Getting our wedding on in Cartagena Colombia

Yet again, a very long time since I rapped at ya’. Lyz got acclimated over the autumn season and during that time we proceeded with her green card and travel authorization process (which allows her to leave the country and come back pending her green card approval). The miscreants at Homeland Security did keep to their professed timeline and right around X-mas she got her travel authorization. What to do? Festa in Cartagena, of course! A ceremonial but super Colombia style wedding (boda) was in order. Arrangements needed to commence ASAP if we were going to pull this off as we identified late February as a great time to go as I could use Delta Skymiles for domestic travel down to Miami and Avianca’s fares were pretty low as it is just before Carnaval season in Colombia. We thought about doing during that time as Barranquilla (about 90 mins. NE of Cartagena) is known for one of the biggest Carnavals in the world. The problem would be that the wedding might conflict with many of her friends and families plans for that since we were less than two months away once we started planning the wedding details in early January.

So we had to miss Carnaval but doing it just before Carnaval was pretty much low season at a time yet the rains are rarely active at all. So the date was targeted for the end of February and we worked back from that (actually mostly Lyz and her mom and sister as local knowledge was crucial as well as not letting anyone know a gringo was involved which would translated to pretty much double the price on everything).

So planning commenced and sites were reviewed. In the end, after some difficulty and much anxiety, we were extremely lucky to secure a permit to have the wedding outside on the wall of the historic walled city at the Baluarte de San Ignacio with a view of Centro as well as the conventional center which abuts onto the bay leading into the Caribbean. This was secured through our catering and event planning owner and MC, who is a local radio personality. Usually getting a permit for a wedding reception for up to 6 months prior to the date can be hard to get yet we got it for only a few weeks away. All this time, Lyz was getting her friends and family of about 70 people aware that the specifics were coming and to start holding that weekend open. And my parents finally were able to commit to coming so I would not be the only gringo in attendance.

Lyz arrived 12 days before the wedding date of February 26th and I came 5 days later. The weather was perfect all week which was great as her papi, David, was chauffeuring us all over the city for last minute preparations.

The perfect weather lasted up to and through the wedding day. That afternoon we checked into a quaint hotel in the great San Diego neighborhood and got all dressed in white which is the Colombian Caribbean coastal tradition for both bride and groom. At around 6 we took the traditional pre-ceremony horse drawn carriage ride through the old city and were cheered on by both locals and turistas. As nightfall approached around 7 pm, we arrived at the wall for the final set up with a gentle cooling breeze kicking up and guests started arriving as we were having the ceremony and the reception on the wall together.

In short, almost everything went off without a hitch and the setting and the people in attendance to share with us were wonderful. I was meeting all sorts of new friends and family of Lyz’s and welcoming them is my sincere but broken Espanol. The food and drink were top notch and then the best festa of my life started!

It was a dance-a-thon the rest of the night capped off by a mini-Barranquilla Carnaval performance by a troupe that one of Lyz’s former classmates was a member of for what is called the Hora Loco (Crazy Hour) at around midnight. I have never boogied so much in mi vida! The crowd was out of control and the drumming and chanting were truly loco. In all, it was a perfect reception for us and a truly unique setting and culture experience-which can be seen here:



And here is where you can see some more fotos:

http://family.webshots.com/album/580032526eWHqCY

Windsor

I guess it has been quite a while since I have blogged at ‘cha. Obviously, lots going on with Lyz arriving in the US in early August, getting married and getting settled into married life again and now we are past the holidays and time is slowing done some. Alas, this is my homage, my reflection on my dog, who as George Harrison once said on an album title I recall from my adolescence, “All things must pass”. Even all “wonderful things”.

Windsor (aka: Wheezy, Cheesedog and the Wonder Dog) was practically a record setter as she lived exactly 15 years, 3 months and a day. Though finding a record for the oldest Old English Sheepdog is quite elusive even in this Google age, the kindly Internal Medicine Vet who treated her on her last day stated “I have never seen a dog that big (80 lbs.) live to be that old”. On average Old English Sheepdog’s mortality is around 11 or 12, so she got in a significant amount of more lovin’ and lickin’ in. In hindsight, I guess I was dreaming when she had turned 15 at the end of May when I said to myself, “Heck, it’s looking like she will make it 17 the way she is going.”

Windsor left this mortal coil at September 1st, 2010 in the most compassionate and peaceful way possible at the local VCA animal hospital with Lyz and I as well as John, my retired neighbor who was always there to take care of her and love her with his wife Sally at their house when I went dashing on trips both local and global.

Just a handful of days earlier, she started having even more difficulty getting up and walking (she had been on a prescription joint medication for her hind legs specifically since the start of 08’) as for the past year she couldn’t get up off tile most the time and sometimes even on carpet so I had to help lift her up to get around and that seemed to be fine with her. However, while she was not in pain or distress during this time and had no other health problems to speak of, quickly, over the course of the weekend, it was clear something was gravely wrong, as she also basically stopped eating and wobbled greatly when she tried to walk.

On Monday afternoon after taking her to my regular local vet and basic tests were done, it was determined I should get her over to VCA early the next morning after spending a quiet and calm night with us. I authorized an ultrasound and early on the afternoon of the 1st our worst fears were confirmed but at least we had peace of mind in knowing what it was and there was nothing left we could do. She had malignant stomach tumors which killed off her white blood cell count and left her completely anemic and weak as could be. There was no option-we knew surgery couldn’t be performed on a dog with an equivalent human age of around 95 or so, so we gathered and spent some final farewell time in one of their family rooms before she was humanely let go.

Of course, the tears flowed before, during and after she slipped away but I took great comfortable in knowing she had a wonderful life and that she gave me even much more than I gave her. Of course, it took a while to get over the loss and I did break down about a week later after returning from Arizona where Lyz and I got married (a new birth, of sorts) and spent a short first honeymoon (the second one in Cartagena is still to come, hopefully in February) in Sedona and the Grand Canyon.

Knowing how both of us have much love to give to a dog, we adopted Natasha from the Albuquerque Animal Shelter about two months later. After some scary initial health issues that have subsided, she is proving to be a fine follower of Windsor’s in our happy home.

After all, I muse over the quote by Iggy Pop from the song “A Machine for Loving“ on his most recent album, “What is a dog but a machine for loving.”

And finally, to quote Laetitia Sadier, lead singer of Stereolab, on her new solo album about her sister's suicide, this hit home and put me at peace:

“She went on a million-year trip and left everything behind-- her skin, her hair. She has a long way to travel, so I will open my heart, and let the pain run along as there is no point in holding on.”

