Sale Away on Gray Thursday

I'll be the first to admit, I love a great sale as much as the next person. Who doesn't love getting something they want, or need, at a lower price than what they'd normally pay?

Granted, stores are still making a profit, even at sale prices, but hey, *I'm* paying less than retail, so it's a good feeling knowing that.

No matter the type of store, or where it's located, all of them have sales on a regular basis, whether it's daily, weekly, or monthly; there's always someone offering something for less than retail price.

Then there are the special sales, in addition to the regular ones.  The special ones usually revolve around holidays, or special events.  President's Day, Memorial Day, the Super Bowl, etc.; all are cause for retailers to have blowout prices on items consumers are wanting, or needing.

One of the biggest special sale days is the Friday after Thanksgiving, otherwise known as "Black Friday".

Ah yes, "Black Friday", the day people are up before the sun, and out standing in endless lines for a chance at getting that great bargain.  When did all this craziness become the norm?

Actually, upon research, "Black Friday" was a term used in Philadelphia in the early sixties to describe the throngs of people out and about the day after Thanksgiving.  By 1975, the term had been adopted across the country, and adapted to describe shoppers.

For nearly three decades stores catered to shoppers on this infamous Friday, opening their stores as early as 6:00 am, allowing those early birds an opportunity at big savings.  Then after a few years, the times got earlier.  Some stores began opening at 5 am, in hopes of garnering more customers eager to start their holiday shopping.

The beginning of a new century though, brought a new tradition: stores not opening early on Friday morning, but instead, late on Thanksgiving evening.  At first stores, like Wal-Mart, and Best Buy, advertised they'd be opening at 10 pm Thanksgiving for "Black Friday" savings.

At the time, I didn't see a problem with this.  Yes, there were employees that probably weren't happy about having to work on a holiday, I understand that.  For the most part though, the "traditions" of Thanksgiving usually wrap up in the early evening.  Friends and family have spent time together, then gone their separate ways, so why not go stand in a line for a store to open at 10 pm, especially if there's something you want, at a great price?

More recently however, things have been getting out of hand.  No longer are shoppers getting in the "holiday spirit".  Instead, they're trying to one up other shoppers to get what they want.  Every year there are stories from across the nation of fights, shootings, stabbings, you name it, all because people just have to have something others want also.  This makes one wonder if it really is worth standing in line for any kind of a deal.  After all, is it really worth the possibility of getting hurt, or possibly even killed, just for a bargain?

One would also think that retailers would be concerned about these incidences, and want to curtail them if possible.  Yet, every year, the retailers seem to start their sales just that much earlier than the year before.  Anymore, it's really not a "Black Friday" sale, as much as it's become a "Gray Thursday" sale.

This year, there are stores that are actually opening early on Thanksgiving morning, then again Thanksgiving evening. Instead of opening at 5 am on Friday, some stores will be opening at 5pm Thursday evening, to get a jump on the holiday rush.

As I stated earlier, I understand that there are those who don't celebrate the holidays, so for them, it's nice to have stores open, especially if they're offering exceptional savings.  Really though, are retailers actually gaining that much more by opening so early?  If they're so concerned about sales, why don't they just stay open their normal hours, and still offer the great savings?

Several stores have bypassed the actual Black Friday sale completely, opting instead to offer sales for a week, or more, before Thanksgiving. I've heard commercials describing "Blue Friday", "White Wednesday", and other names, that are really just different ways to get around having a sale for only one day.

You've probably noticed that I'm not a big fan of all these crazy hours and days that are being set for after, (and nowadays before), Thanksgiving sales; it's true.  While the bargains may be good, the whole idea of Black Friday has become so diluted, and so competitive, for me at least, it just isn't fun anymore. What I like even less however are the policies some stores have adopted in conjunction with their Black Friday sales.

We've all seen signs at stores stating, "no loitering", "no parking", etc.; as an attempt to keep people from just hanging out at the store and not buying anything.  Yet, there are retailers, most notably Best Buy, who, despite not allowing this behavior normally, have no problem with letting people camp out in front of their stores, sometimes as early as before Halloween, just for their Black Friday sale.  Why?!

Not only does that seem very extreme, it questions whether these people actually have lives. One man in Florida, his wife, and a friend are currently camped out at a Best Buy, and have been for at least a couple weeks now.  They work, so they've been taking turns camping out at the Best Buy, so they can go to their jobs.

I think what bothers me the most about this however, is the double standard tone this sets.  Obviously if someone is just hanging around a store, or if someone is homeless, and tries to camp out even in the parking lot, they're told it's not allowed, and there's signs posted to prove it.  But someone does the same thing, because they want to spend money at the store, it's okay for them to camp out for days and days.  In other words, spend money, you can stay, don't, you can't be there.

Yes, as much as I like great sales and bargains, I have my limits. It seems weird to say that commercialism is getting even more commercialized, but it's true.  Black Friday is a great example of this.  What started as a one day event, has been blown into something that's dragged out for days on end, before and after Thanksgiving.  In some cases it seems Black Friday has become more of an anticipated "holiday" than Thanksgiving itself.

Just my opinion, but it would be nice to just get back to the basics of Black Friday.  It happens on the Friday after Thanksgiving, and only that day.  If retailers want to get crazy with their sales, why not open your doors from midnight that Friday, to 11:59 pm that same day?  And with today's technology, these same retailers can do the same thing on the internet, for those who can't, or don't want to actually go to a store.  Seems logical to me, shoppers still get great deals, and retailers are still making huge revenues.

Again, just my take on this subject.  I'll end this post with a wish for a Happy Thanksgiving to all; as well as safety for all those braving the "Gray Thursday", "Black Friday", mayhem that's sure to happen somewhere.

People Loving Prizefighters

While country has been a staple of the music industry for eons, the 90's saw the genre take a breath of fresh air with the emergence of Garth Brooks.

Brooks swept on to the scene with his raucously infectious brand of country that had listeners on their feet from the first note of each song.

For a decade, it seemed Brooks could do no wrong, (well, except for his venture into pop as "Chris Gaines"), releasing hit after hit; selling out shows everywhere, and smashing all sorts of records as he went.

