Culture Shock!
Thursday was our annual mid-year meeting for work, a time for hearing about the few good things you've done right & the many things you've done wrong during the year thus far. We hand out awards from the previous year (I won an award for the top performing store of 2005, which is akin to player of the year from the 1989 Detroit Tigers, but I'll accept proudly anyway), talk about things to look forward to during the remainder of the year, & usually there are a lot of bad jokes told throughout the morning.
In the afternoon, we golf. During this time, there's usually plenty of beer to go around, many more bad jokes, & alot of bad golf. Now, I'm not saying I don't like my fellow colleagues, but if you get them all together, they can be kind of an annoying bunch, myself included. There's usually talk of budgets, how everyone's year is going, bad customers & all sorts of mind numbingly boring topics. I look upon these meetings with dread. There's nothing like getting a bunch of people together & forcing them to have fun. I found myself wanting to ask my boss, "can I please go WORK now"?
Alas, it was still a great day. Why? After the paint store geek convention, there was the independent music fan geek convention at Vertigo Records, with special guest star Will Oldham. What a great show that wierd little man put on for a crowd of about 100 packed into a small little record store with no air conditioning. It was blistering hot, you couldn't see a thing (unless you were up front), the sound wasn't too good, the noises of the city many times overpowered Oldham's guitar, & yet everybody in that little room stood in rapt attention to the funny looking guy gently strumming his tunes. He played many of my favorite songs of his including New Partner, I See a Darkness, Master & Everyone, May it Always Be, Another Day Full of Dread, Joy & Jubilee & a few I hadn't heard before including One with the Birds.
We capped things off perfectly with a visit to the Shawmut Inn. I miss that place. It was good to see Carl & Jill still keeping the place afloat.
Five Favorite Songs of the Day, actually ten...
Desolation Row-Bob Dylan, East Lansing, 2004
Shelter From the Storm-Bob Dylan, Columbus 8.13.06
Good Man-Josh Ritter, the Animal Years
Here at the Right Time-Josh Ritter, the Animal Years
the bucket was broken but the water was pure
New Partner-Will Oldham & Palace Music, Viva Last Blues
Baby Won't You Please Come Home-Miles Davis, Seven Steps to Heaven
It's Grand to Be a Man About Town-Kevin Davis, End Credits
Lord, Build Me a Cabin-Kevin Davis, End Credits
Thunder Road-Bonnie Prince Billy (aka Will Oldham) & Tortoise, the Brave & the Bold (song by Bruce Springsteen)
Happy Saturday, friends, don't be afraid of the wierd little man with the guitar!
andrew
2 comments:
There's a clever comment somewhere in my brain and it has to do with painting your blogs with music.
Are these song titles and artists names stored in your brain, or do you find them elsewhere?
They are usually stored in my brain, & have to do with what songs I listen to throughout a day. My brain is filled with all kinds of useless information.
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