I've been tagged...

by Bex!
Here's the deal...pay attention now.

1. Find the nearest book: Ok, a very bad bio of Pete Townshend.
2. Name the book title and author: Behind Blue Eyes, A Life of Pete Townshend by Geoffrey Giuliano
3.Turn to page 123. ok...
4. Go to the 5th sentence on the page and then copy the next 3 sentences on your blog.

"Pete's rendition, however, is somehow strangely out of place in comparison to the rest of the album. It's not the obvious fact that it's a circa 1950s - something Country and Western ballad sung by a willowy English boy to his Persian-Indian messiah. That only makes it more intriguing."

(He is referring to "Heartache" by Jim Reeves on Who Came First.).


Ok I will tag: ginab, lyricsgirl (sue - however your screen name is spelled!) and
anne-marie!!

Maybe I should do the five weird things about yourself tag next...

Falling through the cracks

Being a substitute teacher for Special Needs kids has been very enlightening for me.
I see/hear alot. Many children are poor and neglected - I can see the sadness and frustration in their eyes.
Last week I worked with one of my favorite Special Ed classes. They have a new student and well, I was floored when their teacher told me HER story.
This African- American girl, I'll call her Tammy, is almost 9, but she should be in third grade. More on this in a bit.
She moved here to San Diego with her mom, dad, brother and grandmother after losing everything (including family) after Katrina.
Two months ago her mom died of heart disease.
Last month she was placed in the class I was subbing for - which is a mix of 4th, 5th and 6th mild to moderate special needs students.
I am unsure as to why she was placed in the special ed class - but I think it may be that she just refuses to work and has an incredibly negative/contradictory attitude.
Anyway, she SHOULD be with the 1st - 3rd graders, but she was PROMOTED a grade based on her appearance. She is more developed than girls her age (but I think it's just because she is overweight).
Being a poor, low-income black child from Louisiana,well, you can bet that has had a substandard education. Her father is not very well educated, and he grieving for his wife, so he is not in a position to support her and be the advocate he needs to be.
So here she is, a "slow" learner, promoted a grade and then dumped in a special needs class. The girl is not learning disabled, she's DEPRESSED. She needs COUNSELING and a tutor.
Her present teacher (who I subbed for) fought with the administration until she was blue in the face about getting Tammy the help she needs - and placing her back with mainstream students where she belongs.
The principal WROTE THE TEACHER UP for being in the principal's face!

I cannot stop thinking about Tammy. I am going to try to contact her dad through Tammy's teacher and see if I can help her out. Anjoli (my daughter who will turn 9 next week) could help tutor her - that would make it more fun for Tammy. I think it's really important for Anjoli to see how unfortunate some kids are...and how we cannot turn our back on children in need.

Wish me luck.

The first time Rufus met me...he looks thrilled.

Poor Rufus. The things he has to endure. Straight women. Fag hags...!

This photo was taken in October (?) 2003.
I met my dear, sweet, lovely friend (who is half my age) LAURA that day. I dragged her into the line to meet Rufus after his short performance at Borders in Westwood, (LA) and made her meet Rufus with me. (I can be a little bossy that way! "You WILL be my friend, damnit! I WILL NOT be bored!"). She was taken aback a bit by my, um enthusiasm. I won't tell you what I brought as a gift for him, but, seriously, it bordered on psychotic! She's going to spill the beans I know she will.
Oh Lord help me.
Please don't embarass me Laura.
I should have never have brought it up...

Rufus Wainwright "This Love Affair"

Rufus himself has said that it's one of life's greatest tragedies that he's gay...I think it's more tragic that he isn't a HUGE star.
I don't get it.
But I don't get alot of things...
I was in the audience when he performed this song at CBS studios in LA on the Late Late Show with Craig Ferguson.
I believe this is Rufus' best song. He had a bit of a cold that day though.

Btw, Rufus has a new cd coming out in May, 2007, entitled Release the Stars.
IT WILL BE NOTHING LESS THAN SPECTACULAR!!!!

New Do

Yeah I know this isn't MyVanitySpace...but I am so excited and I just can't hide it. I'm about to lose control and I think I like it.