Even many who previously had a dislike of country music liked what Garth Brooks was offering to listeners.

Then, in 2000, Brooks announced he was retiring; at least until his youngest daughter was 18. On a side note, it was also the year his 14 year marriage to his wife, Sandy, ended.

Though he'd retired, in 2005 Brooks released a new song, "Good Ride Cowboy".  He wrote the song in honor of one of his idols, bareback rider/singer Chris Ledoux, who had died that year.

A few years later, Garth came out of retirement again, to play a series of intimate, acoustic concerts in Las Vegas, and also released music, (old and new), exclusively through Wal-Mart stores. Regardless of the ventures during this time, Garth's fans proved they hadn't left the singer behind; they were there, waiting for anything new Brooks had to offer.  Even in "retirement", Brooks was still exceeding sales and concert attendance records everywhere.

Now, in 2014, Brooks has officially announced he's coming out of retirement.  He's released a list of tour dates, as well as a new single, "People Loving People".

During Brooks' retirement/divorce period, he got together with long time friend and fellow country singer, Trisha Yearwood.

The two had been friends for many years during their time in Nashville, but had never been an actual couple until after each had been previously married.  Yearwood's first marriage had been to Robert Reynolds, a member of the Mavericks.

During the 90's Yearwood racked up an impressive string of hits of her own, including, "Walk Away Joe", "XX's & OO's", and "She's in Love With the Boy", as well as other tunes.

By the time Trisha and Garth became a couple, Yearwood's musical career had slowed some, and the singer

began branching out in new directions.

She co-wrote a cookbook of down home recipes and had her her own cooking show on the Food Network, "Trisha's Southern Kitchen".

Like Garth, it seemed, Yearwood had "retired" her singing career for one sharing home cooked food with fans.

This year though, like Garth Brooks, Trisha has released new music to country radio.

Yearwood's latest offering, "Prizefighter", features Kelly Clarkson, and proves that, though Yearwood may not have been putting out new music, she hasn't lost any of the talent or energy she was known for with previous hits.

Though it's been quite awhile since either Garth or Trisha has had new music on the radio, it seems that each has hit the jackpot again with their new tunes. Now it's just a matter of who reaches the highest peak on the country radio charts.  Either way, listeners will definitely be the winners.

Country Legend Glen Campbell

Anyone who's listened to music, especially country music, has probably heard of Glen Campbell.  At the very least, they've heard a Glen Campbell song, whether by Glen himself, or a cover by another artist.  

This post is to shine some light on Campbell's career, as well as acknowledge artists who have done cover versions of Campbell's hits.

For myself, it's also a post honoring one of my mom's favorite singers of all-time.  A singer who, unfortunately, she has something in common with, Alzheimer's.

Rather than just run through Campbell's career achievements however, as stated earlier, I'm choosing to also highlight other artist's versions of Glen's hits, as well as more recent news about Campbell's life.


Before having hits as a solo artist, Glen Campbell had been a session musician, recording with some of the biggest names in music, including, Bobby Darin, Ricky Nelson, Dean Martin, Nat King Cole, The Monkees, Nancy Sinatra, Merle Haggard, Jan & Dean, Elvis Presley, and Frank Sinatra.  Campbell was also a session musician on The Beach Boys' "Pet Sounds", as well as doing a stint touring with the band, playing bass guitar and providing background harmonies.

As a solo artist, Campbell racked up several hits on the country charts, as well as crossover hits on pop radio.  Even those who don't know Campbell's classics like, "Gentle On My Mind", "Galveston", or "Wichita Lineman", usually have heard the iconic "Rhinestone Cowboy".

Personally, of all Campbell's hits, my favorite has always been one that wasn't as big as Glen's other songs, "Dreams of the Everyday Housewife".

 To this day, I don't know why I love this song so much; I was just a little girl when it was on the radio.  I just know that it's still one of my favorite Glen Campbell songs.

In addition to recording and touring extensively, Campbell also found time for acting, (playing opposite John Wayne in "True Grit"), and hosting his own TV show.  "The Glen Campbell Goodtime Hour" aired from 1969 to 1972, featuring guest stars, music and skits.

While Campbell's career was going smoothly, his personal life began to unravel.  One of the most prominent displays of this was Campbell's tumultuous relationship with Tanya Tucker.

Eventually Campbell seemed to get things together, and while not having hits on the radio, still toured extensively over the years, sounding as great as he always had.

2011 brought news that Campbell was suffering from Alzheimer's, but would continue to tour as long as he was able.  And that's exactly what he's been doing until now.  Yes, there were good days and bad days; regardless though, Campbell pressed on giving his fans all he had.

Earlier this year however, Campbell was forced to quit touring; the disease that was robbing his memory was taking it's toll on the legendary singer.

Though he's stopped touring, Campbell has released one last recording, his farewell to fans, friends and family, with the song, "I'm Not Gonna Miss You".  It's a bittersweet tale of how the singer won't miss anyone, not because he doesn't care, but because he's not going to remember them.  The song is even more haunting in the fact that the singer never actually says he won't remember anyone; just how he won't miss them.

While I knew of Glen Campbell's battle with Alzheimer's, and that he'd recorded "I'm Not Gonna Miss You", what got me writing this post was The Band Perry.  Early one morning I was listening to 98.7 The Bull's overnight show, and heard Kimberly Perry's distinctive voice singing a very familiar song, "Gentle On My Mind".

It's the band's current single, and is featured in the movie, "Glen Campbell, I'll Be Me", which is the story of Campbell's life.  Though it's hard for anyone to do a remake of anything that was hugely popular; The Band Perry do an excellent job with "Gentle on My Mind".

The Band Perry's single also had me remembering when 90's country singer, Wade Hayes did a cover of "Wichita Lineman".

I've always felt that Hayes wasn't given his due on this song.  He did a great job of covering the tune, yet, it didn't do very well at radio.

While researching videos for this post, I ran across some information that was new to me.  It seems Collin Raye, another popular country artist from the 90's, has released an entire tribute CD in honor of Glen Campbell.  He's also released his first single from this CD, "Galveston".