The Great Albums of All Time in No Particular Order (entry #8)

Joy Division-Unknown Pleasures & Closer 1979/1980 (Factory Records)

So in 1980, at around the ripe old age of 16, I was getting into New Wave and Electronic music in a reaction to the same old “Cock Rock” that my annoying high school peers seemed to fall so easily into (when I was younger it was mostly only the Beatles that did it for me-my Dad had most of their stuff-though I also got in Queen and ELO for good measure). So yeah, it was stuff like Gary Numan, Ultravox and the Cars that were doing it for me and I was immediately an outcast with a very small horde of like minded folks at my typical, middle class suburban high school. I recall one day during a “do nothing in the school library class period” getting a hold of the latest issue of Rolling Stone and hitting the record reviews. There was a combo review of Joy Division and PIL (Johnny Rotten aka Lyndon’s new act). They were reviewing Joy Division’s “Unknown Pleasures” and “Closer” post the suicide of Ian Curtis and PIL’s “Second Edition” (or the Metal Box-a novelty in record packaging). All three records got 5 stars and they sounded, based on the reviews. to be even more alien that the New Wave and Electro-pop I was already measuring.

It didn’t take me long to hit my local record shop and seek these out. And boy was this a new sound to my young ears for sure. I’ll address PIL another time (Second Edition is mind blowing and also has easily stood the test of time) but Joy Division fit perfectly in my happy but seemingly bleak/dismal suburban circumstances and my black hole got blacker and better with each listen. I was on my own. The Metalheads could never understand and that was great as a budding elitist-they could never “get” Joy Division and they could never have it.

This is the first in my series to combine two albums and it is because the reality and mythology behind them are so very intertwined. As you should know, Ian Curtis, the lead singer, committed suicide after the release of “Closer”, on the eve of their US tour. He suffered from epilepsy and the main story of this is documented in the 2007 movie “Control” which does a great job of capturing the zeitgeist of the situation.

Regarding the tracks, I will not comment on all of them. For example, the first track on “Unknown Pleasures”, “Disorder” is a forgettable proto punk/disco/funk workout that doesn’t work out. But immediately, the rest of side one, is pure perfection-I can’t think of a string of 4 songs that are any better. “Day of the Lords” might be the best heavy metal song ever laid down. “Candidate” is a metaphor for how a lover is like a politician-“I tried to get to you, you treat me like this”. “Insight” is a post Krautrock nervefest-it drills and drills and works out a compelling urge. “New Dawn Fades” portends what will happen to Ian, of course, in hindsight. It is a completely enthralling, brooding track with this caveat- “Directionless so plain to see, A loaded gun won't set you free. So you say”. He used a noose instead of a gun.

Side Two is kicked off with “She’s Lost Control”, the track famous for the beat augmented by the aerosol canister effect make famous by their supposed “hippie” producer Martin Hannett. All happy accidents and random genius. “Wilderness” and “Interzone” are probably the most future seeking punk tracks out there and have stood the test of time.

And then we arrive at their second proper album and, of course, the last one. Funny thing about me-I always thought side two was side one and vice versa. After all, the last track on side one is “A Means To An End”. Ergo.

But I will not defer to my preferences but report out on the way it was. “Atrocity Exhibition” name checks the novel by JG Ballard who is best known for “Crash” which was adapted for the screen by David Cronenberg. If you want to see what Ian sees, “This is the way, step inside” as if he is at a total freak show. Which he was. “Isolation” is the epitome of new wave post-disco of that era. It’s bleak but you can dance to it.

Side Two is the piece de resistance. “Heart and Soul” is a droning, repetitive treatise on what might be considered “love”. This track racks my mind forever. “Twenty Four Hours” creates the quiet/loud formula that Nirvana worked so well. Again, the lyrics are very foreboding: “Just for one moment, thought I'd found my way/Destiny unfolded, I watched it slip away”. The tension and the rhythm on this track are very intense.

This album closes out with “The Eternal” and “Decades”, two of the most sad dour tracks ever laid down yet utterly poignant. This is not punk, not rock, not nothing. It is pure art. To be sure, there is nothing that was like this prior. Joy Division set a new standard with these tracks and nothing has matched it since. The End.

Machu Picchu Man

Time for a change, mi amigos. For the last year, Lyz and I have been meeting up every 3 months approximately like clockwork. I get 3 vacation weeks a year so I leverage a week plus weekends minus travel time for at least a week together. Not perfect but thems the breaks. But this time, since she is coming to the US soon (!), I wanted to get her out of her comfort zone a little and have her travel outside of Colombia for the first time (San Andres Isla sorta counts since it is in the Caribbean but it is still a Colombian territory), so Peru was on my list and close to her, so hey, why not?

After all, Peru is considered a cool place to hang out and whatnot based on the fact that Machu Picchu is considered a lifetime must do. In short, arrangements were make for both of us to fly and meet up. Couldn’t arrange to arrive on the same day but close enough. And in our research, of course, the iconic Incan sanctuary of Machu Picchu, had to be on the agenda. Long story short, we were luckily able to book to go there. And it ain’t easy. Why? One, there had been a major, major set of mudslides in late January in the canyon leading to it that wiped out parts of the rail line, the only way to get there (ie: no friggin’ roads-that is how inaccessible it is). Therefore, ALL access from late January to late March had been closed. I mean, you could not get there at all (the National Park that houses it was completely closed to all visitors) and they had to evacuate all residents and locals of the area by helicopter about 20 at a time because no supplies could get it at all. No train, no bus, no car period.

However, they managed to fix some of the rail by the end of March and reopen the final stretch from Pisco Cucho where the last real road is. Therefore, you can still NOT take the full rail from Cusco in the way it used to be (and as shown on No Reservations a few years back with the soft lifestyle loving Anthony Bourdain). Anyway, I digress, let’s start with our original arrival in Lima a few days before Machu Picchu (ie: MP)…

Back to Lima. Lima is on the coast. It doesn’t really rain here. Yet Lima is grey based on some sort of microclimate I guess (like Paris, one of the places on earth with the worst climate, food, culture and people-yes, I digress yet again-but seriously, I was in Paris in 2004, thought it would be worse than it was but it is grey and ugly and boring and the women think they are fashionable but they are so spastically ugly, at least style-wise, it is time to agree that France may have had it’s heyday-about 50-200 years ago) and bland and not much of anything.

We went from the airport to pick up or car rental on a Sunday and proceed down the coast to the area called Miraflores and our hotel. My understanding is that Lima Centro is so sad that most every “turista” stays about 15 miles away in Miraflores, a more upscale and “safe” locale.

