General updates

For some reason, I got a wild hair to update the lighting in the basement. I forgot why, but even with windows open and the two opposing florescent lights, this room was always dark. I started watching some YT videos and learned about wafer lights, 6" LED lights that simply clamp to drywall/ceiling tiles.

Lucky for me, the basement has a drop ceiling and I've been complaining about the lights for years. Years!

For about $100, I was able to get lights (x6), wiring, grommets and connectors. I did have to make a trip to Ace to pick up the right grommets, but after that, it was just some climbing up and down a ladder, snipping wires, connecting wires, cutting fiberglass ceiling tiles, and then, after about 4-5 hours, completion.

I was gonna put in 6 lights, but ended up going with 5. Sort of a weird configuration, but it works in the space. Really brightens things up and all I need now is a dimmer switch. Really like the improvement.

Now I just need to clean the room.

***

That was one cool thing from yesterday. The other was that Paul from MS called me. I've known him for a few years now, since he started working at the EBC as a contractor. He's climbed the ladder and is now a manager of the ES team and he's been trying to get me back. We've been talking the past few weeks since I visited in December and it sounded promising, but turns out there is no budget for me to come back to my old team.

However, over at the IEC, an opening happened and they have an immediate need for someone. Paul brought me up to Cindy, who runs the IEC, and they agreed that they needed to talk to me. So he called me yesterday and we got the ball rolling. I was put in touch with Suzanne, who works for an agency that staffs people at the IEC. I had talked to Suzanne last year when I was looking, so we got back in touch and she sent over the background check paperwork.

Though it's not done yet, it looks promising and I had people congratulating me via text already. Until I sign the docs, I won't feel comfortable, but once it happens, it's a nice step forward. Back to the people and place I love, steady check (but paid only once a month), benefits (better than what we have), and lots of growth potential.

***

Been playing way too much The Division 2. It's crazy, when I have free time, if I'm not hanging with Marci and watching our new obsession, Life Below Zero, all I want to do is play TD2. It's such a great grind and they drop just enough positive reinforcement to make me want to get on and play more. It doesn't help that Danny is into it, either, so we're jumping on a few times a week if he's up for it.

Love it!

***

Music has been on the backburner for now. PITO had a gig earlier this month and hasn't rehearsed since. Cass and Robb played a quick 3 song Dear John Letters set last weekend for a Crocodile show. Too cold to go, so I stayed at home. I did have Sunset Grooves practice last weekend, which was fun, as always. We are sounding pretty good, despite having a month off from our last show. And we had rehearsal planned this Sunday for our upcoming 2/2 gig, but Dennis just let us know he has something going on that night, so looks like only one more practice until the show.

As far as PITO stuff, we have a show 3/2 at Darrell's and hoping we can get some recording done at Lang between then and now. Sadly, though, both Cass (friend) and Robb (cousin) have lost people close to them, so there may be some Real Life events getting booked that may cause delays. All good.

***

Speaking of music, I keep thinking of recording more bass covers, doing a deep dive on Nate Mendel/Foo Fighters, showing off picking skills and justifying the GAS for a NM signature P bass. There's one in Bellingham for $1075 that I might be able to get for $950 if I go pick it up? Of course, I have no money, but one can dream and keep it in mind... Maybe if I get some gigs and CNY money and birthday money? Who knows; it's the last thing I need, but GAS is GAS.

***

Ok, that's it for now, quick update. Time to brush my teeth and gear up for a run. Warmest it's been in a week and I skipped yesterday to install the lights. I can almost see the sun peeking through the clouds!

Gig report: 1/3/24 Planets in the Ocean at the Tractor Tavern

David from Pop Cycle booked this show, asking us to play on a Wednesday, but at the venerable Tractor Tavern. The other band, Royal Blunder, I knew nothing about, other than a few songs on the internet that were pretty lo-fi and chill.

I last played the Tractor in September of 2022 with Kathy Moore, on a Monday, of all nights. She was supporting a traveling singer/songwriter from Atlanta, which means you play when they are in town. It was sparsely attended, but it was the debut of my $100 212 Avatar cabinet, which I was excited about.

As far as my own project at the Tractor, it was with Stereo Embers on New Year's Eve going into 2019, where we opened for Ayron Jones (who is now opening tours for bands like the Rolling Stones and GnR!!). I also saw one of my heroines, Juliana Hatfield, in Feb 2020 before covid shut us all down.

In other words, the Tractor is a pretty big deal in these parts, and for Planets, it was great to get there. We negotiated the opening slot on the weeknight and were a little nervous at maybe a light draw. We haven't drawn super great since revamping and we're trying to build it up.

I left at 5pm for a 6-ish soundcheck, starting my night in the hole and paying $60 for gas right off the bat.

the pain, $5.09/gallon for supreme.

After not even getting a full tank for $60, I headed towards Ballard. I hit something coming off the freeway, seeing it too late in the dark and rain. I thought it was a piece of cardboard or something, but then I heard the grinding of something underneath the car. After pulling over to check, turns out it was a headrest from someone's car. I pulled that ish out and kicked it aside, then made my way to the club.

Jim from Pop Cycle was kind enough to share his incredible Verellen rig. They were about to soundcheck when I arrived. He has a really nice P bass as well, and they sounded great when they did their quick check of things.

I would hate to haul this around, but I sure like playing through it.

As far as basses go, I brought my P and my gold L-1000, with the intent of playing the P. I have flats on it and I've been a little concerned with the action on it. It seems a little low, but I can't seem to get it higher, either with the saddles or truss rod adjusted. I may just take it somewhere and have someone set it up for me.