It's sad to think that someone who's had such an illustrious career in music, like Glen Campbell, isn't going to be able to remember any of it.  He won't remember how much his songs have contributed to country music, and to the lives of his fans around the world.

For me I guess, it's also sad, because I have some understanding of what's happening to Glen.  Though my mom's Alzheimer's isn't as advanced as Campbell's, I can still identify with what the country music legend is going through, and it makes me sad; not just for him, but for what lies ahead for my mom as well.

So, while Glen Campbell may not remember what he's contributed to the world of music, it's nice to know that other artists who have followed in his footsteps do remember; and are helping to keep Campbell's legacy alive and in everyone's memory.

Paul Revere is (Dough) Nuts!

If you're from the Pacific Northwest and/or a fan of Paul Revere & the Raiders, by now you've heard that band leader, Paul Revere, passed away October 4, 2014.  Since then the internet has been abuzz with news, stories, memories and the like from the media and fans all over the world.

 One of the latest stories related to Revere's death is courtesy of Voodoo Doughnut in Portland, Oregon.  They announced that in honor of Paul they'd be making a special, limited time doughnut.

At the time of the original announcement, no definite decisions had been made as to what the doughnut would look like, what flavor, etc.

As of October 14, 2014 though, the shop revealed what they'd come up with in tribute to the leader of Paul Revere & the Raiders.



A tricorn hat shaped doughnut, (representing the hat Paul sported on stage for 50 years), frosted in chocolate, and covered in red, white and blue sprinkles.  If that weren't enough, the doughnut is filled with butter cream.

The doughnut will be available in all four Voodoo Doughnut locations, (three in Oregon, and one in Colorado), from October 15, 2014, to December 15, 2014.

In addition, a portion of each sale of a Paul Revere doughnut will be donated to the Oregon Music Hall of Fame.

The donations will help the foundationIn raise funds to further music education.

If you live in the area, or plan on visiting between now and December 15th, be sure to make a stop by Voodoo Doughnut, and get yourself a Paul Revere doughnut.  Not only will you be paying your respects to a rock & roll icon, you'll be helping future rock & roll legends as well.

Review--Jason Aldean--"Old Boots New Dirt"

For his sixth studio album, Jason Aldean claims he's branching out a bit from his previous releases.  "Burnin' It Down", the first single from "Old Boots New Dirt", does seem to be a somewhat different approach for Aldean, but not a real stretch.

"Bunin' It Down" is a cross between a ballad and somewhat uptempo tune, telling the story of the love and passion the singer has for his love interest.  Different for Aldean, yes, a bit.  A hit on radio, definitely.

The rest of "Old Boots New Dirt", is pretty much standard Aldean, delivered the same way Jason has always done with his style of vocals.  Yet, while Aldean's latest album may not be too different than his last five, it still seems fresh, rather than the same old thing rehashed the same way a hundred times.

One theme that seems consistent on "Old Boots New Dirt", is of love lost.  Listening to the lyrics of say, "Miss That Girl", or "Don't Change Gone", it makes one wonder if the songs were chosen due to the upheaval Aldean's personal life was going through at the time.  These two songs, and the title track all have the common thread of lamenting love lost; with each song different enough from the others to not become mundane.

A definite stand out on "Old Boots New Dirt" is the song, "If My Truck Could Talk".  The lyrics tell how the truck has been good to the singer, but it knows too much about what he's done.  If the truck could talk, he'd have to pull out all the wires, set it on fire, roll it down a hill, anything to shut it up. 

While, as stated previously, Aldean's latest contribution isn't that much of a departure from his previous releases, Jason still manages to keep things from getting stale.  With fifteen tracks, (eighteen on the Target Exclusive CD), most of which are good songs, "Old Boots New Dirt" is worth buying, or at least giving a listen to.

HEALTH RISK WARNING!!!

(My apologies for this posting today; I was editing things, and accidently reposted it.  This is actually from 2 or 3 years ago.)

Since this blog can be about anything, I feel it’s my duty to pass on the following health risk warning:

SMOKED SALMON AND TEETH CAN BE BAD FOR YOUR HEALTH!!!

 I know what you’re thinking, “of course smoked salmon isn’t good for you; it’s really salty, etc.”  Agreed, however, that isn’t the warning I want to pass on here.

What I’m talking about is inhaling smoked salmon.  (On a side note, I wonder if this could be considered “second hand smoked”, since it was bought and not homemade.)

I’m sure everyone knows salmon, of any kind, should not be inhaled.  It’s meant to be eaten.  To be fair, I HAD been eating my smoked salmon; the last tiny bite flaked, (literally), on me and decided it wanted to be inhaled instead.

The risks of inhaling smoked salmon are great.  It can lead to choking; excessive coughing, (which in turn can lead to lack of sleep due to long-term coughing); watery eyes; headache, (from the choking and coughing); and tooth loss. Yes, tooth loss; yours, not the salmon’s…If your salmon still has teeth while you’re eating it, you have a whole other problem to deal with; such as overly fresh sushi!

Back to smoked salmon and tooth loss.  I’ll use myself as an example.

As stated earlier, the last bit of smoked salmon I was eating was accidently inhaled rather than eaten properly.  Immediately all of the symptoms I’ve mentioned kicked in.  My eyes watered and I was choking and coughing.  At one point I thought I had things under control, but I started choking again, only worse.  While this was going on, my mind was trying to figure out how such a small bit of salmon could make me choke and cough so much. 

When the choking finally subsided, I noticed that my mouth felt different for some reason.  A quick look in the mirror revealed why…Somewhere in the midst of choking on smoked salmon, one of my upper teeth decided to bail on me, leaving a nice, very noticeable gap when I open my mouth.  Not a good thing!  To make matters worse, since I can't find the missing tooth anywhere, I'm guessing I swallowed it.  YUCK!!!

In addition, the coughing wouldn’t stop.  Spent most of the rest of the night and today coughing, hard.  This has resulted in a massive headache.  BLEAH!!!

Enough complaining about myself though.  This blog is intended as a health risk warning.  Hopefully it’s done its job and you’re more aware of the dangers of smoked salmon and teeth now.

