Morels - 2nd Harvest
Posted in Morels, Iowa on April 26th, 2007 by wapsi |
I returned to some county land to come out of the woods with the morels pictured below.
About 70 or so small grays and a couple yellows as well. Reports are pouring in from all over the state of people finding the exact same size morels. It doesn’t sound like anyone is finding very big mushrooms, or mass quantities of them. With one day of sun after all this rain, this weekend should be prime pickins.We walked all over for these morels with two main tress producing the entire harvest. They are really hit and miss right now. Or so it seems.
April Snow Showers
Posted in Morels, Iowa on April 11th, 2007 by wapsi |
What a bummer. This weather is really starting to get me down. It’s well into April and snowing in Iowa. So much for golf and morel hunting. In a couple weeks this will all be a distant memory. Right now, it seems as if it will never warm up though.
Otis Taylor & Chris Thomas King - Update
Posted in Music, Iowa on February 13th, 2007 by wapsi |
Last week I wrote about the anticipation of welcoming Otis Taylor and Chris Thomas King to Iowa for the KUNI Blues Blowout in Waterloo. Here is the update after seeing the show in Waterloo, then the Otis and Nick show in Des Moines on Sunday at Blues on Grand.
I arrived in Waterloo around 6pm. The venue was the Electric Park Ballroom. Imagine a big old ballroom/dancehall-roadhouse from the 40s and you are getting pretty close.
Electric Park Ballroom, Waterloo, Ia
When I got there I was greeted by a friendly KUNI person and they let me in early with no problem when I told them my friend was in the Otis Taylor Band. There weren’t too many people there yet so I grabbed a cold Blue Moon and sat down to chat with Nick for a little bit before the show started. I was introduced to Otis almost immediately and later met his Daughter and bass player, Cassie (19). When I arrived she was doing homework on one of the reserved tables with books and papers spread out all over. People started arriving and soon the lights were dimmed and out came Chris Thomas King.
I didn’t really know what to expect from King. I enjoyed him in Oh Brother but hadn’t really heard much else from him. I’m going to go ahead right now and give King the benefit of the doubt and assume he was having a bad day. He seemed confused, disoriented, and seemed to have trouble playing his songs and remembering his lyrics. I thought King’s performance was extremely unrehearsed and very rough, to say the least. Everyone has off nights, and he seemed like a nice enough guy - I guess I just expected a higher caliber performance from an artist who has starred in two block buster movies (Ray and Oh Brother) and played all over the world for enormous crowds with the Down From the Mountain tour. But really, it seemed more like an average open mic performance than a professional who has recorded over 140 tracks in his career.
King left the stage and the Otis Taylor band followed. Otis came out with the unexpected clawhammerish banjo. His Daughter Cassie Taylor on his right and Nick Amodeo on his left. They really brought the house down. This was my first Otis experience and I have to admit, musically - I’m a believer. Otis’ style is a one chord thing. Over and over - repeating phrases lyrically and musically. He drives a riff into the ground and just when you think you’re getting bored, you hear another subtle change that keeps the music interesting. Cassie can sing her ever loving ass off and has a great stage dynamic. With a spunky fresh out of boulder attitude, a gorgeous voice and unmistakable chemistry with her Father. (more…)
Apple says no to Ipod Monday at The Lift - Diggers Digg.
Posted in Music, Iowa on February 10th, 2007 by wapsi |
What an honor. Des Moines content on the front page of Digg. Too bad it’s sort of a negative story. I think the Apple lawyers need to pick on someone their own size.
A bar owner in Des Moines, runs a weekly event called iPod Monday in which he lets those who bring their iPods share their music collections with others. Once a year they hand out a free ipod too. Does anyone even go to ipod mondays at the Lift?
Digg Article and comment listing
Original Des Moines Register article
It’s a little ironic to me that this trade marking/branding story comes on the heels of Steve Jobs’ very own open letter denouncing DRM. (digital rights managment -AKA - Doesn’t Really Matter)
At any rate, making the front page of digg should be a proud moment for anyone.
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