(It's all Sue's fault -Lyricgrl Sue that is!).


It gets worse...

You Gotta Have Heart

Happy Valentine's Day Everyone!


(Photo taken in Alishan, Taiwan June 2006. Click on it for more detail!!)

Get a Clue, Sue!!!!!!!!

I can be very, very stubborn and sometimes my perception of reality is just a tad askew. Case, in point, this classic Sue tale (sadly a true story actually) which I am about to share with all of you. It’s hilarious, but, well, honestly, it IS a bit scary too.

For Thanksgiving, our family drove to Tuscon, Arizona. Our friend Sokoun (pictured above with me - she likes doing cactus people poses!) invited us to stay with her Uncle Lee and his lovely wife. Sokoun and her family, as some of you may remember from earlier posts, are from Cambodia. Uncle Lee has done very well for himself since arriving over 25 years ago. He owns a mini - supermarket and has invested in real estate. He is living proof that, with a lot of hard work and sacrifice, the American Dream can indeed come true for anyone. He and his wife have a gorgeous home, it is almost palatial you could say. (Pictures to follow!).
Uncle Lee and his wife were SO hospitable – just lovely folks. (I could never pronounce Uncle Lee's wife's name – bad Sue, I know. I promise to get it from Sokoun!) We felt welcomed and very comfortable during our stay.

On Thanksgiving morning, I went for about a two mile jog at a park which was located across the street from their house. It had a beautiful trail, filled with huge Saguaro cacti and other varieties of cacti.
This is what the trail looked like:





I had never run in the desert before. I ran hard, because I knew I’d be feasting later on (and did I ever!). As you may imagine, it is was pretty warm and very dry, so I couldn’t WAIT to jump in the shower. My mantra at the time was: “MUST TAKE SHOWER…GET ME TO THE SHOWER….MUST TAKE SHOWER…”

SO! I walked from the trail across the street, and, well, this is what I saw:




For some reason, I looked at my car (the black Forrester in the pic) and I thought my husband had moved it. Don’t ask me why – as I said, I tend to see things not exactly as they really are. I thought I had parked in front of Uncle Lee’s house…so I walked up the walkway to his house. As I was walking, this boy from across the street ran over to me, and asked me, “Oh, are you looking for them?”
So I said, “Oh no, I am here visiting from California.”
“Oh, he said, “Well, have you seen Luke?”
“Ah no…who’s Luke?”
“Oh he’s a boy - he’s my friend.”
Well, I was thinking, THAT’S really odd because all of Uncle Lee’s kids are teenagers.
“How old is Luke?” I asked.
“He’s seven.”
Oh, I thought, he must be VISITING his Uncle for Thanksgiving.
So I walked into the house, and this Cambodian woman looks at me.
“Are you looking for Lee? He’s next door.”
“No, he’s not,” I replied. ‘”He’s working at the store.”
“Ah, no,” said the woman, “I don’t think so, because he has visitors.”
“Well,” I said, “I SAW him leave the house this morning. He’s a very hard worker isn’t he?”

Then I saw this very old woman mopping the floor, so, being the polite person that I am, I promptly took off my shoes.
I looked around and thought to myself, “Whoa – they really cleared the place out and they moved the furniture around too! (Uncle Lee was hosting a HUGE party that evening – over 100 people were invited).

“Ok ,” I told the woman, “ I REALLY need to take a SHOWER. Let me get my towel.” (It is good manners to bring your own towel when you stay at a Cambodian household).

I entered the downstairs bathroom, but I didn’t see my towel.

So I walked UPSTAIRS to see if I left it in the bedroom where we were sleeping.
At the top of the stairs is a tv room – and I saw 2 of Sokoun’s cousins whom I had met earlier that morning. The woman followed me upstairs (I assumed she was visiting Uncle Lee also, as lots of family were coming in from out of town).
“Oh hi! “ I said to her cousins.
The lady sat on the couch, introduced me to her husband, then patted the seat next to her, hinting that I should sit down and chat!
“Oh no,” I told her, “ I REALLY need to take a shower!! Then we can chat!”
“I just need to grab my towel from the bedroom.”