Miraflores is fine but the feel and architecture is wanting. In short, it’s a little leafy and serviceable but that is it.

That’s OK. I didn’t want to see Lima-I want to see Lyz! We drove along the coastal parks and then got some rest before heading to our reservation at the Huaca Pucclana Restaurante at the ancient ruins (from about 500 AD) of the same name:

http://www.resthuacapucllana.com/

Peruvian and particularly Liman cuisine have a great international reputation and for good reason. In Portland, Andina is great and in San Francisco, Limon is also awesome. Ceviche is the starting point (google it if you are not familiar with it) and the cuisine is generally seafood oriented and very fresh. This place has a great reputation and it is deserved. The quinoa (probably the healthiest grain on earth) and bean/queso salad I ordered as an appetizer was world class-almost a meal in itself with a universe of flavors.

However, our seafood dishes were not standouts and the coup de grace came with the bill. There was an item on there called a “cubierto” of about 15%. Essentially it means a “cover” and specifically in Peru it means a “silverware” fee I have learned through multiple local sources. In essence, it means everyone is paying for the “cost” of stolen silverware. I kid you not. I am not a millionaire, but I have never, ever stolen silverware at nice restaurants and I have been to tons. And I assume the other folks at these restaurants don’t need to do the same. Yet, this is the rationale. Well, when it came to tip time, instead of writing in numerals I wrote “cubierto”. I feel sorry if the servers got screwed but if so that is on management and I sent them an e-mail to such effect and, of course, they have not responded almost a month later. This is something that HAS to be communicated upfront and in advance. It is not an Anglo concept for sure.

So we got some rest and headed to Ica. Sunday traffic in Lima is manageable (after all, it's a nominal Catholic country and Domingo aka Sunday, is a supposed day of rest)., Monday morning trying to get out is a total nightmare. Peruvians of Inca descent are generally tiny (think Vietnam where I am a tall Mofo-it's the same here as I am short but tall by local measures). But they drive like they think they are 6'6”. At least in Lima, but my standards (and I have driven all over the world and can deal with most anything) this is depressing. Stop signs?! Ignore them at all cost. Actual traffic light? Well, they are mostly respected. I do argue that the average sad and soft American driver (the biggest pussies on the planet, natch, I curse them daily on our easy highways and freeways) in the middle of third or second world driving would, within 10 minutes, pull over and start crying and abandon their rental car. As I said, pussies/putas.

I can deal with it but Lyz thinks I am nuts. But I can deal with these folks. But I am not happy about it. I am supposed to be on VACATION. In due time, we exit Lima on the way to Ica (200 miles away) and all is “claro”. We are on the famous Pan American highway and all is well. Screw Lima. We are heading to Ica. Land of Sand And Sand And Sand. I can “dig” it.

On the way down the coast we encounter some pretty desolate sand. And more sand. Did I say sand?

At times we slowed down in local towns like Chincha. We bought some Pisco (essentially a liquor distilled from grapes-thanks to the Spanish who obviously were here and needed to get wasted and named after the very nearby city of Pisco that we drove by but did not have time to get off the Pan American highway and visit and where a very nasty earthquake hit three years earlier) for Lyz's papi. In short, I was digging the landscape as I love the open feel of a desert as opposed to the closed feel of big conifers and whatnot.

In Ica, we stayed at the noble and established, El Carmelo (not Anthony) Hacienda. Check out the website:

http://www.elcarmelohotelhacienda.com/

This dude has established a total compound to be sure with a mini-zoo, I kid you not and some of the most amazing cacit ever-I am a cacti fiend now that I live in the SW and I would kill for some the strains I saw and that I documented in my photos on my Webshots link.

http://travel.webshots.com/album/577762855Ycresq

It was off season (which it seems to be wherever I travel) and I think we might have been the only folks who checked in on that Monday or even the past week. This place is on the outskirts of town which is good and bad. This place has 50 or so rooms and we were at the end near the zoo yet it was still noisy. It has a pool which looked nice but maybe being in the desert water is a big commodity and the water was a little green and sitting at the pool we got a full afternoon sound of construction on one of the units where they seemed to be installing a new toilet. Lovely. So relaxing.

That night we drive into the Centro of Ica and park at the main parque. We need comida (food). We are definitely outcasts (a vanilla and a chocolate in the land of who knows what) here even though the Oasis at Huacachina (a few miles away) draws loads of turistas. We find a local restaurant with some local cuisine and I do try this pretty cool mix of arroz and frijolies called “Tacu Tacu” which consists of a rice and beans pancake, a thin "sábana" (sheet) of steak and some pickled red onions.

The next morning we are heading off for the event of the day. Dunebuggying and sandboarding at Huacachina-a real desert Oasis. Now I have been on rollercoasters. Cedar Point. Ohio. (BTW, the worst State in the nation for sure. But I digress yet again). I like rollercoasters. You feel like you are going to vomit. Vomiting is cool. But screw rollercoasters. Once you have been at the top of a sanddune strapped in and the guy drops you down the dune with his buggy, all rollercoasters are completely soft after that. There is no going back. This is the best ever. WOW. What a trip and at only about $15 per person for over an hour of manic fun. And don't ever get me started on the loco sandboarding. That is the bomb AND included in the preco. It's like skiing but not like skiing. It is all loco downhill action without the back and forth. I approve.

So we have to get back to Lima so we can fly out to Cusco in the morning. After getting pretty lost, we find and the car rental place and barely make our flight on Taca Airlines, a Central and South American line that has great prices, at least for this trip ($75 R/T each for an hour flight each way). We arrive in Cusco after some amazing Andian montana scenery and the altitude hits immediately-we are at 11,000 feet more or less.

We adjust and taxi to central Cusco to meet Julian, a German family friend of my parents who I have only e-mailed with before who is doing the young college student hangout thing of sorts, at a pizza place for lunch before transporting to Ollanta and our rail trip to Aguas Calientes (Warm Waters-or Machu Picchu town as it is now known). We arrange transport and manage to get to Ollanta just in time for the Perurail bus to Pisco Cucho . The temperature is cooling and we have to drag our bags down to the rail line. Pisco Cucho is far from a major rail station. We make it and we get to our seats and we are finally off to our destination. It was not easy but it worked somehow but not without some trepidation.

We arrive and check in at the Rupa Wasi Inn/Ecolodge

http://www.rupawasi.net/ingles/principal.html

It's a cool place and they messed up our reservation (they didn't have our room ready so we got a free meal at their restaurant-the guy who runs it is a chef and the food was absolutely amazing-better than Huaca Pucclana in Lima-the alpaca was great-tastes like chicken!).