Remembering Paul Revere--The Last Madman of Rock & Roll

Much like the colonial Paul Revere spread the word about the British invasion, today the internet is spreading the word of the passing of another Paul Revere.  Paul Revere Dick, born in Nebraska, January 7, 1938, passed away October 4, 2014, at his home in Idaho.

For those not familiar with this Paul Revere, he was the founding member of the 60's band, Paul Revere & the Raiders.

 The band got it's start in the late 50's, early 60's in Idaho, and were then known as The Downbeats.  When Paul, and then lead singer, Mark Lindsay, moved to Portland, Oregon, the name was changed to Paul Revere & the Raiders. 

After moving to Portland, Paul met up with Roger Hart, a KISN radio DJ at the time, who became the band's manager.  Roger helped get the band exposure outside the region, eventually landing them as the house band on Dick Clark's "Where the Action Is", from 1965 to 1967.  The band was on TV five days a week, in their colonial garb, singing and being crazy. 

 I never had the chance to see Paul Revere & the Raiders when Mark was the lead singer.  My chance to see the band wasn't until 1978, when Louie Fontaine did lead vocals.  By then I'd been a major fan of the group for 10 years, having first seen them at 9 years old on "It's Happening", their afternoon show on ABC television.

Since then, I've seen the band many times, with different lead singers.  Michael Bradley, Carl Driggs, Darrin Medley, and current Raider, Darren Dowler, have all held the position of lead singer of the Raiders over the years.

While there have been many Raiders over the years, Paul Revere was always the guiding force behind the band.  Paul would lead the charge every show, bringing audiences a fast paced set of music and comedy.  No matter how many times one would see a Raider performance, it was still fresh, fun and highly entertaining; or as Paul himself described it, "organized chaos". 

Even well into his 70's Paul Revere still toured extensively with his band, playing casinos, fairs, festivals, cruises, and anywhere else they were invited to play, and Paul would rock just as hard as always, every time. 

At the beginning of 2014 though, Paul announced that he was going to take a break from the road, upon doctor's orders.  He revealed that he'd been told to take a breather much earlier, but had continued touring, despite the fact.  Revere had had a bout with cancer years before; though this time, no real explanation was given, other than he was having health issues.

At the time of the announcement, Revere assured fans, he was going to rest up, so he could get back to doing what he loved.  In the meantime, his current band of Raiders, Darren Dowler, Doug Heath, Ron Foos, Danny Krause and Tom Scheckel, would carry on, fulfilling the tour dates the band was already committed to.

Then came the news on October 4, 2014, Paul Revere had passed away.  "Uncle Paul", "The Last Madman of Rock & Roll",  had died at home in Idaho, having gone full circle from where his band started their musical journey.

Rock & Roll Heaven has just gained another legend and leader in Paul Revere.  I'm sure he's already up there, helping to organize fun music and chaos for the angels.

R.I.P. Paul, you will be missed.

All in the "Spirit" of the Season

A couple years or so ago, I wrote a post for Halloween about ghosts, spirits and poltergeists.  Rather than rehash that post here, I'll share the link to it, and continue with the content of this current post.

http://kuplramblings.blogspot.com/2011/10/ghosts-spirits-poltergeists.html

One area I didn't discuss in the previous post is the role psychics have in dealing with these various entities. Since it's Halloween season again, I've decided to tackle the subject now.

Some believe that all psychics are fake; while others believe the opposite.  Then there are those, like me, that feel both beliefs are true.  Since I can't speak for others on the subject, this post will be about what I think and how I feel about it.

First, I should state that I feel everyone has psychic abilities.  Whether it's very little, or very strong, each of us most likely has had at least one experience when we just "knew" what was going to happen in a situation. I know with me, it's been mostly minor things,  like something as simple as a song.

I can't count how many times I've been listening to the radio, heard a song, and thought, "wow, it's been a long time since I've heard that song", only to discover, "oh wait it's NOT the song I thought it was". Then three or four songs later, the song I thought I'd heard actually DOES come on the radio!

I realize most people brush these things off as coincidence.  When it happens often enough though, I feel it has to be more than just a random happening..

There are other instances I've had, some bigger than just music on the radio; for now though, back to the main subject of this post.

It may seem contradictory for me to say I believe everyone has psychic abilities, yet also believe some are fake; so I'll try to explain.

I'll be the first to admit I'm not a trusting person; never have been.  I guess my skepticism of some psychics is because there have been some that have been proven as fakes.  By "fake", I mean that they present themselves as being more intuitive than they really are.  These "psychics" rely more on what's known as "cold reading", than actual spiritual connections.

A "cold read" is when someone picks up on the body language of others, and directs their questions to the person accordingly.  The questions usually start out fairly generic, then become more specific, as the read continues.  From the body language, and the responses of the person being read, these "psychics" tell the person what they're hearing from the spirits around them.

Sometimes there aren't any spirits involved at all.  These are the times when a "psychic" will focus on a person, ask the same questions, and answer accordingly.  To me, these people are fakes, because they're charging others to basically tell them things they've learned from talking to the person.  I've also experienced this first hand. Long story short on that, a friend of mine, (who gave more information to the "psychic" than necessary), had a great reading, and came away having heard everything she'd hoped to hear.  Her sister wasn't so forthcoming with answers, but did give a few here and there.  Her body language was also a bit tense and defensive.  This person's reading wasn't quite as detailed as her sister's, and wasn't nearly as positive.

My skepticism got the better of me at that point, so I caved and let the "psychic" read me.  Unlike my friends, I was very vague with my answers, and didn't volunteer any information beyond that.  My reading took less than 5 minutes, and I was told I wasn't "readable"; that I had to believe to be read.  To me, there's the proof this person was a fake.  Just my opinion though.

Even well known psychics have been scrutinized, and accused of being fakes. One name that comes to mind is John Edward.

Edward is a psychic who became best known through his TV show, "Crossing Over".

I watched this show often, and loved hearing the positive messages John gave to those in the studio audience, and at other readings.

At the same time, I kept thinking that something was just "off" about how the readings happened. It wasn't that I disliked Edward, but for some reason I didn't have a good vibe about him.  No matter how nice he seemed on the show, I just kept feeling like he might be a bit arrogant and insincere.  I continued to watch "Crossing Over" though, because of the general positiveness of the show.