As I was walking down the hall, I heard her cousin say, well what I THOUGHT he said was, “You can USE the house.”
I have tinnitus and I have a hard enough time understanding those who speak English, let alone new friends with very thick foreign accents!
I think I said, “aw you are SO nice.THANK YOU!” I was just so appreciative of the “mi casa es su casa” vibe, ya know?

So, I kept walking and when I reached the room, it was EMPTY.

“OOOOOOOOOh!!!! I CONFUSED the house!!!”

Yup. I was in the wrong freaking house!!!
As I bolted down the stairs, I asked the woman who first greeted me in her foyer:
“Um, well, are you at least RELATED to Uncle Lee?”
She nodded her head.
Phew.

Yes, I was the hit of the party with THAT story! I honestly have never laughed so hard.
It’s good that I can laugh at myself though, dontcha think?
Yeah yeah I know…if I couldn’t laugh then I ‘d be crying all the time!




Anjoli atop one of two wooden elephants that adorn both sides of Uncle Lee's staircase. These elephants, each weighing roughly 500 pounds, were conspicuously missing from the OTHER house.
But, again, I thought they were cleared out for the party! OMG how thick can you get Sue??? Not only that, the staircase next door was WHITE!!

Wake Up America!!!

This is a picture taken in September, 2005 at a huge anti-Iraq march in Washington, DC.
We made sure we bought the appropriate t-shirts before marching. You will notice that my husband, Sujoy is wearing a t-shirt that says; "Bush Lied, People Died."

I just came across an ad that states that a similar t-shirt is now BANNED in two states:

"Bush Lied They Died T-Shirt
Says "Bush Lied" on the front and "They Died" on the back. With names of all 2,803 U.S. troops killed in Iraq through 0ct. 23, 2006. List of names is preceded by larger text that reads "U.S. Troops Who Died in Iraq from March 20 2003 Through October 23, 2006."

Selling this shirt is illegal in two states and may soon be illegal nationwide. With your support, we will continue to sell this shirt in all 50 states until the troops come home or they throw us in jail, whichever comes first. "

Enough is enough. How the hell can we "export" democracy when we are CENSORING what may be printed on t-shirts? Free speech? Ha!

It's not funny. It is FREAKING ME OUT.

I saw Cindy Sheehan the day we marched. I said hello...I wasn't sure if it was her or not actually, but now looking at pictures of her again, I realized it was her. She was so sad. She was the reason why I marched. I admire a woman with such courage. Being a mother, I understand her pain and heartache. I could NEVER imagine losing my child...for NO GOOD REASON.

I received this bulletin from her MySpace site today. For those of you who are opposed to the war and the loss of many of our Constitutional freedoms, I think it is imperative that you let your voice be heard...while it's still legal!! If you don't want to read the entire message, scroll down to the bottom of it to see how you can help stop this senseless war.

The Price of Freedom
24
Cindy Sheehan



I received this message on my MySpace page. The person’s picture that accompanied the message was of a young man standing next to a bright-shiny red truck. Obviously, he hasn’t taken advantage of his GI education benefits to avail himself of an English Comp class, but that is beside the point.


"Becoming a disabled vet during a time of "peace", I saw things, did things that you average Americans could not fathom. All for the sake of our freedoms.Who cries for my shipmates lost at sea? It was peacetime so no attention was called to it. Who stands out when a pilot goes down on a trianing mission? Soldiers, Sailors, Marines, die every day. EVERY DAY! it's the life we lead. It's a dangerous job, and I did it for the love of my country. The greatest freedom YOU have is not having to worry about weather or not our military will defend you. It is thier(our) duty. It is not a choice.We accepted that when we signed up. No one forced us.And we did not get to pick or chose whom we would defend. I lost friends and loved ones both in peace and in war and thier sacrifice is greater than your lose. But to you, it appears, we should sit on our hands and let madmen destroy the world. So Sorry, I have seen it first hand, this cruelity called terrorism.

Another Jane Fonda.Good Grief.