So we ate and were happy and were tired and ready to head to Machu Picchu in the morning (We bought our tickets that night-it ain't cheap $45 a person) and everyone says to go early to avoid the crowds and the sun so we were up at 5 am to leave at 6 am to get there before 7 am.

Of course, we had morning clouds but once we did the walk up, well, it was spectacular. I mean, an amazing combination of setting and history and architecture. The photos I have posted can not do it justice. It is simply awe inspiring. I have nothing else to say.

We did a group tour around and then had some time to hang with the llamas. The llamas were cool. We stayed about 4 hours and got tired out and headed back by bus to Aguas Calientes.

We proceeded to eat a faux Mexican lunch (every place in town advertised Mexican cusina-I guess because of the gringo crowd) and rest some more. The altitude was not good for Lyz (she took the appropriate medication in advance) but she did OK.

In the evening, we went to the official “Aguas Calientes” spa and it was fine but a little less than impressive. And we ate at the Treehouse yet again. I had an great quinoa risotto and Lyz had vegetarian lasagna.

The next morn we headed back by train to Cusco-another whole day event as we hooked up for transport with some Dutch doctors we met at MP and they already had transport arranged and paid for-we pitched in.

However, instead of high tailing it back to Cusco they are had some side trips arranged that “killed” some time for Cusco. We hit some natural salt flats. They were salty and dull. We then drove to a “moray” where the Incas developed some micro climates by creating some terraces down in a valley of sorts. While great feats of engineering, the diversion out of the way was just not worth it and left us with little time in Cusco as we had hoped to get there by 4 pm but now it was 5:30 when we arrived at El Balcon, our latest hotel. And we were supposed to meet up again with Julian at the Plaza de Armas at 6 pm so the timing was very tight and, of course, we were a little late.

But it all worked out. We started to make plans for dinner. But first I had to buy an alpaca sweater and I got a completely sweet one for about $15. So we headed to dinner and I ordered a platter of carnes including “cuy” better known as guinea pig (tastes like chicken!). After that we hit this totally locals place were we had pitchers of a hot local brew (remember it is 11,000 feet and pretty darn cold at night) that I think cost about $5 a pitcher or less than a dollar per dose! Then we hit this loco shot bar where we did shots. It was muy mal:)!

And then we hit this really nice disco where the techno was blasting in the best way possible and I could actually dance to music that was not stupido. I was able to stay up until almost two but after being up from about 5 the morning before I was toast. We got 3 hours of sleep and, unfortunately, had to fly back to Lima because that is how the flights were aligned. But remember, we paid $75 each R/T and yet we paid $96 each R/T just to go about 20 kms from Pisco Cucho to Aguas Calientes on a train each way. Talk about monopolies.

We went back to Miraflores in Lima and hit this famous restaurant called La Mar.

The seafood (calamari and cebiche) was great (and the owner is a bud of Anthony Bourdain-see season 4 of No Reservations) but the service was a mess. I ordered some sushi to go and it took 50 minutes to prepare! Luckily, our waiter was great and was also upset over the situation so the sushi was comped as well as dessert. This place is only open in the afternoon (ceviche is supposed to only be consumed in the afternoon as the acid in it is supposedly bad for sleeping) so we had plenty of comida for the evening before an early night of sleep.

The next morning, we got up very early (Lyz's flight on Copa thru Panama City was at 7 am) and headed our respective ways. In closing, right after we got back home, Lyz got notification that my application for her visa was approved and the next step, as expected, was for her to get her interview in Bogota at the US Consulate. They have until 8/12 to have her interview. We think she will get it in July and then once approved on the spot she can come right away. Then she should be here no later than late July and all will be cool. I am needing to see her bad!

Windsor is 15 on May 31st

I have done some research but can't find anything definitive about this breed of dogs and how long they have lived. When I had one as a kid, it lived till about 12 and even then it's health was very, very bad-poor Barney. Windsor will be 15 tomorrow and while her eyesight and hips are pretty bad, she is still doing quite fine and I am thinking she will make it to 16. Sometimes I have to pull her up off the tile or the carpet so she can walk but she can still move when she feels it and that is good. I adore her and I will cry for days when she leaves this mortal coil.

Greatest dead people of all time (entry #1)-Rowland S. Howard

Well, I have to start somewhere. And Rowland's death at 50 really hits me. I mean this Aussie bloke is pretty much one of the greatest guitarist and musicians ever. Period.

I reacted here first:

http://www.cantstopthebleeding.com/?p=20906

And here is his myspace page:


http://www.myspace.com/rowlandshoward

Damn. I mean this guy is one of the best ever and his singular voice will be missed forever.

The Great Albums of All Time in No Particular Order (entry #7)

Bauhaus-Burning From the Inside (Beggars Banquet-1983)

Perhaps the title refers to the status of the band during the recording sessions-after all, they broke up after this release and didn't get back together until 1998 for two shows after numerous side and solo projects and didn't release another studio album for another 10 years. Some critics contend that the friction that was reported impacted the quality of this album. I argue that it lent it much gravity and diversity showing that great art can arise from great strife and adversity and this easily remains their recording hallmark.

“She's in Parties” was the first single and leads off the album. It's has a loopy, languid tempo that is reinforced by the dub rhythmic underpinnings which had been evident prior to this track, particularly on some of the more experimental EPs they had released. I was always impressed with how they seamlessly integrated this somewhat alien music style into their supposedly “goth” approach . In a way, this was their update to “Bela Lugosi's Dead”-all creepy and totally swingingly sexy. “Antonin Artaud” is all proto-punk with a propulsive beat and scratchy guitars with Peter Murphy wailing about the pre-post modern French provocateur who lead “The Theatre of the Absurd” telling us that those “Indians wank on his bones”.

The 20 second track “Wasp” segues into “King Volcano” an almost indescribable beautiful borderline sea shanty, pub chant that harkens back to an England prior to the Industrial Revolution when men were animals and all smashed. Side one closes out with the seemingly solo David J track “Who Killed Mr. Moonlight?”-a somber piece of mostly piano and effects that could certainly be the anchoring track to some noir movie of the same name that was never made. This is one of my favorite songs of all time.

Side two opens with “Slice of Life” clearly driven by guitarist Daniel Ash with it's emphasis on 12 string acoustic guitar and a complicated arrangement that shifts all over a dark musical landscape and even brings to mind the acoustic tracks of Zeppelin, though it is never derivative. “Honeymoon Croon” is all hardass glam and definitely Peter working out some more of his Ziggy stylings in a way that is catchy as get all. “Kingdom's Coming” is almost a juxtaposition to “Mr. Moonlight” as realized by Peter, though it doesn't possess the majesty of the latter.

