This Week's Sign the Apocalypse is Upon Us: The Numbers Don't Lie

A couple weeks ago my buddy Evan said Tim you should blog something,
"you haven't written anything in a while" so I sat down while in
wonderful Boyers, PA and tried to come up with something. Well
Congress gave me something. The failure of Roll Call 674, better known
as "The Plan to Save the Economy". It amazes me that they voted on a
plan that they didn't have the votes for. Im amazed still that the
Republican party broke with the Bush Administration and voted against
it. But what I guess what I'm even more surprised at is the fact that
so many Democrats found themselves siding with the Administration.
what I really love is the finger pointing and yes I'm biased but the
numbers don't lie and it didn't fail on the backs of Democrats 60% of
those represented voted in favor of it as opposed to the 32.8% that
voted for it form the other side of the aisle. Check out the numbers,
In an election year I thought politicians can be this stubborn, this
isn't a time for partisan politics its a time for urgency. At any rate
the failure to pass led to a 700 point drop in the Dow Jones and smart
people like Warren Buffett are saying the the Government needs to get
there stuff together. I think I'm moving my money and reducing my
401K contributions. It has to bounce back.

FOR

Democrats: 140 (59.6%)
Rep: 65 (32.8%)
Totals: 205 (47.3%)

AGAINST

Democrats: 95 (40.4%)
Rep: 133 (67.2%)
Totals: 228 (52.7)

TOTALS

Democrats: 235
Rep: 198

Not Voting

Weller -R

Stats from http://clerk.house.gov/evs/2008/roll674.xml

Feelings for the Evening.....

The Eagles lost, I'm down in fantasy football, and unfortunately I'm
still in PA till Tuesday. I'm in need of a vacation, 5 mile run, 10
hours of sleep, and Wonderwall being played on the speakers. GNite
world......

Sara Bareilles, Maroon 5 and the Counting Crows

So I spent Saturday evening with my friend Melinda watching a concert
@ Nissan Pavillion. Counting Crows is on of my all time favorite bands
so when I heard they were coming to town w/ Maroon 5 and Sara
Bareilles I knew I had to check it out. So I bought tickets invited a
friend and off I went. The show was awesome Bareilles played a short
set but was really good and has a surprisingly high quality voice,
it's a shame that so many artists can't sing live that I'm surprised
when I see one that can. The time between artists were unusually long
averaging 30-45 minutes, for a venue that stops shows @ 11p thats a
lot of valuable time being spent doing nothing.

Maroon 5 was on next, I have to suck up for Adam Levine's falsetto, I
love his lyrics but that high pitch can get old fast. They did a great
Beatles cover of Oh! Darling from the Abbey Road album. They played
the usual suspects; Sunday Morning, She Will be Loved, Wont Go Home
Without You etc. I love that they have so much energy when they
perform. The nice thing about a band like Maroon 5 is that @ only two
studio albums they have enough music to headline an event but not so
much that you don't get to hear you favorite tracks because they were
lost in the multitude of music in the artists catalog.

Last was the Counting Crows who played a really efficient set.
Sometimes with the Crows you don't get to hear your favorite songs
because their catalog is so extensive, but that night they played most
of the classics. They played a few tracks from Saturday Night Sunday
Morning their new cd but not too much, their new songs are good but
people want to hear Rain King, Mr. Jones, Last December etc, I wish
they would have played Good Night LA but hey you can't play everything
every night.

Top Memorable Things:

Paying $30 bucks for premier parking

AC in car watching people stumble over the rope fence between the
annex parking lot and the main parking and seeing one girl flash a
"show" and one busting her tail

Group of 7 preppy women who wouldnt sit down during the Maroon 5
performance and couldn't rock on beat

Weird family who bought their very young children to an adult concert
and were upset about the language

Same family; Dad embarrasses family and amuses crowd by dancing
ridiculously @ the beginning of the Maroon 5 set until his wife made
him sit down

Woman next to us whose shirt had nipple lighting, hilarious!!

Adam Duritz who I swore was drunk confusing the crowd by breaking into
Rain King in the middle of Mr. Jones and then coming back to Rain King
to finish the song. I swore he was drunk or high when he did it. But
it worked okay.

End of the night some woman where go-go boots drukenly trying to
navigate throught the loose gravel parking lot w/o killing herself

Maroon 5 & Counting Crows

Perfect Break

Not one touching another.....

4 Weddings in 4 Weeks

So here it goes on on my 4th wedding in 4 weeks and this one is gonna send it out with a bang. First up we had Amanda Glazebook, the Cousin Ashley, next was Emily Smith (had to take pics at that one) and last but not least Chris Stokes (Stokes) and Lauren Chesnutt (L-Boogie). I think I'm most excited about this one because I have seen it all unfold from 2000 (Geology 101) to today. I told Chris if he didn't hurry up and get married I was gonna fight him. The man found a good woman. So here is how the trip to Cali for the Stokes/Chesnutt Wedding started.

1. Flight from DC to Cali on Virgin America. Flight was scheduled for 7 am we didn't leave till 845 am. 

2. Arrived in Cali at 1031am (PST) rented a car and drove to the Mothership Apple HQ in Cupertino CA. I came, saw, shopped, got an official apple badge ate some fresh sushi (yes the ship has its own sushi bar)

3. Left Cupertino on my way to Sacramento a nice 2 hour drive. Listened to some Jason Mraz, Roots, and Israel and the New Breed.

4. Found out that California has speed limits of 70 mph on the highway that rocks.

5. 1 hr in stopped at Starbucks and discovered the pecan cookie that happens to be great when eaten warm. Caffeine and sugar rush complete 

6. I got back on the road for the second leg of the trip and 

7. Finally at about 4 pm  arrived at my destination Holiday Inn - Capital Heights, Sacramento CA.

8. Let the fun begin

-tw

Song of the Day: Patty Griffin:Up To The Mountain (MLK Song)

I went up to the mountain

Because you asked me to

Up over the clouds

To where the sky was blue

I could see all around me

Everywhere

I could see all around me

Everywhere

Sometimes I feel like

I've never been nothing but tired

And I'll be walking

Till the day I expire

Sometimes I lay down

No more can I do

But then I go on again

Because you ask me to

Some days I look down

Afraid I will fall

And though the sun shines

I see nothing at all

Then I hear your sweet voice, oh

Oh, come and then go, come and then go

Telling me softly

You love me so

The peaceful valley

Just over the mountain

The peaceful valley

Few come to know

I may never get there

Ever in this lifetime

But sooner or later

It's there I will go

Sooner or later

It's there I will go

// Great song, get it here. Heard it on an episode of Grey's Anatomy and had to have it. She sings it like the weigh of the world is on her shoulders but she is steady pushing through. The song was written for MLK and I have no doubt that on some days he felt just like these words. //

-tw