All that is necessary for the truimph of evil is for good men to do nothing!

Have a Nice day. God bless our troops and America!!"


When I receive a message like this, I have to pay attention to it. This young man has lost friends in what he calls “peace” time. He has served his country unlike the Commander in Chief and the Vice Commander in Chief. He took his oath and service seriously, but I had and have a fundamental question for him---what freedoms did Casey pay the ultimate price for? What freedoms did my family gain from Casey’s death and what price did we have to pay?

I had to carefully explain to the young vet that BushCo can now read our emails, listen to our phone calls, open our mail, look at our phone and bank records and imprison us without our fundamental rights of habeas corpus. The people of Iraq don’t even have the freedom of going to school, mosque or the market without the potentiality of being blown to tiny pieces. They did go out and “vote” in a day that they were finally protected by the US military for candidates that didn’t even get to campaign for fear of assassination.

I would like to tell this young vet and the millions of Americans who disapprove of Bloody George and his war OF terror who don’t do anything but complain what this raping of our freedoms cost my family and 3046 other families to date here in America.

There were 24 of our troops killed in the 3rd bloodiest day for American soldiers since the sinister invasion almost four years ago. Their families don’t even know (but I know the moms suspect) that their loved one has been killed on foreign sands so our land of the free can become the land of the less free. These 24 families are going to discover what the term “hell on earth” really means.

On the 2nd day after Casey was killed, Sgt. Major “I don’t know, but I will find out and get back with you” Mills came over to our house and nervously opened his Casualty Manual. As with the Sheehan family, Casey was the Sgt. Major’s first casualty. As Casey’s first of kin, I had to sign paper work designating a funeral home and about the funeral and other things I signed in a fog of immeasurable pain and shock. I am not sure what I signed and I don’t think the signatures would hold up in a court of law. Before he gratefully got to escape our house of sorrow, he handed me a check for $12,000 (that has since been increased to $100,000) for incidentals and informed me that I was the beneficiary for Casey’s life insurance.

The $12,000 went quickly for funeral costs. The surviving men in my family needed suits and the sisters needed appropriate funeral dresses. I had no “mother of a hero” funeral clothes. The Army only pays $4600.00 for funerals and a pittance for headstones if you don’t want to use their rigid style. The dozens of people who filled our tiny home every day needed to be fed and supplied with a seemingly bottomless well of alcohol. Our friends and neighbors in Vacaville were very generous, but all of the money we received went to a Catholic summer camp where Casey worked for a few summers. These are just monetary costs of freedom and don’t even approach the emotional and physical costs of freedom that these 24 new families are going to be forced to experience by this insanely greedy administration over the very weak protestations of a complicit Congress.

The sleepless nights; the gallons of tears; the regrets; the guilt; the physical and mental effects of depression; the different ways that each family member grieves; the anger; the unrelenting and unremitting pain; the trips to a cemetery that becomes too familiar---where new graves or headstones are noticed; the dreams; the nightmares; the abandonment of the military and the country that your son died for; the loss of appetite, the gain of appetite; the loss of hope---etc. etc---forever and ever.

Bloody George is sending more of our children to die and kill innocent Iraqis. My one consolation in Casey’s death is that it was swift---in his first battle after only being in country for 5 days. He said that he couldn’t kill anyone and I, gratefully, don’t think he did. What really chaps my hide is that Congress won’t do anything meaningful to stop Bloody George, for example, cut off the money pipeline where the money flows directly from China to the Pentagon. Except for less than a handful of members, no one in Congress, or this administration has had to get one gray hair from worry. None of them will ever sob over their child’s grave or have to stay at a Fisher House while their family member is recovering from the grievous wounds of an IED blast. Not one of the people who send our children off to war will ever lose their jobs or marriages because of their own crimes.