Whether my feeling about John Edward was true or not, I don't know.  I do know that he was eventually called out publicly and accused of being fake; that he relied on cold reading to do his job.  Again, whether it's true or not, I can't say; it did seem to hurt his reputation though.  While he's still around, his popularity took a major dip after the accusations were made.

Another psychic who's gained celebrity status in the past few years is Kim Russo.

Russo is currently on the TV show, "The Haunting Of...", on the LMN Network.  The show features Russo meeting up with celebrities who first appeared on "Celebrity Ghost Stories", telling of their personal encounters with ghosts.

Russo's job on "The Haunting Of...", is to meet up with one of these celebrities, at the site of the person's experience.  From there, Russo and that week's celebrity go back through what happened to the person, with Russo picking up on, and feeling the energy of the place.  Sometimes the energy is good, and sometimes it's not.

For the most part I think Russo does her job well, though, again, my skepticism has me questioning some things.

For instance, Russo claims to not know anymore than basic details about each guest, yet some of these people, (though maybe not as popular now as in the past), are well known enough, one would have to be living under a rock not to know the details of their lives.

Also, during the shows, Russo will caution the celebrity to not give too many details on a situation.  Yet at the same time, she'll ask questions, and let the person give a detailed explanation.

Of course, I'm not even close to being a professional in the field of psychics, so maybe there's something I'm not aware of that would explain this.  Also, it is television, so some of the perception could be in the editing of the show.

Currently the most popular psychic on TV is Theresa Caputo, "The Long Island Medium", who's show airs on TLC.

While I still cling defiantly to a shred of skepticism about psychics, if I had to say real or fake, I would say Theresa Caputo is the real deal.

Caputo just seems to be herself, regardless of the situation she may be in. She can be loud, funny, apprehensive, adamant, you name it, that's Theresa. She's not just a person on TV doing her job as a psychic; she lets viewers see into her personal life, which includes her family, friends, pets, etc. Or as Caputo herself once said, (to paraphrase), there's more to her than just her nails and hair.

"Long Island Medium" is different also in how episodes are done.  While most shows, especially in this genre, are taped, produced and aired, Caputo's show has, a couple times, been aired live; has gone behind the scenes; and has aired special episodes showing reads that didn't make original airings of the show. Combined, it makes for a fun, entertaining program.

For some, I suppose, this would be a reason to think "Long Island Medium" isn't real.  That's okay, because, to paraphrase Caputo again, she doesn't try to make believers out of anyone.  She's there simply to relay messages from our loved ones that have passed on.

Like Kim Russo's "The Haunting Of...",  the vibe of Caputo's show may be in the editing.  Even if that is the case though, "Long Island Medium" still seems more believable over all.  And like John Edward's "Crossing Over", Caputo always has positive messages for those she reads; messages that viewers can relate to and embrace as well.

So, there you have my take on the psychic world.  I'm no expert, though I've had my own experiences over the years. And I have my doubts about some who profess to being true psychics.  Over all though, I'm entertained by what I've seen so far, and I often find comfort in the messages that are given.

Playing "Tag" & "Connect the Dots" @ the Same Time

The title of this post may, understandably, confuse you.  Read on though, and hopefully you'll see where this writing leads, and how you can play "tag" and "connect the dots" all at the same time.

As kids, we've all played "Tag" at least once.  The game where one person is "It", and chases the other players around.  If the designated person "tags", (touches), a player, that person is out for the rest of that round.  Or in another version, the tagged person is the new "It", and play continues.

Either way, as stated, it's a game that kids everywhere play at one time or another.

As we age, we begin noticing other types of tag, like price tags.  This theory leads us to "Dot 2" of our connect the dot game.

We become aware of  material things we want, and need, and what it costs to have these things.  Price tags, of course, are a way of telling prices, and if we can afford the item or not.

No matter the size, shape, or color, if there's something that shows the price of an object, it's a price tag.


One of the items that usually comes with a price tag is paint.

   T

There are 101 uses, at least, for paint, and probably as many, or more, types, colors and prices of that paint. The type of paint most associated with "tag" however,  is probably spray paint.  If you're still following along, we've reached "Dot 3".

What used to be called "graffiti", is now referred to as "tagging".  It's still basically the same graffiti that's been around for eons, though over the years there have been cases where the paintings have become quite elaborate.  With this change came the name change of the art to "tagging."

Like graffiti, tagging is usually done on the sides of buildings, railroad cars, overpasses, and wherever the tagger is able to get to, to create their unique art.  Some of these designs can be very elaborate and beautiful; it's just too bad it's usually done in places it's not supposed to be.  That's a subject for another time though; on to "Dot 4".

"Dot 4" is the sole reason I've written this post.

In social media, blogs, etc., "tagging" means to label something with key words.  These words will help others find your musings when searching for things on the internet.  For example, if something has been tagged with the word "hippopotamus", and someone does a search using that word, anything tagged with the word "hippopotamus" should come up in the person's search.  At least that's how *I* understand it to be!

When having a blog it’s good to tag each post as soon as it’s written. Tagging should not be put off  for say, 4 1/2 years, or 293 posts into blogging.  I learned this lesson first hand a couple weeks ago, when it dawned on me that I hadn't ever tagged anything I'd written.

This discovery has lead me to going back through all 293 posts, and tagging each one, (no matter how big or small the post), with as many keywords as possible.  

Along this new journey, I’ve learned how much I’ve written about the weather and that I sometimes repeat things in a different way.  I’ve also refreshed my memory on some of the posts I’d forgotten about.

The bright side?  I guess that would be there aren’t more posts to go back through; STILL working on back tagging!  Also good:  I’ve been tagging the most recent posts as soon as they’re written. 

Sometimes even things that can be embarrassing, one needs to share with others, because even though it’s a stupid thing, it is kind of funny.  

Still not sure how "tag" and "connect the dots", can be done at the same time?  Me either; but the thought sounded good in my head, so I wrote this post. The game, "tag", is what I thought of  in addition to tagging; things just kind of spiraled from that to "connect the dots", and so on. As I explain it, it's just how my brain malfunctions. ((SMILE))

 Rather than just delete this post, I decided to share it with readers anyway.  Maybe someone out there will help figure the connection out!