The album closes out with the almost 10 minute title track-all meandering acid metal guitar licks and a strangely herky-jerky chorus that rolls on and on at the end. Definitely an opus to dirty carnal action. “Hope” closes things out with, perhaps some hindsight sarcasm, as this is a completely sunny acoustic ditty that “hopes” your mornings will be brighter from a band known for their general darkness up to this point.

In the end, they went out on top unlike almost everyone else. It took them 25 years to make another studio album (Go Away White, 2008) and while it does not measure up to their original prime years of work, they do acquit themselves well with an all original line up and who else can say that? They are alleged to be the fathers of “Goth” but they were and are always much more than that.

Terminal Cheesecake steals from some original cheesecake

Previously I have been known to rant on my music review section on this blog entitled “The Greatest Albums of All Time in No Particular Order”. This past summer, I did an entry on those acid addled pranksters, Terminal Cheesecake's last album and referenced their prior album “Pearlesque Kings of the Jewmost”. Well, recently I was wasting “valuable” time at work looking at a crazy cover art site and ran across the following:

http://www.317x.com/albums/z/sizentner/card.html

Well I thought, that surely looked familiar to me! It was the artwork on the back cover of the aforementioned album by the Cheesecake blokes! Well, that is surely a delightful "artistic" heist. I guess it can be accounted for by the supposedly legendary amounts of mind altering chemicals they consumed during their tenure. Sweet.

Classic Colombia!

Was able to use up my remaining vacation time for the calendar year and get back down to Cartagena to see Lyz for about 10 days and to spend more time getting to know her family. Once again the weather was sunny though hot and humid (about 90 F each day with about 80% humidity) but I will take that over tropical rain any time. Once again, we had a great dinner at the La Vitrola restaurante in Centrol on Saturday night shortly after I arrived. The next day we spent some time at the historic castle, San Felipe Castillo, that overlooks the city and was a bastion against invaders but not any sort of residence. We lolled around and got a lot of great pics (see my Webshots link later on).

In the early evening we meet up with Lyz's papi and her brother and his girlfriend at the Cartagena futbol stadium. Real Cartagena were playing their archrivals, Junior de Barranquilla. Barranquilla is about an hour or so away up the northeast coast and is more of a port/commericial center. Lyz's mami is originally from there and her father is originally from Cartagena. But because they lived in Barranquilla for a long time, they are all Junior fans so they had to be on their best behavior. :) In fact, security is pretty intense-you get padded down by policia at about 4 different checkpoints and the serious Junior fans coming from Barranquilla are herded into a blocked off section by the end corner of one of the goals and are escorted into the stands by policia after the game is about 5 minutes old and the same is true near the end of the game. While there is significant security, I did not witness any loco behavior, unlike the time in 2006 when I attended a match at Maracana, the massive stadium in Rio de Janeiro where two city rivals were also playing. Lyz's papi (he's a retired federal police detective) negotiated some scalped tickets for about $5 each so I got us all into the match for about $25-not a bad deal. Too bad it ended in a 0-0 draw.

After getting organized on Monday, we took a flight on Tuesday through Bogota to Bucaramanga. Near there is the massive Chicamocha Canyon, about an hour and ½ drive away. We spent two nights in Bucaramanga, using Wednesday to plan our excursion to the relativey new National Park there and San Gil (another hour and a ½ from Chicamocha) and get a car booked for rental. Bucaramanga has the sixth largest city economy/population in Colombia (similar to Cartagena/Barranquilla), with just over a million people in its metropolitan area. Bucaramanga is known as the "City of Parks" and "Colombia's Beautiful City". It sits in a large bowl-like valley-a pleasant location with the standard large amount of high rise buildings, nice vistas and a more temperate climate-it was about 80 F each day.

Being a little more out in the country per se, we noticed they certainly enjoy their “carne” and we soon realized that the portions were outrageous. At a nice restaurante by our hotel, I ordered one of “steaks” with all the trimmings. I ordered the medio or medium size. It was monsterous-about a foot long and came with a plethora of arepas (cornmeal breadlike griddle cakes) and rice and papa fritas and oh my! It would have been more than enough for the two of us. Lyz asked the waiter what the “grande” size order was like and he spread his arms to indicate enough meat to feed a whole family. The steak was great, drenched in a spicy minced tomato sauce and was only about $8 or 9 for everything that was included.

On Thursday morn, we got into our tiny Chevy “Spark” 5 speed rental and headed out of the city to the Chicamocha region about 50 kms away. Well it was slow but spectacular driving as once out of the city there is only one route through the canyon/mountains and there are tons of trucks as the region of Santander where we were is not far from Venezuela so a lot of commerce is routed through there from Bogota, as Bogota is about 300 kms from Bucaramanga. No problema-we were in no hurry and arrived at the park just before noon.

All I can say is “Wow”! This is a mammoth canyon area and is considered up to the second largest in the world (however, measuring canyons is a very inexact science but I would say based on what I have read is can easily be considered one of the top 5 in the world based on all the factors). The actual park area is not that big and their concept of a National Park does differ from our concept-let's just say it's much more “commercial”.

http://www.colombia.travel/en/international-tourist/where-to-go/recommended-weekend-destinations/chicamocha-canyon

Regardless, the centerpiece is the tram or “teleferico” that, for about $10 a person, takes you down the canyon and then back up to the other side-it is 6.3 kms long (almost 4 and a ½ miles) and takes almost 45 minutes each way. So it easily outdistances the Albuquerque tram but quite a bit. In short, the vistas were amazing from just about every vantage point and I have a lot of them saved on my Webshots link:

http://community.webshots.com/user/richard0154

After about 3-4 hours at the park, we headed off to check into our quaint and quiet posada (like a inn or mini-resort) in San Gil. San Gil is known as a natural excursion jumping off point for rafting, hiking, bungy, waterfall rapelling, hang gliding, etc. with some classic and well maintained traditional Spanish style valles or villages nearby. We ate at a very nice and new restaurante that evening after arranging for a morning rafting excursion for Friday.

http://www.sangil.com.co

Again, the weather was perfect (in the mid 70s in the morning) and the rafting trip was great-lots of steady 2 and 3 level class rapids (Lyz had never rafted before so we did a more mellow river-the Rio Fonce that flowed by our posada and through San Gil) and the two hour trip was only about $13 per person.

