Crossroads May 19, 2009
Posted by bbop in comebacks, technology.add a comment
For the few of you who might actually check in on this blog from time to time, I apologize yet again for being such a complete and utter slacker about updating. I realize that it’s been several months since I’ve posted anything and literally over a year, I think, since I’ve posted about what I’ve been up to in the present (or at least the recent past). It feels kind of weird to be writing this, but with the rise of Twitter and Facebook, I’ve honestly thought about whether it’s practical or worthwhile to even continue blogging. Has it already become passé?
I’ve come to the conclusion that I want to keep doing it, though I think I probably need to start running this thing like an actual blog. That is, update more frequently; make shorter posts; and not wait for a bunch of things to build up before writing about them, as I know I’ve done more often than not. I’m sure I’ve said most of this before, but for what it’s worth, I’m rededicating myself. With a busy couple of months ahead, including a jaunt to España over the next couple of weeks, there should be plenty to post about and I’ll endeavor to do so. Stay tuned. Or not.
If you do check in here every now and again, you’ll know tht I’ve repeatedly promised to “catch up” with updates of what I’ve been up to since last May when I last posted about current goings-on. (Embarrassingly I’ve had half of the May 2008 update written for months now, but never seem to get around to finishing it.) Anyway, since it’s been more than a year now and I’m certain no one — probably not even me — cares about what I did months and months ago, I guess I will officially cut the strings on the update plan. Maybe if the well really runs dry sometime, I’ll reconfigure the updates as a “looking back” series or something to that effect. But for now, in blogging as well as in life, I think it’s generally a good idea to not dwell on the past and live in the present.
Rumors of my (blog’s) death July 3, 2008
Posted by bbop in comebacks.6 comments
Contrary to popular belief, I have not abandoned this blog. You might have thought as much since I’ve written like two posts since April, but no. Nobody even gives me grief about not updating anymore, which I take to mean all six readers have stopped checking. I offer no excuses. I’ve just been lazy. There always seems like something else that needs to be done or someplace else to go and I never have enough time to sit down and write something decent. So it just falls by the wayside.
Also, I’ve gone to a lot of shows in the past 10 weeks. In fact, I think it’s the most prolific stretch of showgoing I’ve ever had. In June alone, depending on your definition of a show, I think I went to like 30 shows. Not every day, mind you, but sometimes more than one a day. That also takes a toll on the ol’ blogging. I’d like to recap each show I go to in some detail, but that gets to be sort of hard when there’s so many of them and you’re getting home late and getting up late and doing stuff you have to do to live (laundry, buying food, etc.) I know that no one will have sympathy with me on this — not being able to keep up with blogging about shows I go to certainly pales in comparison with just about anything most people in the world deal with — but I’m putting it out there nevertheless.
So anyway, once again, I’m vowing to be better about posting from this point forward. I’m going to get up to date if it takes every last ounce of determination I have (and some very brief posts). Once that happens, I intend to make every effort to post in a timely fashion — basically my plan is to write shorter items more frequently. I think that’s probably the general idea of a blog anyway. And there you have it…my promise to you, O faithful reader. Feel free to hold my feet to the fire if I should fail to hold up my end of this sacred pact.
In the meantime, I want to share with you a photo that I snapped a couple nights ago of my cab driver’s taxi license. Yes, his name appears to be what you think it is:
Bruuuuuuuuuuce! October 24, 2007
Posted by bbop in comebacks, music, travel.Tags: Bruce Springsteen, Chicago
2 comments
If there was one show that I had realistic hopes of making it to in the immediate aftermath of my recent car accident, it was Bruce Springsteen and the E Street Band on the first night of a two-night stand in Chicago. I had been fortunate to pull up two general admission tickets during the onsale and I had an eager concert companion in Sooz, who had never seen Springsteen before. Fortunately, everything worked out for me to attend my first show in exactly a month. Things worked out even better than we could have expected, as it turned out.
We arrived at a little past 3 p.m. and got on a fairly lengthy line to pick up the wristband that we had been told would be distributed between 2 and 5. We actually got two wristbands — and later, a third — but all that really mattered was the last few numbers on one of the wristbands. At a few minutes past 5, a number was drawn and the first 500 people starting with that number got the coveted spots in the pit area in front of the stage. On this night, the lucky number was 418; Sooz and I had 491 and 492. We could hardly believe our luck! Eventually the blessed 500 were lined up and let into the arena. We found a cozy spot in the second row to Springsteen’s left (looking at the stage). It’s hard to explain, but it was just unbelievable how close we were. I’ve been close to the stage for quite a few (non-Bruce) shows, but you just don’t expect to be right there for a show like that — not when you’ve seen the performer before from one of the upper tiers of a massive football stadium.
