Road Trip: Gin Blossoms in Dallas!!!

Hi again! I'm a little behind on my blogging, but last weekend I went down to Dallas to see the Gin Blossoms play. They were a huge influence in the alt-pop music scene of the 90's, & remain one of my all-time favorite bands. Sadly they disbanded after two great albums because of the suicide of a close friend & band member. Well, after about 10 years I guess they were ready to pick up the pieces and make another record. They released Major Lodge Victory in August last year, & are currently out playing some supporting dates.

I LOVE this record and it is probably my favorite Gins album yet. The songwriting is terrific, & with the harmonies and great arrangements really capitalizes on their strengths and unique style. It is really warm, upbeat, & a pleasure to listen to. The amazing thing is that it picks up EXACTLY where the last one left off--it sounds exactly like the album they would have made in 1996; at first it was like a time machine taking me back to my 20s. (To any critics who said last time that they were just trying to be commercial or "of the minute", put that in your pipe & smoke it). After 10 years, they still have their own very distinctive sound. You can hear the record in its entirety on their website at http://www.thegins.com/, & it's available on iTunes, Amazon, Rhapsody, etc.

The Rockhouse in Dallas was kind of an odd choice for the venue, but show was terrific! They opened with Alison Road & closed with Hey Jealousy. There was one encore that included Mrs. Rita & Cajun Song. The band sounded great live (unlike some I have seen that sound better in the studio), & I could tell they were really enjoying playing together. Robin Wilson still has that great crystalline voice that sounds just as good live. It was great fun to see them in such an intimate setting. They were gracious and friendly after the show: I got to buy the band a round of drinks, shake hands and get my tshirt autographed!! Check it out!

You can find more about the Gin Blossoms at their official website, http://www.thegins.com/,or, or their MySpace page at http://www.myspace.com/ginblossoms. If you get a chance to see them on tour i'd definitely go for it.

THANKS GUYS for a great time!!

The Batting Cage

Every now & then I start to feel like I have a handle on life--like I know what I'm doing, am getting pretty good at it, have mastered the ups & downs. Whenever that illusion overtakes me this immediately cures me of it: trying something new. It's amazing how good we can get at our daily routines, & how stepping just the slightest bit out of our comfort zone blows that to pieces. It's like someone pulled a rug out from under you, & you are back to being an awkward, flailing, clueless beginner. It's very humbling.

I was reminded of this just recently. After talking to a friend about baseball practice & the approach of spring, I thought it would be fun & a great stress reliever to go to a batting cage & hit some balls. Never mind that I hadn't hit a baseball in 20 years; I've been working out like a maniac for the last several months, & was feeling positively jock-like. I went to the batting cage across the street from work, borrowed a helmet and aluminum bat, & went in cage 1. The slowest cage they have was 40-50 mph, which I'm sure is the baseball equivalent of the bunny slope (they go as high as 70mph). No worries.

Hitting a ball seemed easy when I was 10; but these balls kept flying by incredibly fast, & I kept swinging frantically at them and coming up with empty air. I started cursing badly & had to ask some kids at the side of the cage gaping at me to plug their ears. I hit my helmet with the bat more times than I hit the ball. I have never felt so uncoordinated in my LIFE. Really, it was more like swinging & flailing around wildly than hitting. Of 60 balls I managed to nick about 6, bunt 2, and only actually hit about 6. I think that's a batting average of around .01. Yikes!

Another thing--it turns out that when you haven't swung a bat in 20 years, swinging at 60 balls in a row is ALOT. My wrists, arms, shoulder, even my NECK were sore before I even got to the car: everything on the left side of my body from my waist up to my chin hurt. Oh yeah, now I remember--you're supposed to warm up first. Oops. And, turns out there is a good reason why ball players wear batting gloves. I realized this as soon as I hit my first ball w/an aluminum bat: OUCH. My hands stung like crazy, & after a few more were positively bruised. It took about a week before that went away.

After 60 balls I'd had enough, & gave up the cage. The perky little 10-year old boy who came in right after me beat the pants off me. He knocked the stuffing out of every pitch like a pint-sized Babe Ruth. To add insult to injury, he even made it look easy. I gave him my extra tokens, sat back & watched him hit one after another after another out of the park. It really was a thing of beauty. As I limped back to the car intending to apply an iced mocha frappucino to my bruised hand, I thought of something Yogi Berra said that I love: "You can't think and hit at the same time." At least I managed not to think for awhile. It's good to try something new every now & then.