RSS Feed
Mar 9

I’ve got the young blood blues…

Posted on Tuesday, March 9, 2010 in blues, country, music, music reviews

I almost passed over this album. I am not a big fan of folk or country.  Oh, I listen to a little now and then (with Kahuna in the house country music will be played) but unlike every other genre of music I don’t usually step outside my comfort zone of old favorites.  I am so happy I stretched and picked up Young Blood Blues by Hurray for the Riff Raffyoungbloodblues1

The band has an old time  folk-ish bluegrass sound.  Alynda’s voice is beautiful and while the lyrics are very timely the music itself feels timeless. This is an album you want to take your time on.  The more you listen the more layers in the music and lyrics you discover.  

I don’t hear the creole that other reviewers have mentioned but songs like Take Me sound very country blues.  I don’t really have a favorite although the banjo on Young Blood Blues is just awesome and the fiddle on Slow Walk is cool as well and makes a light and melodious counterpart to the darkness and sharp edges of the lyrics.  

I really like Young Blood Blues and can happily recommend it.  You can only download it from Emusic and the band’s site but you can listen to it on their myspace page and on emusic.  I also have a live track from the band at last year’s SXSW in the sidebar.

Website for Hurray for the Riff Raff

Hurray for the Riff Raff myspace page

- Kit

Mar 8

Give me your hand…

Posted on Monday, March 8, 2010 in blogging, tech

So this weekend…I needed help.  I was in the mood to change and update my blog.  Something lighter and brighter.  With all the changes going on I wanted a fresh and new look for my blog as well.  So Friday I went hunting for new themes and found several that I liked.  I tried a few out, then installed the last one and everthing went haywire.

Enter frantic email exchanges between tech support and myself as they tried to help when I accidently broke my blog.  I don’t rec McKremie  ( my wonderful hosting provider) much since everyone has such different web needs.  What works well for me might not work for everyone else but I really have to brag on their tech support.  They are fast to respond, they never make me feel stupid and they are awesome at solving my sometimes bizarre issues.    

They couldn’t fix my latest problem (it was a software issue on my side) but they told me what they thought the issue was and once Kahuna got home he used his mighty scripting power to remove the evil bits of code from a new theme I was trying out and let me load a non-evil theme.

After all this happened I was nervous about using any themes I found.  The broken theme came from the Wordpress theme site so even those are not completely safe.  The one theme I found that I was comfortable with doesn’t support threaded comments so it got shelved in the ‘last resort’ pile.

I gave up and downloaded Artisteer.  Yeah, I know - but I don’t have time to code my own themes, much less learn CSS.  Artisteer is kinda cool and fun to play around with.  More importantly, their sales and tech support staff are awesome.  I am still not used to the smaller keyboard on my notebook and I keep hitting the ‘t’ key when I mean to hit the ‘r’.  I did this with my email address while ordering the program and then frantically emailed support to try and get my license sent to the correct address.  Within minutes they had corrected my addy and sent me all my info.   

Tech support can be a very stressful job so thanks again everyone for your help and professionalism. I appreciate it.

- Kit

Mar 5

Turn the radio up for that sweet sound…

Posted on Friday, March 5, 2010 in blogging, mp3s, music

Sorry, but ‘click the little speaker icon’ just doesn’t evoke the same feelings.  Am I missing all the odes to computer music services?

Anyway, I have been searching for a simple way to add music to my blog so when I do a review you all can listen to it here.  Some players sort of run, some don’t and many are just too much work.  A few days ago I found Grooveshark.

Grooveshark  is a streaming music service. You can listen to music, upload your favorites and share them with others and create music player widgets for your blog.  If you can point, click, copy and paste you can stream music on your blog.  The service is free to use and according to the Terms of Service, legal.

(as in they pay the artists for the right to stream the songs and are not violating copyright)

Aside from all that - it is just kinda cool. ;)

Have a good weekend!

- Kit

Mar 3

You only see the world you make…

Posted on Wednesday, March 3, 2010 in art, blogging, books, comics, photography, words

My post for today is still waiting for an email to clarify a legal point, so instead I give you -LINKSPAM!!!

Zahi Hawass  - The Awesome website of Dr Zahi Hawass.

 New discoveries, photos, maps, blog and photo blog, dig and DNA research updates, and lots more information about Egypt and Egyptology.  All this from the old guy that climbs around inside the pyramids without breaking a sweat.  Very Cool.

