Ringing In the New Year

I snapped this on the way home tonight. I've always loved how the state capitol adds a magical touch to New Year's Eve.

From Us To You

Season's Greetings

File under: awesomely geeky holiday entertainment

E-Trade Baby

This TV commercial always makes me laugh.

"Whoa."

I'm Outta Time

Here's the video for "I'm Outta Time," the second single off Dig Out Your Soul. I'm not that crazy about the vid, but I like the song. It is one of three penned by Liam Gallagher for this album, and he claims it took him nine years to write.

The spoken bit at the end is an audio clip of John Lennon from an interview just before his death.

Frozen Oasis

Were it not for work and other adult responsibilities, I would have been at the Target Center in Minneapolis Wednesday night for the Oasis concert. The Star-Tribune printed a predictably negative review, complaining about the band's apparent lack of onstage enthusiasm and Liam's weak vocal delivery.

My own personal rebuttal: First, nobody goes to an Oasis concert for the thrilling stage show. People go to an Oasis concert for the terrific music. For most of its fans, the band is the epitome of cool.

Second, I don't deny that Liam's voice has been rough at some live performances in the past; however, it's in good shape right now. Take a listen to a clip from the Minneapolis show:



Noel Gallagher pissed and moaned about Minnesota's cold weather on his tour diary. His previous entry about the cold on the way from Denver to Minneapolis is even better.

I love reading his tour diary and interviews. Ego. Dry wit. Biting tongue. Endlessly entertaining.

Half-Blood Prince, Redux

It seems that Warner Bros. had such huge success with The Dark Knight that they've pushed back the release of Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince to next July, so as to ensure another WB summer blockbuster.

As Ron would say, what a load of waffle!

At least they've released another trailer, which plays up the humor a bit more than the old one.

Weight of the World - just a bit of venting

A stack of essays to grade...
a Cub Scout den flag to design and sew...
JFK Parent Night x 3...
eight performances in five days...
holiday shopping...
unruly children jeopardizing my dance facility...
unruly headscarves...
spelling tests...
Student of the Week...
dance uniforms not arriving in time...
prescriptions that ran out...
performances to schedule...
appointments to schedule...
phone calls to return...
a student who questioned my very intelligence...
photocopies and stapling for JFK...
photocopies and stapling for Cub Scouts...
where to hold State Competition in 2012-2014 and how much to pay...

oh, and remember to change the oil in the car.

My life is weighing heavily on my shoulders right now. At least I can be sure that this, too, shall pass. Just not fast enough!

Song of the Moment

"Soon We'll Be Found"

We caught this on Letterman a couple weeks ago. I was blown away by her vocal delivery and the striking visual of the whole performance. Her name is Sia, and I'd never heard of her before. Click for more info if you're interested.

I like how she goes from intimate purr to (seemingly) effortless belting, without the high polish. I also love the song; I can't get it out of my head.

For reference, watch the music video for this song, which uses sign language and interesting hand imagery.

Dylan's Bike Trick

A quick vid of Dylan's bike trick.

It took me a few takes to get it right, so at the end you can hear him ask, "Did you get it?"

Snow Day

This was the scene Thursday here - over nine inches of snow, with winds whipping it up into a proper blizzard. Schools were shut down for the first time since the blizzard of 1997. How I vividly remember that one!


We ended up with a couple of impressive drifts like this one hanging over the eave.

It's been warm enough to play outside today, and the kids have been loving it. I also heard there was a run on shovels and snow blowers. Thankfully, Brad was able to get his trailer hitched up and parked in the driveway before the plows came through last night. That four-wheel drive really comes in handy at times like these.

Spooghetti Supper

This year, our whole family volunteered to help at Northridge's annual Spooghetti Supper. We snapped this picture on Saturday just before we left for the event.

Connor was Hedwig, Harry Potter's owl, and Dylan was the Grim Reaper. I'm not sure what Brad and I were, but it was fun.

The supper served over 600 meals to many costumed diners. Success!

Happy Halloween!

This year's crop of jack-o-lanterns looks terrific on the front step. I love Halloween!

The Dakota Kid

Brad's been helping his mother clean house, and they came across a cowboy costume that he wore for Halloween circa 1974. Brad put Connor in it and posed him as the cowboy on the old Dakota Kid Sunflower Seed packages.

Super cute!

Dig Out Your Soul

The new Oasis album hit stores last a couple of weeks ago. I don't normally rush out to buy a new album on the day it comes out, but this time I did. I've listened to it about 25 times already, and it's TERRIFIC! My fave tracks: "The Turning," "Falling Down," "To Be Where's There's Life," and "The Shock of the Lightning," which you may remember from my previous post.

There's lots of buzz about this album being a "return to form" for the band; however, in my (biased) view, it's just more of the same great music they've been churning out for 15 years. The naysayers have said this album has a preponderance of plodding, mid-tempo rockers, but I find most of them to be quite energizing. Go to iTunes and check them out yourself.

Papa's Pumpkin Patch

We spent a bit of time at Papa's Pumpkin Patch yesterday, along with half the rest of Bismarck. The weather was perfect for climbing on huge wooden trains and tearing around in the haybale maze.



We saw them launch the pumpkin trebuchet and managed to find four pumpkins to buy, despite the selection being fairly picked over.

Let the carving begin!

So Long, Al

It's not every day that you bury your dad. Yesterday was that day for Brad.

It's still really fresh and hard to put into words, so I'll just post links to his obituary and to Gary's eulogy.

Family dinners won't taste the same.

Happy Birthday, Dylan

Look who's 10

Yes, it's double digits for Dylan. To celebrate with his friends, we had a Harry Potter birthday party. Local artist, art teacher, and Potter fanatic Ali LaRock came to our house to host the party.

She brought all her cool Potter stuff.

She sorted them into their houses with her Sorting Hat.

The kids got to make their own spell books.

Then they made quills and wrote whatever they wanted in their books with real ink.

I made a snitch cake, which turned out even better than last year's.

The kids were so into it and having so much fun that they didn't want to quit. Aside from the ink that spilled on Dylan's good shorts, the whole evening was a home run. I hope Dylan will always remember this special celebration.

Sandcrawler

Connor has wanted a Star Wars Lego Sandcrawler for over two years. We haven't bought him one because they cost $140, so he's been saving his Christmas and birthday money. After his birthday this month, he finally had enough to buy one, so we ordered it online and it arrived this week.


He spent the whole day Saturday building it, and finished it yesterday. Brad estimates he spent at least 12 hours total over two days. That's focus!

Gold and Silver and Sunshine

Here's a sneak-peek at Gold and Silver and Sunshine, an upcoming documentary on the making of Dig Out Your Soul.

For a die-hard Oasis fan like myself, this is a must-see. And, at over eight minutes long, it's packed with interesting interviews and great footage, not to mention oozing with cool. It's also fun to hear that Manc accent that sounds like a mouthful of marbles.

It appears that the documentary will only be available as part of some limited-edition deluxe packaging, so I hope I can get my hands on it.