I told my young veteran correspondent that even if we believed that our troops dying in Iraq was securing our freedoms or making us safer, that the price was still too high. Why are mostly white American’s freedoms often bought and paid for by the blood of brown people? From the almost virtual extinction of our own native population, enslavement of Africans, mass murder of Filipinos, war crimes against Japanese in Nagasaki and Hiroshima , Koreans, Vietnamese, and now Iraqis and Afghanis, these peoples have paid and are paying an exorbitant price for our freedoms. If one person has to die to make me free, then I don’t want that freedom. It is a freedom that is purchased by bondage and carnage which is inherently compromised and soiled.

The one thing that I heartily agree with that my vet friend wrote is:

All that is necessary for the triumph of evil is for good men to do nothing!



In the age of American Idol and Fox News, evidently evil is triumphing. It is time for the ¾’s of our nation who oppose what’s going on to get off of their couches and stop allowing a handful of grieving parents, ballsy women in pink, courageous military families, Raging Grannies, and a bus load of Iraq vets to do the heavy lifting for the peace movement.

We families and vets are already shouldering a heavy burden.

Help us stop Bloody George.

Because of the apathetic inaction of the majority masses, 24 new families will discover the heavy toll of freedom.

Go to United for Peace and Justice and find out how you can join hundreds of thousands---hopefully millions---of Americans around the country the weekend of January 27-29 to say no to the Bush regime and war---yes to impeachement and peace!




Cindy Sheehan is the mother of Spc. Casey Sheehan who was killed in Bush's war of terror on 04/04/04.
She is the co-founder and president of Gold Star Families for Peace and the Camp Casey Peace Institute.
She is the author of three books, the most recent is: Peace Mom: A Mother's Journey Through Heartache
to Activism.

MODest Mum?

Hey sweeties!
This is me apres my makover by the singer/songwriter/webgoddess/hostess of the fanfuckingtastic webcast musical extravangza In the Attic.

Rachel, bless her generous fashionista heart, flew me to London, took me shopping, stuck one of my fingers in a light socket, then had William Snyder do a photo shoot of moi! (I had him re-create a sticker-laden door to replicate my daughter's at home).
The result? You decide! A little bit MOD, a little bit MAD, perhaps?
Rachel actually begged me to straighten my hair. She said, "mod gals don't have curly hair!" But I said, "Not on your life, sista! If God wants me to have big-ass hair, then it's nothing but big-ass hair for Swho!"
(My mop top is actually keeping my head warm during this dreadful cold snap we are experiencing here in California at the moment!).

Of course this is one giant lie.
I was Christmas shopping at Macy's last month and this very pale mannequin in the petite section screamed (she must have known that I have tinnitus): "BUY THIS VERY COOL MODISH- LOOKING JACKET !!! TAKE IT HOME....PLEASE!!" Wot to do? I couldn't let the little plaster of Paris lady down...

Be sure to tune into In the Attic!. If you enjoy live acoustic music by artists such as Pete Townshend,his partner Ms. Fuller herself, Martha Wainwright, The Raconteurs, and The Flaming Lips and are hip to off-the-wall politically incorrect (as in they swear a whole heck of alot) banter, then this show is for YOU. Tipper Gore- sorry hon, this show ain't for you. Al may enjoy it though (in between bong hits ...hee hee).

I guarantee you, my luvvies, your life will never be the same! Where else can you get gorgeous pearls of wisdom such as "Big is Beautiful!" and gentle reminders to "get yer bangers * out girls...that way, no one will ever notice your 52" waist!!"

Just tune in. What have you got to lose?

* Bangers is Rachel-speak for a woman's chest.

San Francisco

Hello there.
Hope everyone is doing well -still recovering from the holidays are we?
I am!

I spent 4 days up in Northern Cal last week. My sis moved there last month from NYC. She came down for Christmas and I decided at the last minute to accompany her back up north. We left the day after Christmas and, my goodness - it took 11 freaking hours to get there! It was well worth it though. I love Palo Alto (where she lives). It's about 25 miles from San Francisco.