But there we were.
The show itself was vintage Bruce, even though nearly half of the main set was made up of songs off of the new record, Magic. I’m a bit embarrassed to admit that I hadn’t had a chance to listen to the album at all before the show, with the exception of the single “Radio Nowhere,” so I was getting my first exposure to a lot of the new material. I liked a lot of it, but of course the highlights of the show for me were mostly older songs. I had taken a glance at a few of the setlists from recent shows, so I had some idea what to expect, but it was still a treat to hear a drastically rearranged “Reason to Believe” and the 1-2 punch of “Backstreets” and “Cadillac Ranch.”
As the show went on, Bruce seemed to loosen up more and more. Perhaps that had something to do with the absence of his wife, Patti Scialfa, who had to attend to “a kid thing.” I don’t know. He definitely developed a fondness for a small group of teenage girls who were right next to us, pointing to one of them at least seven or eight times over the course of the night and coming down from the upper part of the stage to play in front of them a couple of times. This all came to a head during “Thundercrack,” my personal highlight. What can I say? I love those epic, early Bruce songs, and the band just tore through this one. Drummer Max Weinberg always looks so determined to keep that beat and the three-guitar attack of Nils Lofgren, Springsteen and Steve Van Zandt really realizes its potential on this one. At one point, Bruce came down right in front of us, almost inviting us to reach up and touch his guitar (which we, of course, did). Sooz was somehow simultaneously snapping photos with her new iPhone — thanks for letting me use a couple of them! — and I swear Bruce even mugged for the camera for a second or two.
While I can’t say it’s the best setlist I’ve ever heard at a Springsteen show, it was an unforgettable night because of our vantage point and the energy of the band. I’m well aware of the rule of thumb that on a two-night stand, the second night is always a better show — and hearing that Bruce played “Thunder Road” and a several other rarities the following night made me a tiny bit disappointed that I couldn’t see both shows — but I’m also a strong proponent of the mentality that sometimes it’s not what you play but how well you play it. And ultimately, I wouldn’t trade the experience that we had for anything. For a comeback show, it really was perfect.
Bruce Springsteen and the E Street Band//10-21-07//United Center, Chicago, IL//support: none
Radio Nowhere/No Surrender/Lonesome Day/Gypsy Biker/Magic/Reason to Believe/Adam Raised a Cain/She’s the One/Livin’ in the Future/The Promised Land/Your Own Worst Enemy/Backstreets/Cadillac Ranch/Devil’s Arcade/The Rising/Last to Die/Long Walk Home/Badlands//e: Girls in Their Summer Clothes/Thundercrack/Born to Run/Dancing in the Dark/American Land
I’m back! (Really!) October 19, 2007
Posted by bbop in comebacks.4 comments
I realize (and have been gently reminded) that I’ve done a less than stellar job at making this a viable blog as my J-School professors would define it. That is, one of the characteristics of a blog is regular, or at least semi-regular, posts. But when you’ve gone more than 10 months without posting, well, that’s not so good. I blame, in chronological order, grad school, Wilco, summer, Wilco and my recent car accident.
I’ve pretty much run out of excuses, though. When you’re recovering from a car accident at your parents’ house and you can’t find the time to post, well, that’s probably when it’s time to take down your blog. So I guess it’s either put up or shut up now.
From here on out, I’ll try to post more regularly — and even find some interesting stuff to post about!
For now, I’ll just post this draft I just found of the last thing I intended to post. It was entitled, “I’m back!” I must have written it sometime in the last week of January (2007), but never posted it for some reason:
As if more than three of you knew I was even gone…
So much has happened since my last post that I’m kind of mad at myself for not posting more regularly over the past few weeks. I figure I’ll make a list of some of the high points:
Attended the annual Letters to Santa benefit at Second City in Chicago, making it through almost 24 straight hours of improv comedy and musical performances. Spent a week with my parents in Vail, Colo., on our annual ski trip. Watched the entire fall season of Heroes (which I had TiVo-ed) over a three-day period in early January. Saw the Fiery Furnaces at Northsix in Brooklyn. Saw Emily Haines and the Soft Skeleton at Hiro Ballroom in Manhattan. Worked hard on my master’s project, getting interviews done and planning our Web site. Watched the Bears win their first playoff game in a long time (and roll on to the Super Bowl!).