After that we spent the afternoon and early evening driving around and had lunch in lovely village of San Jose, known for it's chorizos and we ate a bunch at a very old family restaurante and then ambled around the plaza. Then we headed off in search of a waterfall, Juan Curi, that we had read about. The sign directed us to pull off at what appeared to be someone's casa. Indeed it was and we pulled over on their dirt road. Turns out the trail does lead out from their house and the woman there explained to Lyz that you pay 5000 Colombian pesos (about $2.50) per person and had us enter our info in some sort of government tourist directory. Off we went on a 20 minute hike and the waterfall was spectacular and the best part is that we were the only ones there the whole hour or so we were there! The waterfall was multi-tiered and you could get up to the second main tier quite easily. It was on par with many of the waterfall I love in Oregon but without the tourists! It was practically nirvana!

The afternoon was winding down but we wanted to get to the village of Barichara, considered the loveliest village in all of Colombia. We made it there about 45 minutes before dusk after a beautiful drive through the local hills and it did not disappoint. Again we ambled around and had some lovely cakes and cappuccino (only a dollar for one of the best I have ever had!) at a local cafe/bakery and then set back out to posada and then for dinner at a local restaurant and an evening of unwinding after a long day.

The next morning, we bought some ants, a local Bucarmanga Santander delicacy (it's all explained in this link):

http://www.en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Hormigas_culona_or_santandereana

and headed off for a 3 hour drive back to Bucaramanga and the airport for our return to Cartagena. Back in Cartagena, we checked back into the Tres Banderas, a lovely hotel in Centro, near my favorite part of the old city, San Diego Plaza and ate once again at La Cevicheria, which was featured on “No Reservations” on the Travel Channel, hosted by the world class iconoclast, “Mad” Anthony Bourdain. The pescado and mojitos were perfect and we enjoyed another great evening together but alas I had to fly back out the States the next morn.

But we are already planning on meeting up in Lima, Peru in April (flights are actually cheap from the Southwest US area) and our application for a fiancee visa is in processing and if all goes according to plan, Lyz will have her immigration interview at the US counsulate in Bogota in the late spring if not earlier and she will be here in the States in late July or early August after she completes her Nursing Masters in mid-July.

The Greatest Albums of All Time in No Particular Order (entry #6)

Killing Joke-Killing Joke-1980 (Malicious Damage Records)

First of all, check out that cover-pretty much the best ever. Post punk happened fast and blew away the immediate past. PIL killed the Pistols-Rotten style. Wire got art rock right. And Killing Joke broke out and did it in a way and with a sound that has never been matched over their first four releases. On this, their debut in 1980, Jaz Coleman’s growling, guttural, manic animal rants meshed with Geordie’s much more truly distinctive guitar grinding sound than say The Edge’s of the time and a truly tribal rhythm section abetted by metal, punk and industrial tendencies and the fruits of their warfare show in the numerous covers by hack bands even as early as the late 80s (see major hacks for most of their career, Metallica, covering “The Wait” on their Garage Days Revisited ep circa 1987).

I was lucky enough to catch them at the sleazily legendary Bookies club on a depraved stretch of 6 Mile Rd. (not 8 Mile-F Eminem-he is beyond useless-enuff said) near the prison like University of Detroit campus in 1981, shortly after obtaining my driver’s license. It was a revelation to someone just learning about the beauty of noise and whatnot. And to boot, I practically had the place to myself-it was a weekday summer night with maybe 100 heads in attendance. This album had dropped in August of 80’ and they were supporting the just released “What’s This For?” an almost equally stunning world of racket that came out in June of 81'. They played pretty much every track off both to much acclaim. I was converted over completely at that juncture. In retrospect, they were almost like a British update on the Stooges with a nutso frontman flailing in front of a bunch of hardass but disaffected backers who were only concerned with bringing the noise and not making a scene.

“Requiem” kicks off Side one with a throbbing Throbbing Gristle-like industrial synth line that is soon dominated by Geordie’s mammoth slab-like licks and drum thuds and slowly builds up to a swinging mid-tempo very un-punk beat with Jaz' "echoed" chanting with all kinds of nasty effects. “Wardance” is exactly like it sounds-a celebration of mayhem propelled by total tribalism. It embarks with the sample of a power drill and Jaz snorting out a welcome that is most unbecoming augmented by the most sinister and staccato bassline laid down up to that time. “Tomorrow’s World” is beyond delightful in that it has an apocalyptical feel with it art damaged effects and completely languid and turgid sledgehammer pace paced by Jaz's elongated rants that smother the outcome. “Bloodsport” is a somewhat up tempo instrumental that was seemingly groundbreaking at the time but hasn’t stood the test of time tunewise. Oh well, can't win them all.

Side two rips open with the afformentioned “The Wait” that much like “Requiem” burns to a start with a two note buzzsaw soaring synth lick that quickly evolves into the most intense, fast and ultra uber punk-like tune on the record and practically in the history of la monde. “Complications” follows with a serviceable approach to postpunk as it might be described and on the US release their single “Change” appears and like many acts of the time, it is their most mainstream track with subdued guitars and a funky beat yet is the only ennui inducing track on the record. How it was chosen as the "hit" single, I will never know. Luckily “S.O. 36” follows-a somewhat of an ode to Krautrock with it’s sampled German conversation and totally off-kilter but entrancing and mystically dense feel. Basically, nobody did this shit at this time and this is so experimental for a "punk" band that I still do not know what to make of it-except to embrace it. Finally, “Primitive” wraps up the effort with perhaps the most trad Brit metal track on the album but do not be alarmed-it is a monster track that would easily fill up any arena more than even “Smoke on the Water”. Verdad. In closing, there is no band that during the course of four albums that matches the diversity of Killing Joke-Nirvana was close but Cobain offed himself too early because of that skank, Courtney, who seemingly killed him if even indirectly.

An "Engaging" Time on San Andres Isla

Had been working at Fidelity for almost four months and after 8 weeks of training and they 8 more weeks of intense job immersion, I was ready as I always am, for a little time away from the States to unwind and relax. Of course, I was also dying to see my bebe, Lyz aka La Chica Feliz aka L Tres. We arranged to meet on San Andres Island, which is part of Colombia though it is closer to Nicaragua. So how is it a Colombian possession? Read this link for the scoop:


http://www.kafka-franz.com/san-andres-island.htm

San Andres is actually pretty accessible from the US though few American gringos go there (which is great, no ugly Americans so it still remains a bit of a hidden gem) but during the wintery season word is that Canadians are chartered down en masse and for some reason Italians go there even though it is pretty far away. And, of course, tons of Colombians because no passport or visa is necessary. That is what made it easy for Lyz-less than a two hour flight from Cartagena. For me, it was two hours to LAX (abhor that airport) then I flew with Copa Air to Panama City for 6 hours and then a 45 minute flight to San Andres. Easy.