I took the commuter train into the City one day. It was a very nice, pleasant trip - it took about an hour.
The train took me downtown to God knows where (well it dropped me off at Townsend Street! I took that as a good omen - spelled without the 'h' though). My goal was to get to Haight-Ashbury but I had no clue how to get there! I soon found help though - a very nice cleaning lady near a bus stop gave me info on which busses to take. I was very proud of myself for taking the busses and not a taxi! ( Oh Lord help me if I consider that to be an accomplishment. Spoilt girl I am!). I enjoyed it - checking out the locals - old Asian ladies with their bags stuffed to the brim with vegetables...young skater punk kids...hippy/boho chicks...
I took 2 busses to Haight Ashbury. I had never seen this area before (the last time I was in San Francisco was back in 1981).
Yeah it's a bit touristy - but not as bad as I expected. No wax museum full of Janis Joplins, Jimi Hendrixes or The Grateful Dead! I did see a map of all the houses of famous residents but I didn't go that far! Maybe next time...
Here are some pics for ya'll. I don't know why they came out on top of eachother like that. Oh well!
My favorite is this top one on the left - a mom and son sharing a quiet cafe moment while Inflatable Annie looks on from her windowseat!














How kitschy can ya get?



I LOVED the vintage shops...



and the GORGEOUS architecture, of course!










I bought a cd from this girl - she was giving away her band's cd for a donation. The name of her band is Ghandolff and the Hobbitz. Her cd is called "Circle of Protection." Aw...so sweet. I took her picture because she really looked the part! (I didn't check out her feet though). I know it's dark - click on it to see her better. She was such a sweetie.

I just listened to the cd the other day and, um, well, it DID conjure images of little furry-footed people dancing merrily in an enchanted forest somewhere deep within Middle-earth! It was unique.









My caption for the picture below: "Girlfriend, you WISH you were as pretty as me!" Click on it to see what I mean!!!!




A startling revelation spotted on a t-shirt in a shop window:




When I returned to my sister's apartment later that evening, I found her tangled in a maze of wires. Well, not quite...but she is quite the brainiac - she was hooking up her elaborate entertainment system. I helped as best I could...shoving wires through holes and whatnot. That's as far as I get with electronic equipment!
Here's the lil' geekazoid herself (not the best pic, she was sick at the time poor babe).



Ok so she's not QUITE a genius. She may have landed a job at i-Tunes (as a software engineer) but she couldn't get the audio to work, so we ended up watching her fave Star Trek episode from the original series (an xmas gift) on her laptop. Apparently I took this picture, but I barely remember taking it (uh oh)! I had a very nice, large glass of her expensive scotch...and didn't eat much that day, so I was a bit loopy. I just remember laughing hysterically.
(I love gay men to pieces so I hope I don't offend anyone here!!).

New Year's Party at Swho's!!!

Yup.
This was what it looked like!!!!




We rented a helium tank that was supposed to blow up 45 balloons...turns out there was only enough helium for 6 balloons! The kids blew up the rest...good New Year's Eve project!!!

Happy Christmas and Merry New Year!!!

Just remember that we are One.
May you all be happy and at peace.
Love,
Sue

The Who at the Hollywood Bowl Nov. 4,2006

Anjoli and I walked for about 10 minutes to the Hollywood Bowl. You could feel the excitement in the air...people were blasting the Who from their cars...lots of smiling faces (lots of OLD faces!! hee hee not ME!!). Usually there are more kids at Who shows - I would say the age range was from late teens to mid 60s.

We walked to our seats and I was relieved to see that the Pretenders did not open. I would have been beside myself if I missed them! It was Rose Hill Drive - they were finishing their last song. They are not my cup of tea - sorry. It just sounded like noise to me. I did enjoy their acoustic sets on In the Attic though.

I thought our seats would be a bit closer, but we (only!) paid $100 per ticket. Still, the big screens were close on the left so...it was fine. I was just thrilled to be there. Anjoli was a bit reluctant - she thought she'd get BORED! HA! Little did she know what excitement was in store for her.

The Who came out and started, as usual, with I Can't Explain. Anjoli was completely mesmerized - she was blown away by the projections and the lights...which were BEAUTIFUL and hypnotizing. We both danced to every song (with the exception of the slower ones of course). We sat next to an older couple who pretty much sat through the entire show. I have to say that I was the most excited fan in our section - singing every word (but not too loud I know how annoying that can be) including all the new material.
I think the highlight for me was "Fragments." The projections on the screens were surreal and really complemented the song - I can still see Pino against the image of the sea ( I think that was during Fragments). I LOVED how Roger pointed to the audience :"parts of me belong to you (points) and you (points)..."