The Essential Wonder Woman Encyclopedia - From the Del Rey newsletter -

DC Comics’ Amazon Princess, Wonder Woman, reigns supreme this April as Del Rey will publish The Essential Wonder Woman Encyclopedia by Phil Jimenez and John Wells. Wielding her impervious silver bracelets and golden Lasso of Truth, Wonder Woman has battled forces of evil from the Axis powers to a slew of super-villains worldwide, teamed up with the likes of Superman, Batman, Green Lantern, and The Flash, and become a high-flying feminist icon and pop-culture superstar beloved for decades. Now, for the first time in more than thirty years, there’s a definitive A to Z volume that draws together all the necessary knowledge you’ve ever wanted about the star-spangled, action-packed history of Wonder Woman. The 496-page volume will feature hundreds of gorgeous black and white illustrations, as well as two full-color inserts, that chronicle over seventy years of adventure. Diamond Comics will offer an exclusive hardcover edition of the book through comic book stores nationwide. Both the paperback and hardcover books will feature original paintings by fan favorite artist Adam Hughes. Visit www.comicshoplocator.com to find a comic book store near you.

And finally,

It speaks for itself. - What if Bertie Wooster were Batman?

- Kit

Mar 2

Out of the light of the sun…

Posted on Tuesday, March 2, 2010 in music, music reviews

Sometimes you just wanna rock.

dearagonyCheck out  Dear Agony by Breaking Benjamin. They are a mainstream band, but they have a distinctive sound and I really like the music.  The themes are a little dark but over all the music has a  ‘dig your heels in and growl at the world‘ feel.   

 My favorites are Into the Nothing, Fade Away (with its great metal sound) and the power ballad of the set, Give Me a Sign.

You can listen to the album on the Grooveshark widget in my sidebar or over on the band’s myspace page. Their myspace is kind of pretentious slick but don’t worry - the album is still great rock.

-Kit

Mar 1

We’re going out tonight…

Posted on Monday, March 1, 2010 in art, blues, music, music festivals

March 2010 Blues and Music Festivals in the South:

Monday-Saturday, March 1-6, 2010
Mr. Sam’s 2nd Annual Love Cruise
From New Orleans to Progreso, Yucatan and Cozumel, Mexico
www.mrsammusic.net
337-477-0835

Friday-Saturday, March 12-13, 2010
Bonita Blues Festival
Bonita Springs, Florida, U.S.
www.bonitablues.com
239-947-0715

 

Saturday, March 13, 2010
1st KNON Ft Worth Blues Festival
Ft. Worth, Texas, U.S.
www.KNON.org
214-828-9500 X227

Wednesday, March 17-21, 2010
Johnnie Walker St. John Blues Festival
St. John, United States Virgin Islands, U.S.
www.stjohnbluesfestival.com
340-643-6475

Tuesday, March 23-27, 2010
Blues Harmonica Jam Camp
Clarksdale, Mississippi, U.S.
www.harmonicajamcamp.com
310-457-8278

Thursday-Sunday, March 25-28, 2010
12th Annual Coral Gables Bluesfest
Coral Gables, Florida, U.S.
www.bierhaus.cc
305-776-4048

Saturday, March 27, 2010
Wellington BluesFest
Wellington, Florida, U.S.
www.tickets.liveartsfl.org
561-346-2787

Saturday-Sunday, March 27-28, 2010
4th Annual “Blues & Art Fiesta
San Felipe, Baja California, Mexico
www.bluesandarts.com
619-209-8486

 

Sunday, March 28, 2010
Lowcountry Cajun Festival
Charleston, SC, U.S.
www.ccprc.com
843-762-2172

For more information check out the individual websites or for the big list of festivals world-wide, pop over to the blues festival guide.

-Kat

Feb 9

Life would be sunny with plenty of money and you…

Posted on Tuesday, February 9, 2010 in blogging, books, words

Yesterday I read this post by author Charles Stross on the economics (kinda) of ebooks.

Then I read the date on the post.  ;)

I am typing this post on my new laptop.  Kahuna and I had gone back and forth for months between netbook, notebook or reader.  We ruled the reader out pretty early based on price and usability.  Readers run between 200.00 and 800.00 (US) with most falling in the 250.00 to 350.00 (US) range and most are proprietary so you are stuck buying the titles your particular model offers.

The Cybook Gen 3 is a nice departure in that you can download and read titles from several different providers as well as subscribe to rss feeds.  Of course, it runs about 350.00 US which puts it in the netbook pricing neighborhood.   And why buy a reader when you can get more functions with a netbook?

