Haystacks

"Actually, you should never meet your heroes if you want to keep them as heroes. They may wind up as..."

Sat, 05 Jul 2008 23:13:50 -0400

“Actually, you should never meet your heroes if you want to keep them as heroes. They may wind up as friends or as disappointments or as pleasant surprises, but once you know them they immediately stop being heroes. (I’ve turned down several opportunities to meet Stephen Sondheim socially, because he’s practically all I’ve got left. Even David Bowie, who I’ve never even met, has managed to transmute in my head most of the way from DAVID BOWIE OMG!!1!* to my friend Duncan’s dad.)”
~ Neil Gaiman”

- www.neilgaiman.com

Cool gift!

Thu, 03 Jul 2008 19:14:56 -0400

Hubby bought these for me for my birthday. All ten audible octaves! What song should I try them out on first?

Man in the moon

Fri, 20 Jun 2008 20:35:25 -0400

Jason is reading “1421: The Year China Discovered the World”. He shared the fascinating fact with me that Japanese children do not talk of the man in the moon, but instead of the rabbit in the moon.

Wikipedia has this page about the different perspectives of what resides in the moon.

Enter & Win

Mon, 16 Jun 2008 15:30:00 -0400

@ www.thirddaypix.blogspot.com

Jamie and I celebrated our 50th THIRD DAY show Saturday night in...

Sun, 15 Jun 2008 23:03:00 -0400

Jamie and I celebrated our 50th THIRD DAY show Saturday night in Charlotte, NC!

Where The Wild Things Are

Sat, 14 Jun 2008 00:05:55 -0400

Where The Wild Things Are

Mixed tape: The Remix

Thu, 12 Jun 2008 11:14:40 -0400

Jason Ward loves a good mixed tape. He had dozens of them in high school and college. Most of them have gone the way of the minor bands that inhabited them. But one. One lone mixed tape has survived.

In an attempt to show my complete adoration for this wonderful husband of mine, I have attempted to recreate the tape via iTunes. Believe it or not, Flesh for Lulu’s entire catalog is not available on iTunes. Who knew? Out of 23 songs, I was able to get 18 original artists and songs. One song is a cover and another is a clever stand-in. Three songs were untraceable.

Twenty-three 3 minute snippets of life philosophy; I wonder how they stack up now? Will most of them still ring true? Maybe one or two will be slightly off the mark. Maybe a couple will be ironic in the reflection of twenty- some years. And I have no doubt a few will be untraceable.

Test your cover art skills

Fri, 06 Jun 2008 16:05:00 -0400

Test your cover art skills

Feelin' like 'all that'

Wed, 04 Jun 2008 15:40:19 -0400

I answered the phone. A familiar voice questioned me; “Aunt Traci?…”

“Yes, Niece Hayley…”

“How do you make cake icing without using shortening?”

Then I heard her whisper to her stepsister, “I’m calling my Aunt Traci. She knows EVERYTHING.”

I feel like somebody today. :)

"As a performer, it’s frustrating to look out and see a sea of cellphones instead of faces,” says..."

Wed, 04 Jun 2008 13:23:54 -0400

““As a performer, it’s frustrating to look out and see a sea of cellphones instead of faces,” says Sleater-Kinney guitarist Carrie Brownstein. “There’s definitely a problem where people are so busy documenting the moment that they forget to just live in the moment.””

- Are cellphones ruining the concert experience? | Dallas Morning News (via yvynyl)

Scott's Garage

Tue, 03 Jun 2008 15:41:44 -0400

This Richmond VA power pop band is rocking me as of late. Think Beatles-esque, R.E.M.-ish, Cracker-like, Top Petty homage. This is one of those albums you swear you’ve heard before. You’re sure you used to own it - way back when. Nothing here jolts you. It’s not that you’re grabbed and shaken by their power pop staples of crunchy guitar (I love crunchy guitars!) and easy melodies. It’s more like you’ll offer it a beer and ask how it’s been.

Check them out at CD Baby.

Vacation slide show! Everyone gather around!

Mon, 02 Jun 2008 22:26:42 -0400

Vacation slide show! Everyone gather around!

Hard at play

Mon, 02 Jun 2008 14:34:07 -0400

Hard at play

Hard at work

Mon, 02 Jun 2008 14:28:12 -0400

Hard at work

Billboard Buzz

Sat, 31 May 2008 09:43:02 -0400

It was very exciting this week to find out that one of my favorite bands was going to be on the cover of BILLBOARD magazine. This is the first time a Christian artist has been featured on the cover and I am so proud to say I love and support these guys.

The concert photo used in the article was taken in April of this year at The Wild Horse Saloon in Nashville, TN. We were there on the front row. Yeah, I know, concert pictures of the crowd are vague at best. And don’t all heads look pretty much the same from the back? Not when you’re wearing a cowboy hat!

Summer Reading list

Wed, 28 May 2008 17:13:00 -0400

I spent many summers at the local library filling out my Summer Reading list. Mark’s post reminded me how much fun I had doing those lists. It was a great sense of accomplish to list a book, come back a few days later and check it off with a ‘FINISHED DATE’.

Our reading list was actually a notebook of sorts; small and loose leaf. Each page was a 4x6 index card with the following information:

Book Title: (Complete title)

Author: (Last, First)

Recommended by: (How did you learn about this book?)

Begin Date: (The day, month and year you began reading)

End Date: (The day, month and year you finished reading)

Review: (A minimum of 1 paragraph about this book)

That was a proud August day when I went on the last day of Summer Reading to pick up my notebook and collect my prize. Although there are no prizes awarded now, I still feel a great sense of accomplishment when I look over a completed reading list.

I will be following the tried and true example of my youth with my summer list. Follow along at HAYSTACKS.

First on my list is 1421: The Year China Discovered the World by Gavin Menzies

My review of Indiana Jones IV

Sun, 25 May 2008 00:21:49 -0400

My review of Indiana Jones IV

A baby no more...

Sat, 24 May 2008 16:12:27 -0400

In a few minutes Jason and I are leaving to attend a graduation party; not unusual, given the season and Jason’s profession. But this party is different. It is for one of my kids, not Jason’s.

I met Shelby when he was 18 months old. His mother was a former teacher and a dear friend. They had moved to Charlotte a year before Shelby was born. I remember the first time I saw his face. He was sitting at the breakfast table, with oatmeal all over his little square head. He looked at me and giggled and I was in love.

I moved in with the family and became Shelby’s nanny. We spent every day together. We learned to play catch, our ABC’s and every word to the dialog and soundtrack of The Little Mermaid. We chased butterflies, caught frogs and planted flowers. I taught him the Vulcan greeting, sort of…he never got the finger placement exactly right and he would only say “POCK!”. Never Spock and never “Live long”.

When Shelby started school, there was no longer a need for a nanny. We’ve kept in touch over the years and today I celebrate a milestone in his life. I hope in some small way I have helped to shape this sensitive, intelligent, passionate young man who will no doubt change the world.

Tag Galaxy

Fri, 23 May 2008 13:21:00 -0400

Tag Galaxy:

for all your image search needs

High ticket prices could hurt concert business

Mon, 19 May 2008 23:32:29 -0400

High ticket prices could hurt concert business