Que the music...

{ Frank Sinatra -- Strangers In The Night }


Eau Claire, WI.

So... with Thanksgiving just a week away, that can only mean one thing.... shopping! Wait... its got to mean another thing.... cooking! Dammit... It means I end up in Eau Claire for two days. Yeah, thats what it means.

It means... I get crammed into a 30 year old aircraft, shuttled like a cow at IBP into a dank facility, surrounded by blue shirted corporate cheerleaders for 2 days. It, by default, means I stand in front of vendors telling them about their products more than they can tell me about them, for hours at a time, until midnight. Thats when we are finally allowed to sleep, in a hotel, across town, with a stranger. Yes Frankie, "love was just a glance away." Then, after clutching my asshole in fear all night, I'm run out of bed, in the dark, before 5am, to go right back to the compound, fetch my allotted single donut, to start it all over again... and when its decided... when the peace has been brokered. We're herded on to school buses again, and like hostages we're driven to the tarmac and escorted on to waiting planes. And only when I see Eau Claire from the air, do I know thats its ended. Another year in the books. I have survived.

In other news... I picked up the new Eagles cd... Long Road Out of Eden. On several levels I'm perplexed about it. First, that they decided to do a new album. Second, that they have decided there will be nothing after this one. Third, that they eventually always end up doing what they say they won't do. Fourth, how country this has returned for them. In all honesty, they started as a country music backer band for Linda Ronstadt. Yes, they did, check it out for yourself. But when I say that they were going to play the Country Music Awards this year, I thought "why." Now, I know. Don't get me wrong, there are some stand out songs on here, that are decidedly not country... and that would blend in well with one of those mid 70's albums.... but its a lot of country [ahem] inspired parts.--- more so than I was expecting. Obviously Joe Walsh didn't get to write a lot of this. But its good. Not great. Not best ever. Not even the Eagles best. But its good. The fifth thing that bugs me about it, [thought I was done?] is the release. Its a Walmart only!!! They have restricted the rights to them for one year before they let other retailers distribute it out. Plus, its also only available as a double cd set. The good part is, it was only 12 bucks. The bad part is, I know this isn't going to be the actual release... too many tracks, different tracks, and the obvious second disc is really making me think this. But. Do get it if you are a fan, or just never realized how many Eagles songs you like.