So I was all set to get a netbook. (Kahuna was still leaning toward a whole computer system but I was wearing him down)  Then he called to show me a laptop he found.  For about the price of a netbook. I would love to say it was pure economics but the deciding factor for me was that the laptop can easily run Oblivion.  So I have internet, email, ebooks, music and Oblivion all on a decently portable and fairly rugged machine.

Did I mention it runs Oblivion?

Which brings us back to economics.  Even without the lure of Oblivion, a notebook is still a good bargain while a reader seems like a rip-off.  Not only am I out nearly the cost of a laptop but the ebooks are running 10.00 to 15.00 US.  Since I refuse to pay more for an ebook (costing almost nothing to provide) than for a paperback, I would have to fill my expensive little reader with free ebooks, independent publisher ebooks and stuff I buy from Baen.  Except I do all that now and read them on the computer or laptop.

Now if they could put a reader or netbook on a pair of sunglasses…

- Kit

Jan 21

A rainy Thursday on the avenue…

Posted on Thursday, January 21, 2010 in blogging, family, words

*blink*

Oh wow, I have a blog.

Seriously, December and most of January have gone by in a blur. Our holidays were busier than we planned with more activities and company than expected. Getting back into a routine has been really hard for me.

Kahuna had a wreck this morning. He is okay and it wasn’t his fault but it shook him up a little and smashed the front and side of our car. Now his birthday tomorrow will be spent hunting down a good repair shop.

I haven’t listened to any new music (aside from forced consumption of the Jonas Brothers…aghhhhh) in weeks. Nor have I read any new books or stories.  The holidays were kind of like being in stasis.  The extreme cold didn’t help.  Our house is very old and very, very cold and we sort of hunkered down in two rooms to ride out the cold wave.  The warmer weather is much appreciated.

This weekend we start the paring down process.  We have been here for over seven years and our stuff…sort of multiplied while we were not looking.  ;)

- Kit

Nov 30

Do you hear what I hear…

Posted on Monday, November 30, 2009 in blues, concerts, music, music festivals

December 2009 Blues and Music Festivals in the South:

Friday-Saturday, December 11-12, 2009
Southen Pines Blues & BBQ
Perry, Florida, U.S.
www.southernpinesblues.com
866-584-5366

Other December concerts:

Wednesday-Thursday, December 2-3, 2009
The Derek Trucks Band
The Variety Playhouse,  Atlanta, Georgia

 

Friday, December 4, 2009
The Derek Trucks Band
The Soul Kitchen, Mobile, Alabama

(The band is going on hiatus for 2010 so the december concerts are the last chances to see them live for a while.)

It’s December - the list is short.  If you have a blues or music festival or a concert you want me to toss up on the post just let me know in the comments or drop me a note at guitarkit@gmail.com .

- Kit

Nov 27

I want to write my words on the face of today…

Posted on Friday, November 27, 2009 in blogging, family, words

I woke up with a post in my head.  This happens quite often but by the time I get a chance to sit down and write, the words I need have been pushed aside by others or hidden themselves away.  No matter how much work I put into the post, it never quite matches the one I wrote in my mind.

I read a lot of posts, essays and comments by writers on the experience of writing.  Some even take questions on the writing process.  I could never do this.  Partly because with our very busy, very loud life there is just not much time for introspection.   Mostly though, it is because I don’t actually have a writing process. 

Unlike many writers I never run out of words.   I read about others painstakingly coaxing words and phrases out, then carefully weaving them together to form a whole but I have no experience of this.  My words are always tumbling around inside my head. They are yelling and fighting, smashing themselves against the inside of mind, determined to  escape.  When I write, the words crash onto the paper or the computer screen like a tsunami.  It is always a race to get them all down before they disappear. 

I never accomplish this.  I look back over what I have written and I see gaps. Missing words, phrases and sometimes entire sentences.  The words rushed out so fast my fingers could not keep up and now they are gone.  Are they scampering around on the desk?  Did they roll under the stove? Maybe they climbed out the window? I know, I know, words are not tangible but it seems like something should be left.  They were powerful and I don’t understand how they can just vanish.    

I always go back later and try to fill in the gaps but it is never the same.  I can find new words but they never read right or feel right.  I lost a collection of stories I was working on due to a drive crash a while back.  I have started to rewrite a couple but they are not the same.  I even like the beginning of the one I am focusing on better than my original.  It is a much stronger piece of writing.  Still, I see the gaps and it bothers me.