REVIEW--"The Big Revival"--Kenny Chesney

On September 23, 2014, Kenny Chesney released "The Big Revival", his fifteenth studio album in his twenty year career.

While it's safe to say Chesney has changed and improved over the years, it's also safe to say that his past few albums haven't changed much. There's always the fun songs, the beach songs, the reflective songs; a mix of tunes that has served Chesney well, maybe too well.

It seems that Chesney has become complacent in the music he puts out.  He's found what works, and rather than expanding and improving on it, he seems happy to just keep putting out more of the same.  Even his descriptions of songs don't seem to change from album to album.  Each one seems to be about his life, touches his feelings, tells the story of small towns, growing up in those towns, and so on.
That's not to say Chesney's music isn't good, it's just not as new and fresh as it was a few albums ago.

"The Big Revival", like Chesney's previous albums, follows the same groove and path that his fans have come to expect.  While this makes fans happy, it's not necessarily gaining him more fans, and may even possibly drive a few fans away with the tediousness of his musical choices.

"American Kids", the first single released to radio, is the typical, catchy, feel-good song that plays well on radio.  It's upbeat, all-American, small town fun in a three to four minute package.  It's the kind of song that catches your attention and makes you curious to hear more.

Unfortunately for "The Big Revival", "American Kids" is the highlight of the album.  While there are a few stand out songs, on this CD, including the title track, none quite equal the first single.  In fact, Chesney's next single, "Til It's Gone", doesn't seem as good a choice for radio as say, the title track.  Where "American Kids" is an upbeat, lively tune, "Til It's Gone", just kind of drones on and on, with nothing in the lyrics really standing out to catch your attention.

Chesney did team up with Grace Potter once again, this time for the tune "Wild Child".  This song is actually not too bad, and would be a good choice for a future single.

That's pretty much "The Big Revival" in a nutshell.  Just change the title of the CD, the song titles, and twist the music around a bit, and that's it, you've got a Kenny Chesney album; nothing really new to hear, but good if you like to stay in a comfort zone with music.

Concerts + Crowds = Chaos

I've been going to concerts for as long as I can remember. I'd also estimate that at least 50% to 75% of those concerts over the past half century have been general admission seating.

For those who may not know what general admission seating is, it's where everyone pays the same price for a ticket to a concert, regardless of whether they're in the front or back of the concert venue.

I remember in the late 70's large venues held concerts that featured "festival seating".  In other words, it was general admission, with everyone scrambling for a seat when the doors opened.

There were often injuries that resulted from this; and in 1979, at a Cincinnati, Ohio Who concert, eleven people were killed in a stampede for seats.

Despite this tragedy, to me at least, it always seemed once the rush for seats was over, the crowds at any given concert were fairly decent and friendly.

Then again, maybe it was the types of concerts I went to back then.

I was more into oldies, pop and country rock at the time.  Probably the most "hard core" rock act I'd seen by then was when Aerosmith opened for Three Dog Night in 1974.

By the 1980's, there were some rock acts that were known for having rough crowds at their shows.  Most of those artists and bands though actually catered to that type of audience, so it was almost expected that things would get crazy at concerts.  In fact, I went to college with a guy at the time that spent his weekends at various local hangouts.  If he didn't have at least one bruise or cut by the time he was back in class Monday, he considered it a bad weekend for fun!

By the 1990's, my concert going was at it's peak.  There was always some artist or band, new or old, that I just had to see. 

This is when I circled back to listening to country music more, while still enjoying the other music I'd grown up with.  It's also the time I started noticing a shift in how concert crowds were behaving.

The rough, rowdy crowds that had once seemed confined to the punk scene, had started spilling over into the more mainstream rock and pop world.

A perfect example was when Weird Al Yankovic performed at the Clark County Fair, in Ridgefield, Washington.

The shows were free then, with fair admission.  My son, Josh, was approximately 6 years old at the time, and a huge fan of Weird Al.

I took him to the afternoon show, and got him right up to the stage; unfortunately, we didn't stay for the show.

Before the concert even began, several audience members began throwing things, ripping up stuffed animals, and generally caused a riot.  It actually got dangerous enough that we left.


Despite this incident though, most of my concert going was uneventful, as far as the behavior of the crowds was concerned.

Fast forward to about the past 5 years or so; around the time country music really started to be more pop/rock oriented.  With this new trend, it seemed country concert goers were also picking up the habits of rock audiences from years past.

At first I didn't really notice it where I live in the Pacific Northwest.  Yes, there were always those few in the crowd who would get drunk and rowdy, but were still considered harmless.

My first real glimpse of a rough country music concert crowd was in Fargo, North Dakota.  I would never have expected a concert featuring Julie Roberts, Chris Young and Emerson Drive to draw the type of crowd I encountered.  These people made the crowd at Weird Al look tame!  Poor Julie Roberts was just trying to get through her set, when someone in the middle of the crowd threw a gallon size drink container at her, almost hitting her in the face. 

The same crowd pushed, shoved and elbowed people in front of them, trying to make it to the front of the stage.  At one point, during Emerson Drive's set, security actually had to stop the show, until order was restored.

At the time, I just chalked the crowd's behavior up to being a "North Dakota" thing, (for lack of a better phrase).  Though there had been an incident or two at country concerts in my home territory, they were nothing like in North Dakota.  Then came the year the Bull, (KUPL at the time), reintroduced Countryfest.

  

Unlike the Countryfests of the past, this one was held in the "Ro-Zone" during Rose Festival in Portland, Oregon.  The show was general admission, and like usual, concert goers began lining up in the morning for the afternoon/evening show. 

The difference with that crowd was, trouble started brewing before the gates were even open.  There were those farther back in the line who felt it wasn't fair that they weren't in line first.  Several were plotting how they could rush the ones in the front, to get past them and gain a better vantage point; and they very loudly let this fact be known to anyone within earshot.

Meanwhile, there were others who, despite a no smoking rule, lit up while in line, complained about others not liking it, and any number of things they felt should be different so they would be happy. Then the gates opened and the real  "fun" began.

