Mama Gump

I was talking to Mom tonight and she ever so casually mentioned that she had seen Bruce Springsteen play live a long time ago, upon which I said, "WHAT?! How come you never told me?" and upon which she said "Oh, I'm sure I told you." You know how Mom can be. She never told me. Anyway, turns out she saw him play at UMass in 1973, right before Bruce released "Greetings From Asbury Park" and became a legend. I googled the event to make sure Mom wasn't making it up (or hadn't imagined seeing him...lush) and sure enough, I found this article in the UMass Alumni Magazine. June 5, 1973. Mom was dating some dweeb at UMass and Bruce Springsteen was a nobody, opening Spring Carnival Week with bands named Cold Blood, It's a Beautiful Day, and the Elvin Bishop Group. Mom remembers it being "cold and wet and I didn't know who he was so I didn't care." Oh, mother, I guess I'll forgive you.

Maybe the hippie in the bottom right is Mom? Did she ever own an army jacket? Was her boyfriend wearing a red wool jacket? If you look closely, that woman does kind of resemble Banks -- with 90s-grunge rock hair.

Finger Lickin' Good

In the midst of the excitement surrounding our trip to the beach and our desperate search for Springsteen tickets, I forgot to tell everyone that Bev and I have a new addition to our family -- a Cuisinart Deep Fryer. Watching all those Paula Deen episodes must have finally affected me, right? It's just a tiny deep fryer, so don't anyone get any grand ideas that we're running a fast food joint out of our kitchen. A bake shop, maybe...but that's Bev's doing. I had to promise my lovely wife that I wouldn't abuse my privileges, so we haven't fried up too many goodies. On Labor Day we fixed up some onion rings (they were delicious, of course), but the real crown jewels thus far has been the hot wings. I cooked them up while Bev was making chili, and then we devoured both while watching the Pats demolish the Chargers. Don't they look good?

Bev did the fancy arranging. And supplied the vegetables.

Next up on the menu -- Hush Puppies!

The Truth Hurts

Saw a T-shirt today that said:

"GRAD SCHOOL: It seemed better than getting a real job."

That about sums it up. The truth hurts. I want out.

Looks Just Like His Daddy

John Edward Thomas Brady...sorry, Moynahan.

Groupies or Band-aids? You decide.

It looks like lightning struck twice! I got shut out by Ticketmaster this morning but Bev came through in a jam and snatched up two awesome seats (lower level) to see Bruce in Boston on Monday November 19th. I guess we've crossed that line between groupies and normal folk since we're going to see two shows. But come on, how cool is it that we'll be seeing the very first and the very last show of the US tour? I'm particularly excited about the Boston show, not just because it'll be right down the street, but because we'll have more of an opportunity to learn his new songs from Magic. Raine has already put in a request for a tour t-shirt -- preferably with Bruce's butt pasted over it -- so if there are any other requests, I'm sure Bev's paycheck can temporarily withstand it :) Only one more week till Hartford! Brrrrrrrruuuuuuuuuuuuuuuce!!!!!

Magic

Good news! Price scored Bruce tickets this morning. Not without his fair share of frustration over the wicked fast sellout, of course! Nonetheless, we are super excited to have tickets to the first concert, on October 2, in Bruce's brief fall tour with the E-street band. The concert is in Hartford, CT, so I'm already looking forward to a lovely afternoon off and a fun car ride listening to the new cd, Magic, which will release that very day. Bruce will end his tour in Boston on November 18, and we really hope to make that show as well. Nothing like a hometown concert at the Gah-den! Bruce and the band will depart on their first Europe tour since 2003, following the Boston concert, so it's pretty cool to think we might see his first and last concert in the States!

Now we just have to anticipate what sort of playlist he'll set for each concert. I personally hope to hear the Rising and Lonesome Day....maybe a little Thunder Road or Darkness on the Edge of Town. Too many favorites, too many choices! One can never feel disappointed :) Just look at that face!

In the words of Doug Heffernan...

Or maybe it was pre-vegan Banks Blair -- if bacon tasted any better, I'd wear it. I may be mocked for my diet choices, but if anyone wants to try that Bacon Cheeseburger Meatloaf, it's scrum-diddy-umptious! Don't deny your urges, click on the recipe here. And yes, the leftovers for lunch tomorrow will look something like this, with meatloaf replacing the fried chicken:

Now crank up that Blind Melon: "All I can say is that my life is pretty plain, I like watch the puddles gather rain. And all I can do is make some "meatloaf" for two..."

KFC Failure Pile

Price has gotten into the habit of cooking some interesting things when I work on Thursday evenings. He's made omelets with bacon, waffles with bacon, and last night he made cheeseburger meatloaf with bacon and mashed potatoes. Good thing I was conveniently out of the house! So, this morning I had a good laugh with a coworker over Price's food choices and it led her to introduce me to a great skit by Patton Oswalt. You might know him from King of Queens, but now you'll want to know him for his KFC skit. As for Price, let's hope those leftovers from last night don't wind up in a bowl of sadness!

iPod Touch

I'm not usually too much of a gadget guy, but I can't wait for the new iPod Touch to come out. Me and a billion other people, right? Yes, Bev and I already have iPod minis, and yes, they still work perfectly well -- but seriously, have seen how cool the new Touch looks? Just watch this video. I can't even finish watching it because I get too excited. It's equipped with everything the iPhone has, just no phone. That means it's got the touch screen interface, the beautiful widescreen color display, and -- oh yeah -- full Wi-Fi web browsing. Not only can you surf the web on the iTouch, but you can also access iTunes and download music directly onto the Touch, no wires attached. Awesome. It looks like there will be 2 models -- an 8 GB for $299 and a 16 GB for $399. I better start saving my lunch money. Either that or maybe we could start studding out Hithcock for money. Nevermind...that won't work. Anyway, September 28. Mark it down as the day Price sells out to Steve Jobs.

Our Own Slice of Alcatraz

Mark this down -- along with The Oak Bar (Copley Plaza Hotel) and The Last Hurrah (Omni-Parker House) -- as a hotel bar that I'm dying to try. Alibi at The Liberty Hotel. I can't say I know too much about this bar, but it's atmosphere sounds unbelievably cool. It's situated on the ground floor of The Liberty Hotel, which was formerly the Charles Street Jail from 1851 to 1990. They've obviously renovated the building to turn it into a 298-room/$500 per night luxury hotel, but apparently they've kept many structural reminders of the hotel's past, including narrow cell door openings, tile blocks, and barred-windows. Alibi itself will be located in a former cell block and will have a signature cocktail list to match its environment. Sounds pretty unique in a spooky kind of way. Don't know if I'll ever have the money to stay there, but for now I'll definitely take a Dirty Martini, easy on the vermouth, extra olives.