Lately, my life has been like my writing.  Too much going on to process and moving way too fast to keep in focus.  I am not afraid of change, but some days it feels like I am skirting the edges of pure chaos.  Yesterday we told several family members about some of the changes and our upcoming move this summer and while it was hard (we have been here for about ten years) I feel more settled.  The move seems both a little more real and at the same time a little less overwhelming.  I finally feel I can start shuffling around what needs to be done and in what order. 

My in-laws are on the road this morning for a visit so I am off to conquer the bathroom floor and the ‘make your own copies of photos’ machine.  The words will have to wait for another time.

- Kit

basic design of mousetrap cars
assuranthealthsales.com
muppets in the balcony
cost to relocate tree
1stlake.com
1993 nobel peace prize
ace wo nerae
36 warlock powerboat
10 000 step program
duchess of wales
007 black nubian
kos perang teluk 1991
american investors life ins
advertising business internet mlm mlm opportunity
2008 stephanie mcmahon update
bellevue palace hotel bern switzerland
halfway house michigan
bartender drink recipes
13th international conference on human retrovirology
lolikon shota yuri
don rimini rave on
body icu columbia sc
brethren pacifist
evil link zelda twilight princess
blood elf paladin
brushing technique for sensory defensiveness
18 count needlepoint canvas
fondue sauces
casting crowns dove awards 2007
gorgonzola walnut ravioli
1940 hair style
1lt douglas morton
alaskan malamute clipart
1980-1985 aluminum oil pan
denise a menchaca
1950s easy listening music
earring loop closing pliers
m5 mythbusters
afghan black and hot pink
albums sweet honey in the rock
discourse effect on syntactic analysis
fractal dimension index
acetaminophen toxicity in companion animals
lucasfan.com
buffy cassie sam janet
banned story downloader
free acts of the apostles ebooks
gg slave leia custom how to
college secret societies
eo kiosk
formula for tangent
12 step bible
burroughs audubon nature center
penske buick gmc
how to grow truffles
nolanhelmets.com
accidently locked phone tmobile
asphalt paving southern maryland
construction representative smithsonian
abusive blowjobs
rentalproperty.com
3 bulk discharge hose
calorie-counter-chart.com
centro de educacion ocupacional peru
baby loves hymns
bussiness that hire tho vo
directory of methodist ministers
always sunny in philadelphia posters
1810 e ellis phoenix az
good earth teas
copy of reunions with a ghost
17 in wade saddle
free radon
brinkmann portable tailgate grill
development of hindu temples
flights from tampa to minneapolis minn
videonuze.com
adam yates bowling green ky
davies family motto
khans mongolian roseville
disassemble a fujitsu lifebook
40hp stirling engine
australian bearded lizard where to buy
2.4g walls
eczema is caused by deficiency parasites
evergeen shrubs small zone 10
cleepix.com
akai mpc shirt
2006 dandy dozen baseball mississippi
dress sash
christopher matthias wee
catalytic carbon filters
hotels in gion district kyoto
baptismal robes
grouphug.us
domestic tranquility
healthfitness.com.au
blackberry professional system requirement
messianic child certificate
daegu dunk utube
exquisiteerotica.com
lakers 13
camvivian.com
erections one hour
deux sevres
wcdebate.com
free sega saturn dreamcast roms
defiance oh real esatat
amnesia cherish lyrics
catholic diocese of saginaw
darth maul fx 64 lightsaber
acpi compliant windows vista
emotional manipulation
3d realtime lip synch
$30 coach bags
army csi alexandria va
abdomen positioning in radiography powerpoint
2 meter hidden antenna
bake chicken leg quarters
regina maris
birth of the ku klux klan
1997 first edition hot wheels
craiglist fl
government limits kkk
baluga caviar prices
procarcarezone.com
2009 living dead dolls
outrageous gifts
companion animal hosp
les miles and charlie weis
cute pakistani girls pics
19 holes in my ears
339 east 20th street north wildwood
1575 highway church rd elgin sc
all the crank dat songs
alhambra highschool martinez
beatles bobble heads
elijah allen harrison ga
bk 1735
steve wingate arlington tx
chicas honduras
thecrowncollege.com
2002 dodge ram 1500 spark plugs
aufbau chemist
georgia conyers monastery
images of professional golfers
anti federalist people
b-square carp
epiphone el segundo
dodge 3500 dually sale 4x4
aids patients pics
1990 celica dome light fuse
australian army cadets learning
all about robots
online transitional pta to pt degree
cyndie horner
my urethra burns sometimes
coffee cause chest inflamation
greatcabinsinthesmokies.com
2005 cannondale caad8 r1000
quoruminternational.com