I'm not opposed to people drinking; if it makes their concert going experience better, so be it.  However, when these peoples' behavior impairs the enjoyment of those around them, it's a problem.  Long story short on this incident; all chaos broke lose, and there were some really mean, nasty, rude people there, who didn't care about anything other than that *they* had a good time. 

Even after that incident though, I still felt like country concert goers were the best of any other genre; until recently.  More and more frequently I find myself not having as good a time as I used to at concerts.  It isn't due to the shows not being good;  90% of the time it's because of an unruly, rude crowd.

 I really feel that there's a direct correlation between country concert goers now, and the turn towards pop/rock that country music has taken.   The way I see it,  with the change in country music, it's attracting listeners who used to listen to other genres; genres where crowds can be a bit rougher at live performances.

At first I thought maybe it's just because I'm getting older; maybe I'm becoming less tolerant.  I really can't compare how I'm feeling with most of my fellow concert goers, since we're all pretty much in the same age bracket, give or take a few years.

My age is also what held me back from writing this post sooner.  I didn't want someone reading it, and thinking exactly that; that it's just the rambling complaints of an old lady. 

I emailed Jake Byron from 98.7 The Bull with my concerns, telling him how I felt, and what I wanted to say.

While Jake said that there will always be those who will see my post as one from a cranky old lady, my feelings, and those of my fellow older concert buddies are valid.  He then validated my feelings more by letting me know that *he* feels the same way I and my friends do. 

Jake is only in his 30's, (the average age of current country music listeners), and doesn't like the rough trend that's entering the country genre. That was good enough for me; it was time to write my blog post, which you've just read.

 It's not that I don't understand wanting to have fun; I totally get that.  I also understand that an artist feeds off the vibe of the crowd.  The more worked up the crowd, the more energized the performer.  I just wish it could be both ways.  I know it's possible, it's been done before.

New Music: Kristian Bush--"Trailer Hitch"

If you've been listening to country music within the past decade, you've no doubt heard of Sugarland.

Originally a trio, Sugarland hit country airwaves in July, 2004 with "Baby Girl", and have been on a roll of hits from then on.

In 2006 group founder, Kristen Hall, left the group, leaving Jennifer Nettles and Kristian Bush to carry on as a duo.

The end of 2011 also brought an end, (at least temporarily), to Sugarland.  Though both Nettles and Bush say the duo has not split up, they've taken a break to pursue solo projects.  Nettles has put out at least one single, "That Girl", and gone on the road to promote the single and CD.

During the Sugarland hiatus Bush has been writing songs and touring the country.  Whether this is the reason it's taken longer for him to release a song to radio, I don't know.  What I do know is, his first solo contribution to country music was worth the wait.

"Trailer Hitch" is an upbeat, almost tongue in cheek look at life and it's excesses.

The singer tells how much happier he'll be with less things in his life to worry about; and the over all emphasis of the tune is that you can't take things with you when you die.  Or as the song itself states, "never seen a hearse with a trailer hitch".

Though Kristian Bush may have been almost silent as a member of Sugarland, now that he's chosen to let his voice be heard, it seems he'll be making a big impact on country listeners everywhere.  Give "Trailer Hitch" a listen and see what you think.

Mmmmm....Do You Need To Be Alone?

Attention:  This post may not be suitable for younger readers.

There are very few people anywhere in the world that haven't heard of Voodoo Doughnut and it's crazy doughnut concoctions.

While the Bacon Maple Bar Doughnut is the business' best known item, the doughnut that has me writing this post is the No Name Doughnut.

One Sunday, after attending another event, one of my friends asked if we should go to Voodoo Doughnut.  Since the other friend has never been there, we went.

The friend who made the suggestion was eagerly awaiting her turn so she could purchase her No Name doughnut.  After about a half hour wait, (fairly short for a Sunday), my friends and I bought the doughnuts we'd chosen.

Back in our friend's car, two of us decided, since we were going to lunch, we weren't eating our doughnuts immediately.  Our No Name doughnut friend, (and driver of the vehicle we were in), said she was having hers right then and there.

  

She'd been waiting for that raised doughnut, with chocolate frosting, covered in Rice Krispies and peanut butter drizzle.

We took off and she was eating her No Name doughnut while driving to our next destination.

As she's driving, and eating, this friend was making "Mmmmmmmmmm, mmmmmmm, mmmmmmm" sounds, because the doughnut was so good.  She did it several times and at one point I asked if she needed to pull over and let the other two of us out, so she could be alone with her doughnut!  We all had a good laugh about it, as she went back to eating and "mmmm"ing. 

We began joking how this friend went for doughnuts that were anonymous, (no name), and other silly things.  I also said she could start a side business, like "phone eating".   It would be like those calls advertised on late night TV; the ones that cost $3.00 a minute. People on diets, who start craving sweets, could call our friend, and she could be on the other end of the line, with her No Name doughnut, her noises...you get the idea.

I told both friends, that all this silliness was giving me ideas about a blog post I could write, and that the more we talked, the more the idea was growing in my head, and I was just going to have to write it.

The three of us managed to make it to our next stop, Red Robin, for lunch, without anymore "mmmm"ing. , As it turned out however, my other friend was about to be added to the blog post for her own "mmmmm" moment.

Red Robin has some of the best honey mustard anywhere, bar none.  

This other friend absolutely loves this mustard, and always asks for extra when she's at Red Robin.  

On this day, she got her food, and started dipping her fries in the honey mustard.  Next thing you know, she's doing the same "mmmmmm, mmmmmm, mmmmm", as the other friend did with her doughnut!  Not as loudly though, since we were in a restaurant, and not the seclusion of a vehicle.

I jokingly said to my friend, "maybe you should take your honey mustard somewhere a bit more private, where the two of you can be alone".  We all had another good laugh; and then I let her know she was officially being added to my blog post about the other friend's doughnut.  

This post is a result of what I told my two friends I was going to do.  It may not seem as interesting just reading it, (you probably had to be there to totally get what was going on), but it was one of those things that got stuck in my head, and needed to be let out.

My only regret about this whole thing is, our other friend that we'd met up with originally hadn't come along with us afterward, so she missed out on the rest of the fun that day.