In a way, SA is what you would expect. Pretty typical Caribbean island as far as what it has to offer. Some hotels, some resorts and lots of duty free shopping. However, I do have to say due to the extensive reef system surrounding it (some claim only Belize is better in the Caribbean), the water is pretty spectacular with the claim of 7 shades of blue to be seen. The main beach in the Centro area where most everything is is very, very clean and the sand is great. This area is pedestrian only along the main 10 minutes walkway so it is pretty tranquil for a slightly urban beach area with many hotels/resorts residing across the walkway. I waited out my scuba excursion until day six as the weather was dicey at times-it was around the start of hurricane season and there were a few good downpours and a few afternoons where the beach was not an option, but overall we got 4 solid days of beach time so we did alright that way.

On our second full day, after booking a pretty basic hotel for Saturday night and Sunday in advance just to make sure we had something (we got in at about 2 pm on that Saturday and knew we would be in no mood to search for a place), we tried to see if any of the resorts were running deals since we just hit low season. No luck, all the good ones were booked. Went to a final resort on the main strip and they were booked BUT they managed an apt. a block away from them and the beach that was available. They were asking $100 a night. It was unreal. It was 3 bedrooms, almost brand new and about 1300 sq. ft. We took it. Then we rented a golf cart (yes, true) as the island is shaped like a seahorse and is only 13 kms. by 3 kms. We “puttered” down to an area called San Luis that was known for it's lovely beaches. Very true and it only took us about 30 minutes to get down there with a break for lunch at a very local spot. It was a sweet afternoon on a little slice of sand with a bunch of local kids having a ball nearby.

We stayed at that apartment for two nights and switched for the last three nights to a place nearby that was certainly not as great (Tres Casitas) but it was quaint and our room overlooked the clear water from the second floor. After checking in we spent a rainy Wednesday afternoon watching a Russ Meyer flick that I brought that Lyz totally dug.

On Thursday morning the sky was clear and I walked two minutes over to the dive shop and booked a morning dive. Done by 12:30, I was starving so we found a small, family run place and ate some typical local food-fish or chicken or pork with bean, coconut rice and fried plantains. Not bad for $4 each. They we arranged to go to a spot called the Aquario that sits off of Haynes Cay. In the late afternoon the stingrays congregate near a few sandbars in the area. I had hung with rays in Tahiti ten years ago and they are awesome creatures. But it was Lyz's first time and she was delighted and it was a great afternoon excursion.

The next day was spent going to the nearby Johnny Cay which is a little paradise of a regional park but is pretty touristy with tons of boats coming all day long and lots of people so it was far from romantic. But still the water was amazing, the sand was even softer, the Rastas were all over the place working and pouring Coco Locos and hawking Old Milwaukies (for some reason that I never got an explanation for, Old Milwaukie and Miller High Life seem to be as popular as the national Colombian brands on the island with the locals-yet in Cartagena there were no where to be seen-weird) and cooking up fish and whatnot. And it only took us about 15 or so mins. to walk around the cay. I did not get any photos on Johnny Cay as my camera went bad that morning but Lyz took video and I will post a clip some time after she downloads her clips. After that we went back to the jewelry shop we had been talking to and Lyz picked out her engagement ring. Yes, I got engaged and I could not be happier.

Now we will have to deal with the idiotic US immigration bureaucracy over the next year. Lyz will finish her Masters in Nursing next July in Cartagena and then will come here. I already have some contacts in the US and Colombia to give me advice on how it make the process work best. We will meet up somewhere down there again in mid-December and then probably again in April of 2010.

The Greatest Albums of All Time in No Particular Order (entry #5)

Terminal Cheesecake- King of All Spaceheads (Jackass Records)

The trip begins with a sample of the famous line from Timothy Leary, “The aim of the game is to feel real good” on the opening title track. After that the drug references JUST KEEP COMING ad nauseam. Yet this is not just some hippy-dippy psychedelic album. In fact, it reinvents everything to do with the genre that got its start in the mid 60s and based on everything since, it closes the door with this release about 30 years later in the mid 90s. But let’s digress as they surely would…

Terminal Cheesecake is a brightly dark, sorely obscure British outfit that was noisy and arty and thrashy and all that circa the late 80s. They released a few spectacular though highly uneven works until they hit their stride with their 1990 Pathological Records release, “Angels in Pigtails” which featured an ultra-menacing cover of the Residents classic “Hello Skinny” that was an all out war on the original in a very good way. After that, they ratcheted up the all out drug war to the point of being blatantly obvious-just in case. They followed that up with the exquisite “Pearlesque Kings of the Jewmost” in 1992 that is on par with this release though a bit uneven and repetitious at time (the mythology surrounding the session for this album is that they laid down one basic track and then manipulated it into all the other tracks minus the cover of the Neu! classic, “Seeland” retitled as “Neu Sealand”).

http://www.godflesh.com/related/terminal.html

This album marked the ultimate and necessary end of their existence as their various member moved on to other projects and adventures with VERY middling success. To me, this represents the culmination of their vision, their apex, one of the greatest head trips ever recorded in the annals of musical insanity. Simply put, though they have a very, very dedicated following here and there, they never, ever got their due in England or anywhere else for that matter. Quite distressing. Anyway, on to the tuneage…

But first we interrupt this important message with a message about the art work. See the above pics. That is the exterior and interior covers. ‘Nuff said.

Now back to the our regularly scheduled musical musings.

So I mentioned that the title track starts with a little Timothy Leary. Then the very languid and very thick drums “kick” in. With a little acid surf guitar, elongated and all. And your “announcer” is back and has another special announcement-“What you are listening to musicians performing psychedelic music under the influence of a mind altering chemical”. The tone is set. And the track ambles and rambles beautifully from there.

“Budmeister” is next with just about the thickest booty shaking beat with tons of acid guitar and other insect like noises that should create a dance floor sensation with nasty chanted and echoed vocals. Only, for some strange reason, I was the only one dancing to this track-though I imagine there were cool DJs in England spinning it.

Next up is “God’s Turban and Tutu” rolling along for about 9 minutes or so with the sweetest dub style bassline while our vocalist is running down a list of the preferred substances, “LSD, Mescaline, Psilocybin, etc” in a very hushed tone whilst claiming that you should “walk before jesus”.