Roger told the audience that he is the biggest Pete Townshend fan...he loves to celebrate Pete's genius. No one can interpret Pete (well besides Pete) like Roger. Roger looked like he had been WAITING for so long for new material - you could feel his joy and love for the Who and Pete.
PETE was absolutely on fire. I can't tell you how elated it makes me to see Pete so happy. You could tell that he and Roger were not just going through the motions. Their energy, stamina, their raw power, their love for life and music and yes, the fans...it was palpable. I have never felt so connected to any artists as I did at this show. Really.
I didn't take ONE second of that concert for granted. I get teary (I am now) thinking about it. At one point I was thinking, "WHAT have I done to deserve all this?" I kept thinking of the magical ride I have been on with Rachel, Pete, blogging, In the Attic...the wonderful people I have met through Blogger and ITA...in a way it is a sort of realization of Pete's premise that music is a means of bringing people together, a chance to celebrate and forget the day to day hassles...and I do believe Pete's words from "Mirror Door" - that "music makes me strong." I don't know where or who I would be without it.

At one point Anjoli and I went to get dinner. While waiting I was chatting with a man - he was saying how he wished Pete would perform some of his solo work. I asked him if he had ever watched In the Attic. He said he had heard about it, but he hadn't ever watched it. Ok so Sue naturally goes OFF and blabs on and on about it. When he could finally get a word in edgewise, he looked deep into my eyes and said "You are REALLY a Who fan!"


I enjoyed every song, but I especially loved the Tommy medley.. I was zoning out on the visuals when Anjoli said "did you see that Pete jump Mommy? That was the BEST ONE yet!!" I missed it, darn.

I have to say, as Chris Capp did, that Simon adds SO much to the show. I was cheering when the camera caught him - his vocals and "guitaring" (hee hee that's what my husband's Indian friends say) are bleeping fantastic. His contribution is vital, I think. Zak was tremendous, and I could hear Pino better this time around! I forgot who Rabbit's replacement (techie man) was - but he did a bang up job as well. I was sad that Rabbit wasn't there though (still praying for his wife, Sue).


After the show, I heard one aged (!) hippy in a tan fringe jacket lecture his old lady: "people talk about Bono...but Townshend...he's a CREATOR - a revolutionary." {sorry I wrote that on Rachel's blog but it bears repeating!}

Amazingly, we bumped into bloggers MarkT and Jill, whom we had met for the first time the night before. Turns out they had been sitting not too far from us. Well, there you go. THAT'S synchronicity for ya. Out of 20,000 plus people we met again? I don't believe in accidents.
Mark was telling me how he saw the Who in London in the 60s...aw man - how lucky can you get! I always said I was born 10 years too late!

Then...another coincidence...I bumped into the guy I sat next to at Rachel's Barnes and Noble performance the night before! We didn't chat the night before, but we talked for a bit then...he told me he was in a band with a former Jethro Tull member...I forgot the name of his band though. Oh well.

Anjoli's only complaint was - THEY DIDN'T PLAY SUBSTITUTE!!
They DID add it to the next night's playlist though...

Here it is:



Anjoli loves to leap like Pete!

A Day in L.A.

Ok I won't go into TOO many boring details about what happened AFTER the Barnes and Noble gig. All I can say is THANK YOU to my wonderful pal Laura for picking Anjoli and her blind mother up from the Grove. No mention of just how difficult THAT was for her. (I really do love an LA girl who has absolutely no clue about where LA's best mall is. She's a little indie rocker/ filmmaker...art is what it's all about to Laura. Art and Converse hightops!).