I 

It's All In Our Heads: A Mish-Mash Of Thoughts & Theories

Things are always happening in this great big world of ours, every second, minute and hour of every day.

While most of the time these things have no correlation with each other, sometimes even the most unrelated subjects will spark a unique connection in one's mind.

That's what happened to me over the past couple of weeks.  First, the death of Robin Williams, then the news that Taylor Swift has left country to go pop.

Both stories had my brain thinking and rethinking about a myriad of things, but nothing that I put into print, until now.

 It's safe to say that there are few people in this world who haven't heard the names Robin Williams and Taylor Swift.

Robin came zooming into our lives as alien Mork from the planet Ork; first on Happy Days, then in his own series, Mork & Mindy, with Pam Dawber.

 Nearly 30 years later, Taylor  grasped fame as a fresh faced 16 year-old singer, ready to take the country world by storm.

Comparing these two side by side, you might think they have little to nothing in common with each other, and for the most part you'd be right.

It's been said that Robin Williams was born to make people laugh; and it's a job he was excellent at doing.  Laughter is what Robin was best known for in his life.

On the flip side, Williams' talent was so vast, he was able to play more serious characters in the movies, and still have viewers enthralled with his work; it's a rarity that few in his business have experienced. No one questioned if he was capable of being so diverse, it was just accepted that he was.

That's why, when it was reported Robin Williams had taken his own life, it didn't surprise me as much as the public's reaction to the news.

Despite the dramatic roles Williams has done, people still categorize him as a comedian, who happens to do some serious work as well.

More than one report I heard though, expressed surprise that Williams would have committed suicide, because he always seemed like such a happy guy.  Every time I heard that, all I could think was, "that's what people saw on the outside, you don't know what was going on in his head".

In reality, most comedians are in the business as a form of self therapy.  Their personal lives aren't that great, and being able to make fun, laugh, and have others laugh at the things a comedian says, helps ease the pain the person is feeling inside.

There have been so many stories of comedians, before Robin Williams, that have told of the sadness in their lives.  Freddie Prinze, John Belushi, and John Candy are just a few who had life issues they dealt with through comedy; so why the surprise that they weren't happy in life?

Then there's Taylor Swift.

I'll be the first to admit, when Taylor hit the country music scene, I dismissed her as just a kid that would burn out quickly, or grow up and air her issues, like other artists had done.

The more she did, and the more control she had of what she did, and how she did it, the more I thought my first impression was correct.

However, as the years went by, and Swift matured, I came to discover that this girl is the real deal.  I now believe she was given so much freedom early in her career, not because she was spoiled, but rather because someone had the foresight to see the true talent the girl has.

At the same time I was changing my mind, the naysayers were stepping forward to bash anything and everything Taylor has done in her short life.  It's like they waited until she was an adult, and all the negativity began surfacing.  It's to a point that it seems Swift can't even breath correctly in some peoples' opinions.

So when Taylor recently announced her next album will be pop, not country, it wasn't a big surprise that it caused an uproar.

Except for die-hard Taylor Swift fans, people began saying all kinds of mean things about Taylor and her decision, without knowing all the facts, (which is usually the case).

While Swift is a singer/songwriter and Robin Williams was a comedian/actor; this is where the two share common ground; with different reactions to that shared space.

Robin Williams was readily accepted as both a comedian and serious actor.  While some critics may have doubted Williams' ability, they were few and far between.  Whether age, or maturity, had anything to do with this, who knows, and it doesn't really matter.  The fact is, Williams was given the opportunity to shine, and show the various facets of, at least his public life.

Taylor Swift has grown up in the public eye.  From the age of 16, to almost 25 years old, the public has watched Swift grow and mature in her craft as well as her age.

Like any young adult, Taylor is still learning about herself and her likes and wants in this world.  The difference for her though, she's done her growing up in front of the entire world.  For some reason people seem to think, because of this, Swift should be different from others her age.  She's consistently put down for behaving like a normal young adult.  And now the change from country, to pop is being used as one more strike against her.

Country and pop have been crossing genres for decades now, so it surprises me that people are in such an uproar that Taylor is exploring that road.

Much like Robin Williams doing comedy and dramatic roles, why shouldn't Taylor Swift be able to explore different genres of music?  It's not like it hasn't been done before.  CMT Crossroads is a great example of mixing genres of music.  Justin Moore's current single, "Home Sweet Home", is a cover of Motley Crue, and even features Vince Neil from the band.

In the recent past, country has warmly received artists like Kid Rock, Uncle Kracker, and Sheryl Crowe, as well as a number of actors and actresses throwing their hats into the country ring.  If country can accept pop/rock artists into their genre, why do they not want to share their country artists with the pop/rock world? The logic that's supposedly behind this thinking escapes me.

And there it is, what has been swimming around in my mind the last couple of weeks.  The thoughts and theories that I'm trying to sort out.  So far, what I've come to conclude is this: What it boils down to is, all celebrities are just normal people like the rest of us.  They have highs and lows; they get sick and have pain like the rest of us.  They have varied interests, ideas, plans, etc., like the rest of us.  The ONLY thing that separates celebrities from the rest of us is, more people know their names. Yes, each one of them had to have some kind of talent to make it as far as they have; far enough to be considered more than just a flash in the pan.  They've survived longer than the 15 minutes of fame each of us dreams of, and they work to stay at that level.

The bottom line always returns to the same thing though; they're human.  They make mistakes, they're vulnerable, maybe even more so than the rest of us.  Why?  Because they're living their lives for the world to see.  Yes, fame was their choice; however, that doesn't mean they can be perfect 100% of the time.  Instead, it means they tend to hide more and more of what's really going on inside themselves, good and bad.

So while the suicide of a beloved comedian, or the switch in genres of a young singer catches the public off guard, it really shouldn't; after all, even celebrities need normalcy in their lives.

All of this is still a huge mish-mash in my mind; it's not easy trying to put everything going on inside one's self in print, and convey it perfectly. After all, none of us can fully know what another thinks and feels; we'll never have all the answers we want as to why people do what they do.

For myself, this post is a way to set my thoughts free from my head.  Thank you for taking the time to read it.