7.21.01

i’m sick. i’m sick with the kind of flu that you’re only supposed to get in the dead of winter, preferably over winter break when you’re home from college and there are relatives all about, just dying to make you chicken soup, and you can stay in bed and read all day long. there’s something terribly incongruous about having the flu on a hot summer day. and i have to go to work this afternoon. since i have no voice above that of a whisper, running the show tonight could be an interesting challenge. oh, and my mouse is broken and the cat scratched my shoulder. i think that’s it for the list of complaints today. but it’s only 11 am, give me time.

to the detriment of my health, i went to see bella fleck and the flecktones play last night. for those not familiar with them (i wasn’t until recently), they’re a band that plays an interesting fusion of bluegrass and jazz, with a little inspiration from rock and reggae thrown in. i have to say that their parlor tricks were most impressive – bella fleck played the banjo with his nose, victor wooten could spin his bass all the way around his body, catch it and not miss a beat, and the horn player could play both saxophones at the same time. but the most interesting part was the drummer, whom they referred to only as “future man”. he wore this device that basically looked like he’d mated an accordion with an electric guitar, and then built it out of legos and duct tape. this in turn was connected to a full drum set, enabling him to stand up and play his drums with the freedom of motion one might have while playing a guitar. here, i found a picture of his weird-ass instrument. all in all, it was a good time. nick had offered me a ticket with a money-back guarantee, so i didn’t even have to pay him for the ticket until i admitted that i’d enjoyed the show.

next musical adventure: i must find someone to go see the monkee’s revival tour with me. any takers?