I wish all of you could meet Laura and her roommate, Michelle. They are a total comedy team. So sharp and quick witted...I am amazed every time I visit. They really crack me up. Here's a taste of their dry wit: when one of them leaves the apartment, one will say, "bye, don't die!" (when asked about that their answer was: "who will pay the other half of the rent?") Anjoli was in heaven playing (or rather observing) their gorgeous cat, Judy. Judy is fond of "vanquishing" sundry objects around the apartment, which, after destroying, she drops into her water bowl...ah, just because I guess!

So, having left my car at the Grove...Laura was our chauffeur for the next day.
Laura has been telling me for months about the NIRVANA/MOTHER of ALL record stores...Amoeba Records. I finally made my pilgrimage:





Oh JOY oh RAPTURE. WOW!! I wish all of you lovely people could visit this store. I could have stayed ALL afternoon. It's HUGE and full of bargains galore. It's a mixture of used and new cds, albums, dvds, posters, etc. Here is my damage:
For Anjoli - Nanny McPhee and Harry Potter 2 dvds, Tommy and The Who Isle of Wight on DVD- both were new...Tommy was $9.99 and Isle of Wight was only $15.98, Willy Mason's cd Where the Humans Eat ($5.99) and Joni Mitchell's
Songs of a Prairie Girl for $7.99. I left spending about $75.00!! Unbelievable. I am glad it's in LA and not in San Diego though! Like Laura, I am MUCH more at home in a record store than a mall. We are two peas in a pod that way.
After my little shopping spree, Laura buzzed up a steep hill and showed us...GASP...the house where MORRISSEY lived. (It's in West Hollywood). Sadly Morrissey moved back to (?) London maybe? Anyway, this is where he used to live:




After kissing the "Morrissey Stone" (hee hee), we headed for "Mel's Diner" for lunch. Many of you may remember the movie, Alice Doesn't Live Here Anymore- this was the diner where Alice worked in that film:




Anjoli's favorite food is diner food...ok I confess it's actually mine too! They served her a cheeseburger in a 50s Chevy:



The clock was ticking, and Anjoli wanted to see Hollywood Boulevard/The Mann Theatre - all the stars in the sidewalk. So Laura took us on a whirlwind tour. Wow - the area is very, very seedy - as we had been warned. LA in general gives me this uneasy feeling - it's a cool place, but I always end up with knots in my stomach for some reason. (Sorry if you live in LA!). I don't mean to rag on LA but the vibe is a little twisted at times. (NOT at Laura's or at shows though - just on the streets). I know, I know not exactly a groundbreaking observation about LA!
As we drove down the Boulevard, I kept hearing Ray Davies' voice in my head: "You can see all the stars as you walk down Hollywood Boulevard...some that you recognize, some that you hardly ever heard of...people who worked and struggled and suffered for fame...some who succeeded and some who suffered in vain...everybody's a dreamer, everybody's a star....everyone's in showbiz, it doesn't matter who you are"...and the clincher..."success walks hand in hand with failure, along Hollywood Boulevard."
Wish I had better pics to share...I don't think I even saw the Mann Theatre! Not sure how that happened.







It was a quick tour - we didn't get out of the car,so I couldn't take any pictures of the sidewalk stars. No biggie ...we've all seen them anyway!
After the little tour Laura was so sweet - she took me to LensCrafters so I could get a new pair of glasses. I felt SOOOO bad - it took nearly 3 hours for the exam and to have them made while we waited. It was a badly managed store.
But she put her time to good use planning my dream Taiwan musicfest! Laura is the creative force behind this - my connection to "the kids" and great Indie music.

With new glasses on my mug, we headed BACK to the Grove where Laura dropped us off to retrieve my car. The Grove peeps were so kind - they gave me a pass to leave my car there overnight. The entire 2 day parking fee was only $20. And I will not mention the price of my glasses for the umpteenth time. They are nice DKNY glasses though!
Anjoli and I got to the car...then promptly got LOST again on the way to the Hollywood Bowl to see you know WHO. I stopped at a gas station and then got on the right track...only to sit in concert going traffic for, oh about an hour maybe? I was hoping and praying the Pretenders weren't opening (they didn't).

I paid $40 to park my car in the first lot I could find - one with easy access out. It was worth the $40....

(TO BE CONTINUED!!!)