Sidetracked

CJohn McEnery as Lars Magnusson and Kenneth Branagh as Kurt Wallander in Sidetracked by Henning Mankell.. Credit: ©Left Bank Pictures 2009; BBC for Masterpiece Theater.

This blog as well as several of my other blogs have been woefully neglected. While not the sole reason for this neglect I tend to get sidetracked.

Sidetrack [ˈsaɪdˌtræk] vb

to distract or be distracted from a main subject or topic, to divert from a main issue or course, wander from a direct or straight course

Each day, I surf the internet, clicking on hyperlinks, opening new tabs and windows, flicking between e-mail, Twitter, Facebook and whatever topic it was I planning to post about.

Sidetracked Ghostly Phantom by *D8v1d

The trouble is each hyperlink leads to another, then another, and another; and while at least initially the tabs were related to the original subject, at some point the tabs take off on a tangent that becomes its own independent subject of inquiry, which then leads to new windows and perhaps another blog.

Sidetracked Again: Jim Ford Aamora Project Triptych

 It's not easy to stay on track, since the side trips can be as interesting, if not more so, as the initial subject. Unfortunately, these diversions tend to derail my blogs.

While it would be nice to impose some order to this dilemma, I must admit in all honesty that I love the chaos. I am constantly amused and amazed by what or who presents themselves to me. When I think about it, this situation I currently find myself in is much like the rest of my life whether with relationships, career, or whatever.

Technical Difficulties: Please Stand By

The difficulties I am having with this blog is that it is most personal of my blogs. It is after all about my life, more or less. The trouble is I am and have been a private person most of my life and deciding what to share and what not to has proven to be difficult. 

Writer's block arggggg!  Nothing that I can't work through after all I am clever with words in fact several ex-lovers have told me that I am quiet the cunning linguist. 

In reality it isn't a lack of clever wordsmithing but rather over-editing or perhaps more accurately über-filtering that has kept me from posting. Regardless, this too will pass.

Another Weekend

End of another work-week and even though the work is decent most days I can't wait to get off work, which is also a title of a Tom Waits song.

The fact is this weekend has a Tom Waits vibe, at least Friday and Saturday night anyway. Enjoy the music and have a couple of drinks on me.

Robert O. Berdahl and Katy Hays star in Warm Beer Cold Women 2008

 

T.G.I.F.

Thank God It's Friday [T.G.I.F] a follow up to my post, Weekends. Friday has an unique position in the week in that it has a foot in both the work week and the weekend.  It is in and of itself a reason for celebration.

The Turn Ends

I started, what was at the time, a temp job painting apartments July 26 and worked steady through August 19 without a day off.  During the two of the weeks of Turn I managed to earn 40 hours of overtime each week. Not that I am complaining my bank account and I are very happy.

As it turned out, no pun intended, I was offered a full-time position working in maintenance which I accepted. Ironically, my first day off was spent doing repairs on my daughter's house.

The Turn

Ironically, the evening I walked out of the call center I was offered a temp position painting apartments during turn. Turn is the period between July 31 when students move out and Aug 12 when they move in. Lawrence, Kansas is a university town where the ebb and flow of life revolves the academic year.

Summerfest - Black Keys, Florence + the Machine, and Cage the Elephant

 
I took a few days off from the Call Center in early July to see The Black Keys with special guests Florence + the Machine and Cage the Elephant at Summerfest in Milwaukee.   I left after work on Tuesday, July 6 and drove to Chicago to meet up with my son. 

Road laborers working on Wadsworth Road, Wadsworth, IL 1906.

What was suppose to be a  9 1/2 hour drive from Lawrence KS. to Chicago IL. ended up being a 11 hour drive due to road construction.  No complaints though the concert was well worth the drive. OnMilwaukee.com rated this show the best show of the festival.

Cage the elephant opened the evening's event. Unfortunately, I am unable to fine any video of their performance worth posting. Perhaps because it was their 3rd year at Summerfest. There are plenty of videos from their 2009 and 2010 performances. So here are a few of pics from Summerfest and a few of their official videos.

 Cage the Elephant: Shake Me Down

Cage the Elephant: Back Against the Wall

Florence and the Machine followed Cage the Elephant and brought the house down. She has an amazing voice. This was the last show of her American tour. The pics and videos are from Summerfest 2011

Florence and the Machine: Cosmic Love

Florence and the Machine closed her set and her American tour with Dog Days Are Over.

The Black Keys was the closing act and was simply amazing at the end of their set they came back to to a multi-song encore. They rock hard. The pics and videos are from Summerfest 2011.

 Black Keys Howlin for You

 Black Keys Tighten Up

 The Black Keys finished their set with I Got Mine

 The Black Keys closed the evening and their encore set with Your Touch

After the concert drove back to Chicago for a couple hours of sleep then took off in the morning for Lawrence.