Got to Begin Again,” the last track on the record. Yes, kids… I’m calling it a record. For those of you who don’t know what one is, look it up on Wikipedia.

The song isn’t necessarily about turning over a new leaf — it’s really about getting over a failed relationship. Still, every time I hear this song I feel like the singer is pushing forward and seems determined to get to his final destination. I feel the same way… turning 40 two days ago has me thinking about all the things I’ve wanted to do but haven’t been able to. I’m totally OK — it all has just kinda made me a little reflective. Hopefully I’ll be able to start checking some things off my list and catching up with reality during this process… “It’s been quite a while since I lifted my head, and I’m sure the light will hurt my eyes…”

See ya tomorrow with a brand new ditty for your listening pleasure!

Check the song out and let me know what you think… Listen on LaLa.com

Got To Begin Again, Billy Joel on iTunes

OK, for anyone interested, here are some places we checked out this weekend. I must say that all in all, there was only one dish I was disappointed with…

1) We started on Saturday in the Wicker Park area with brunch at Milk And Honey. Dang fine carrot, raisin and toasted coconut buttermilk pancakes. Sarah had the award winning Huevos Rancheros. Stupid good… and we even got to eat outside!

2) Cup of “coffee” at Cafe con Leche. We went here by mistake (thinking it was Cafe de Luca, see #3 — we were on the wrong road!). I had a Cafe de Olla which was really different and quite tasty… kinda like an herbal coffee made with star anise and cinnamon. Sarah had a cafe de leche I think and she said it was “perfect”. Not bad for a mistake…

3) The afore-mentioned Cafe de Luca. This place was recommended in our guide book and we were not disappointed. Italian sodas and a mid-afternoon snack of bruschetta. Probably the best I’ve ever had. The inside of the place was also ridiculously cool and it looked like you had been transported to a quaint street in a little village in Italy… complete with clothes on the clothesline.

4) iCream. No ice cream on site… they actually MAKE it while you wait. Crazy! Pick two flavors and optional mixins. It was ready in 3 minutes and it was GOOOOOD. Chocolate and Irish Cream. Superb!

5) Dinner back on Michigan Ave… the Lights Festival was going on, so we opted for takeout from Big Bowl, a Japanese/Thai place. I had Thai Basil Shrimp with coconut jasmine rice and Sarah had Pad Thai. Not bad, but we probably could have shared. The downer of the night were the lettuce wraps… not very good. Kinda blah. I guess it’s hard to compare with PF Chang’s.

6) Next day was Garrett’s popcorn. We waited an hour and a half, and it was worth it for the Chicago Mix, a combo of cheese and caramel popcorn. Sounds crazy, but SOOOOO good. Especially when it’s fresh!

7) Finally, we finished off the food tour with a deep dish at Gino’s East… the kind with the sausage patty that takes up the entire bottom of the pizza. In my opinion, any time you can eat a sausage patty that’s bigger that your head, it must be done. Liked it more than Giordano’s, but since we haven’t tried Lou Malnati’s yet, I’ll reserve the “King of Chicago Pizza” trophy until our next visit.

Anyone have any other recommendations for the next time we’re up there?

Seems like most of my recent posts have gone something like this… “Yes, “I know I’ve been out of touch for a while, etc etc etc.”  Truth is that most — if not all — of you who read this are already connected through Facebook, so I’ll just do a few quick hitters…

Really enjoying my Phils in post-season baseball again. Hate the fact that games are on so late, but whattya gonna do? That’s what happens when you’re playing a west coast team.

The next few months promise to be a bit of a whirlwind, with a wedding (playing for one), Halloween, house guests, prepping the garden for winter, church, small group, band, Thanksgiving, band, birthdays & Christmas (whew!)… and immediately following all that, my 40th and a trip east for a Philly visit. Needless to say things are going to be a bit crazy… but good nonetheless.

Ethan is going to have his first appointment with Dr Amend in less that 2 weeks for some gifted testing… it’s all designed to profile how he learns as well as give a baseline IQ for possible admission into a school we’ve been looking into for him. It’s really exciting for us to be able to let someone who knows his stuff evaluate E and give us ideas on how to allow him to grow, how to encourage his gifts, and how to best prepare him for the next few years.

More later…  I hope. I mean it this time!