Wednesday, June 30, 2010

Of Authors and Obama

Today was a rather interesting day for me. After a morning business trip to Milwaukee, my friend and I stopped at a local restaurant to have some lunch. While there, we met an upcoming and inspiring author. Her name was Laura Greenway. Our conversation was pleasant and enjoyable. She spoke of her upcoming debut book titled "New Life". This book is still being published and is due out Friday at Barnes and Noble. Our conversation turned towards President Obama's visit to Racine. Yeah, she met him twice.

While we were there, breaking news arrived on TV informing us that the Air Force One had arrived at the Milwaukee airport. Taking a cue to an opportunity that I should not miss, I stopped at home to pick up my camera. I'm not political, but what the hell? You only live once.

Downtown Racine was packed with revelers hoping to get a glimpse of our president. Streets were blocked off to traffic. Dump trucks blockaded key streets (presumably to ward of possible attacks), helicopters guarded the sky. It was like a circus out there. There was no way getting close to any action out there. Somehow I figured out the motorcade route out of town. Down Main Street to Hwy 20 then I-94 to back to Milwaukee. I staged myself on Main street to take a few picks...

Tuesday, June 29, 2010

Obama to Visit Racine


President Barack Obama is coming to visit Racine. Yup-on Wednsday. He is here to discuss the economy. From what I understand, there are people waiting outside the Festival Site waiting to get free tickets to see him. Only 1000 tickets will be "sold" for this event and that's two tickets per person. I'm not really into politics, but I think it's nifty to know that the Prez is coming to visit my hometown...

More on the story here.

Wednesday, June 23, 2010

Riders on the Storm



After three days getting bombarded by storms left and right we're finally getting relief from all this. Getting a little tired of the power outages, lost internet connections and the heat. Just in time for Summerfest!

Sunday, June 20, 2010

Happy Father's Day!

Happy Father's Day to to the great dad's out there! Today is very unique holiday for me. Allow me to explain...

My father is a good nan. Quiet and reserved. Smart and out going. Has the love for adventure. He is good with his hands could fix most anything. I remember working on Heath Kit projects and "helping" him build a telescope. The cross country vacation trips, canoe trips and bike rides are forever in my memory.

My father also held high morals and was the disciplinarian. What he said was the law of the house. As a wild and rebellious teenager, we butted heads quite often. Of course then, I didn't have a clue. He was teaching me things that I didn't want to listen to. As I look back at it, yeah, he was right. I should have listened....

I am a dad now. When my son was born, I made a vow to do whatever it takes to be a good father. Even after my divorce. I've could have easily walked away from the responsibilities of parenthood, but I didn't. I can't.... I love my son too much for that. I see him almost everyday. I spend a lot of time with him-doing things with him and teaching him to become a man.

The one thing that angers me are dead beat dads. The ones who don't support their children financially or even be there for them. This just blows my mind! Being a dad can be a huge responsibility, but the joys of parenthood are priceless. Not to mention the children benefits from having a dad around. As I say, any guy with a dick can be a father, but it takes a man to be dad.....

Thursday, June 17, 2010

Two Years at the JTI

Wow! It's almost hard to believe that the JT Irregulars has been around for two years now. Then again, I'm not surprised... What a lively bunch are we! A factory worker, an astrophysicist, an educator, a paraplegic, a housewife with young kids, a politician, a college student, a restaurant manager and even some of us are even retired! Heck, we are are from different backgrounds. All bonded together for our love of blogging. Sharing jokes, music, weird stories and videos, discovering the universe-anything irregular:) The is nothing under the sun we will not write about. That's what I love about this blog.

What's even better is that I can call these guys true friends. We have stuck to each other thick and thin. I began to really realize this last October when my ex girlfriend and I broke up. How devastated I was! They rallied around me and brought my spirits back up. I'll never forget the overwhelming amount of well wishes I had gotten for my birthday last week. These guys continue to amaze me with their kindness and respect for one another. It's rare to have that these days.