We did our soundcheck and I thought the bass sounded good. I had earplugs in and was about 10' or so in front of the amp and could hear it well enough. I had Jacob, the sound guy, put my bass in the monitors and was pretty happy with it. I've had thoughts that it can sound kind of twangy and plinky, especially since I'm using a pick, but I try to tame it with generous use of the tone knob.

After soundcheck, it was over to Hattie's Hat for a quick dinner, where Cass and I chatted before being joined by Robb and our friend Ted, who always shoots some vids and pix of us. It was nice to get caught up with him and my bros, and then we headed back next door to play some tunes.

Getting back to the Tractor!

We got on stage and Robb didn't have setlists printed. No big deal, he just called out the songs and off we went. Keeps things interesting. We were pleasantly surprised at the crowd. Based on the payment sheet at the end of the night, there were 60 paid attendees. I don't know how the Tractor felt about that, but we were pretty happy with the turnout. Lots of familiar faces and always some that hadn't seen us but were excited after doing so.

As we played, I felt pretty good about how the bass sounded, but thought it was a little quiet. I didn't want to turn up my stage volume, so I had Jacob put some more bass in the monitors, which helped, but the sound I was getting wasn't great. Again, plinky and twangy and I didn't care for it too much. My buddy Steve, who is a P bass afficionado, told me afterwards it sounded fine, but a little low in the overall room mix. At that point in the gig, not much I could do with it, so I just played through.

Overall, I felt pretty good about the performance. Cass was solid, as always; Robb's vocals were on fire and his guitar playing was nice as well. My vocals were louder than usual and I was told that my bass could have been louder in the mix out front. Lots of compliments on the vocals, though, which I love.

We got off the stage and were followed by the Pop Cycle. They're a quartet, with two singers/guitarists, a bassist and a drummer. I had played with both guitarists in separate projects, then together as yet another project. Both those guys, David and Brett, write great pop rock songs and sing like birds; put 'em together and it's really a great combo. Paul on drums is frenetic and drives the bus; he looks like he's playing on a 60's tv show with his energy and physicality. And Jim plays a solid bass while also singing lead on one X cover (I had to be told it was a cover, that's how up to date I am on X tunes). They played a nice, melodic set and then gave way to Royal Blunder.

Pop Cycle at soundcheck.

Crowd was bigger earlier, but still nice.

As I mentioned earlier, Royal Blunder sounded pretty chill based on what I had heard online. In talking to the dudes before the show, they indicated that this was their third gig together. The guys were a little older than us, except for Danny, the lead guitarist, so I knew it wasn't their first rodeo. They jumped onstage and were quite a bit livelier than I expected. Definitely a rock band; the flyer described them as "psych post punk," and I'll admit, I don't even know what that means.

Anyway, they had good bones and I think more practices and gigs will only make them better. Rob, the singer, looked great on stage and sounded pretty good as well. He had a really high voice, which reminded me of an old singer of mine, Chris, from the Lund Bros. They also did a cover of "I Am the Walrus," which he nailed thanks to that high voice. Bruce on bass played a Rick and it sounded a little thick and muddy; I'm not sure what was happening to the sound in that room, but it seemed weird once I got off stage.

Royal Blunder

Overall, a really nice night at the Tractor. We got paid and after splitting it three ways, I didn't cover my gas and meal ($15 including tip), but as mentioned before, that's not why I do it. The positive vibes, the reconnecting with old friends and making new friends was all good. Hoping to continue growing this band, recording some more songs, putting out a vinyl and playing some bigger shows as we move through 2024.

Goals for 2024

Do I have goals? I guess I do. Let's put them down for the first time ever. In no particular order, except after the first 2 or 3.

1. Find gainful, stable employment, preferably not contract based. Would love an FTE role somewhere, doesn't even need to pay a boat load of $$. Just some stability and benefits and growth potential.
2. Don't get COVID. It's been almost 4 years, why start now?
3. Listen more, react less. I am nothing more than a work in progress. Only I have to be cognizant of the progress part.
4. Keep running, no matter what. This year, it'll be 6 years of running and as much as I despise it (lazy), I know I need it. I did about 677 miles last year, which is running, walking and biking all up. Probably 95% or more is from running. Let's get 700 miles this year, all up!
5. Play 25-30 shows between Sunset Grooves and Planets in the Ocean. Last year's numbers were padded due to 12 shows with Forest Ray. So far, 2 shows booked, one for each band.
1. have PITO play some bigger shows, open for bigger bands.
2. Sing lead on a Sunset Grooves song.
6. Continue blogging on a regular basis. It will be in fits and starts and it will mainly be music based, but keep the writing going.
7. Home related: install drop ceiling lights in the non-lit corners downstairs. I know it can't be hard: purchase lights/fixtures, hang from ceiling, wire to existing leads, don't die from shock, done! University of YouTube to the rescue.
8. Pay down the Amazon credit card, then work on busting down the Sapphire card. All dependent on goal #1.
9. Be more present for the fam, work on experiences instead of stuff. Let's reprioritize outings and vacations. What about day trips?
10. Vote Democrat for a brighter future (that one will be easy).

2023 year in entertainment

Since I wasn't working regularly, I had plenty of time to stay entertained. Still reading daily. Still watching tv and movies with Marci (more TV than movies). Still playing video games. Listening to a lot of podcasts. And, of course, still playing bass. Let's go.