I'm looking forward to many more years hanging with these guys. Each time we meet or chat on Facebook draws us closer together. These guys are like family to me. I plan on sticking around till the end.

Tuesday, June 15, 2010

Some Lyrics Going Through My Head....

I hear the horses' thunder down in the valley below,
I'm waiting for the angels of Avalon, waiting for the eastern glow.

------------------------------------------------------------------

Oh I know I lived this life afore
Somehow know now truths I must be sure
Tossin turnin' nightmares burnin' dreams of swords in hand
Sailin' ships the Viking spits the blood of father's land
Only to deceive

----------------------------------------------------------------------

He was the wizard of a thousand kings
and a chance to meet him one night wondering.
He told me tales and he drank my wine.

Can anybody guess these songs? Or the central theme? Good luck!

Monday, June 14, 2010

New Albums

I know that I haven't been blogging too much about music lately. Summer's here and I've been busier than usual. My son is over more. To top that off, I have WAY too many sites to visit. It doesn't mean I'm ignoring this blog or stopped listening to music. In fact, Ive gotten a slew of new albums lately. Some of the them new stuff, some of them upgrades from cassettes, even some rare finds!

Here's a list of new albums and CD's I've gotten in the last few months.

Black Crowes-Warpaint Live
Black Crowes-Before the Frost...
Bon Jovi- Keep the Faith
Bon Jovi-These Days
DaDa-Puzzle (upgrade)

Bob Dylan-John Wesley Harding
Bob Dylan-Blood on the Tracks (upgrade)
Melissa Etheridge-(s/t) (upgrade)
Melissa Etheridge-Never Enough (upgrade)
Extreme-Pornograffitti
4 Non Blondes-Bigger, Better, Faster, More (upgrade)
Goo Goo Dolls-Dizzy Up the Girl
Gov't Mule-By a Tread
Great White-Hooked
Jimi Hendrix-Voodoo Soup
Jimi Hendrix-Valleys of Neptune
Jefferson Airplane-The Worst of
Los Lonely Boys-1969
Pearl Jam-Back Spacer
Phish-Farmhouse
Phish-Round Room
Reo Speedwagon-(s/t)
Rolling Stones-Exile on Main Street (reissue)
Rush-Moving Pictures (upgrade)
Joe Satriani-(s/t)
Scorpions-Virgin Killers
Seven Mary Three-American Standard (upgrade)
Bruce Springsteen-Darkness on the Edge of Town (upgrade)
Bruce Springsteen-The Rising
Them Crooked Vultures-(s/t)
Velvet Underground & Nico-(s/t)
Neil Young-Reactor

That's a lot of stuff!

Sunday, June 13, 2010

I'm Back!!!!!

Just got back from a road trip Up North visiting my family. It was a quiet, yet interesting weekend. I left Friday afternoon (on my birthday) On the way up, I stopped on Shawano to visit a friend and did some music shopping. Got some excellent deals on some vintage albums. Yeah, I went a little nuts....

Saturday, it was a good time with the family! Seeing my son was keen in learning how use guns, I felt it was time..... Spent the afternoon target practicing. My son did well with a .22 rifle-almost better than my dad, way better than me! My father pulled out a .38 Special revolver. My son would have none of that...Between my dad and me with that thing, my dad was the only one to hit the target.

The rest of the day was spent spending time with family and friends. Took several walks in the woods. Although the walks were good, the ticks were bad this year. Had some nice home cooked meals for a change. Being away from from the hustle and bustle of the city did me some good. :) I plan on spending more time up there....


Monday, June 7, 2010

Mural, Mural on the Wall (part 3)

Well, it's finally finished! Just in time for the end of school year! The mural that my son and his classmates have been working on since March. I've been blogging on the stages of progress as it was being done. Quite impressive I may say! Great job son!


Saturday, June 5, 2010

New Rush Songs

To prepare for their upcoming Time Machine Tour that starts June 29, 2010, Rush pre-released two new songs. Caravan and BU2B only on iTunes. These songs are slated to be released on their upcoming album "Clockwork Angels" due soon.





ENJOY