“Ginge le Geezer” clocks in as probably the most straight forward track-all dense acid guitar with a 4/4 disco/rock beat that gets the hips shaking with a regular verse/chorus structure. Yet it is still nefarious.

Lo and behold it is “Lo Lo” and “Tibetan Lift Off” where they get all Himalayan on you. Sampling the echoed long ass horns of the Tibetan monks (they have toured the US many a time), the Cheesecake dub out some of their earlier track beats and let it all flail about.

Shortly thereafter, “Herbal Space Flight” plays off of the aforementioned “Ginge le Geezer”, only more acid metal, if such a genre exists. And you can still dance to it.

After a couple of fits and starts with “Black Microdot I and II” (featuring some AWESOME Mariachi samples), the opus magnus concludes with “The Last Temptation of St. Leary” which brings everything full circle with Gregorian chant samples as well as Mr. Leary mentioning that “the LSD trip is a pilgrimage for thousands of years for mystics and visionary philosophers” .

In the end, this album is best experienced with a pair of “kick ass” headphones, just like many albums back in the day. Illicit substances may or may not assist you though, depending on your internal chemical composition.

Always "Wing"in' it

It has been a somewhat somber two weeks or so if you are Detroit Red Wings hockey team devotee. Up 3 games to 2 over the Pittsburgh Penguins in the Stanley Cup final on June 12th and coming off a 5-0 shellacking of the Pens in game 5 five days earlier, the ultimate North American sports franchise over the past two decades somehow found themselves on the losing end of consecutive 2-1 defeats including game 7 at home-something a road team had not done in a finals game 7 since 1971. A tough pill to swallow. Still, this is a franchise that does it the right way with the right management at the top and without idiotic or unlikable players and no one can argue with their success and their up tempo, artistic style of play.

One must remember or know that since NHL expansion in the late 60s from 6 to 12 teams, they went almost 20 years as one of the worst teams and for a time in the 70s they were referred to as the Dead Wings and had last won a Stanley Cup championship in 1955 way before I was around. I grew up through adolescence with them during this era. It blew. They did finally manage to get to the Western Conference finals in 1987 and won game one in Edmonton, only to be trounced in 4 straight by the mighty Oilers who were extending their dynasty.

They flirted on and off with success over the next 8 seasons and finally managed to get back to the Stanley Cup finals in 1995 (first time since the early sixties) only to routed by the abhorrently dull, defensive and pedestrian New Jersey Devils in a sweep. But they kept at it and finally broke through and won a Cup in 97’ and once again the next year in 98’ with a bunch of Russians both times and re-tooled and won another in 02’ with a quirky Czech goalie legend and then re-tooled with a bunch of Swedes and won last year. The blueprint was always the same-elegant teamwork with a solid work ethic. So as much as Wings fans rue the loss this year, they are still 4-2 in Cup finals since 95’ and have appeared in 6 of the last 14 Cup finals (there was no Cup awarded in 2005 due to the idiotic lock out which shut down the season). No one else in the league is even close to that kind of run and they have been in the playoffs every year since 1991, usually a 1 or 2 seed going into the playoffs. No other franchise in any other major sport comes close either. So if you are not a hockey fan and are looking for a team to follow, of course I recommend them as the place to start, no matter how biased I am.

The Greatest Albums of All Time In No Particular Order (entry # 4)

Throbbing Gristle- Heathen Earth-1980 (Industrial Records)

I recently rediscovered this somewhat lost album that I adored as it officially is considered not exactly a proper album release by them (they only did two studio albums before this) as it was recorded live in the studio and was also officially their last release in 1980 but in all senses this is a proper album with all new material and it cemented TG as the ultimate forebearers of industrial music (after all their label was called Industrial Records) that permeates the mainstream from the good (Ministry) to the bad (Nine Inch Nails)-they are that influential to this very day and kill most of the fakers out there. Plus, they have the greatest band name ever. I mean, who doesn't want their gristle to throb, am I right?

Why did I stumble across it? Well, TG was just back on tour in the US for the first time in about 30 years with all the original members and doing more dates than just Frisco (heck, they played that hipster fest Coachella too):


http://www.losanjealous.com/2009/02/04/throbbing-gristle-to-tour-usa-play-6000-capacity-tent-at-coachella-ucla/

So you end up going through phases and hitting amazing things again that got left as gristle on the roadside.

So the legend of TG endures. And this album is the best introduction in my estimation as it is not as obtuse as some of their early work (Hamburger Lady, anyone?) though it is highly dark and experimental yet doesn't dabble in some of the pop like results that show up on some of their singles
(“United” is better than any love song that ABBA put out in my estimation and I love ABBA). This album in particular makes total noise somewhat comforting and lovable if that makes sense.

It commences with “Cornets”-four minutes plus of Cosi Fanni Tutti (ex-stripper and perfect fetish girl, BTW) riffing on a cornet-


http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Cornets

in very processed/looped way that hints at the concepts of Fripp/Eno regarding what they did with guitar. Truly outer spacious. “The Old Man Smiled” follows with it's creepy beat with Genesis P- Orridge mumbling about “can the world be as sad as it seems? in a cafe in Tangiers” over some of the most sinister guitar feedback and drumbox foxtrot ambling ever put down on tape.

Shortly after that, is the ultra cinematic “The World Is A War Film” with the ultimate electronically looped synths providing the basis for the nastiest dreamwalk. Which leads to “Dreamachine”-probably the greatest industrial tune ever san vocals. That devolves into “Still Walking”-an echoed dialogue between the aforementioned Cosi Fanni Tutti and Chris Carter (they were lovers and husband/wife back then and still are-TG folks are so trad and the Republicans would love them!) about hooking up for some “action” done with all kinds of spectacular vocal effects and delays and loops and whatnot.

The work closes under the uber funky and cornet led “Don't Do As You Are Told, Do As You Think” in which Gen seems to “dictate” that we should all be Libertarians (at least in my interpretation). In closing, TG might be one of the most obscure but most influential acts out there.

Windsor aka Wheezy aka Cheese Dog!

So when I was about 6 years old, around first grade, our family made the big move from a particularly nasty area of inner-city Detroit to the suburban wonderland that is Dearborn, world headquarters for the lamest owner in sports, William Clay Ford, but I digress. Now we had room and needed a dog, of course. So Dad found an Old English Sheepdog at some farm that I recall being somewhere west of Ann Arbor, though I can't be sure as the memories are fuzzy now at my advance age. We got a puppy that we dubbed Barney and he was a great dude that I took much care of until he left this mortal coil around my junior year of high school. He developed some varied health issues and needed to be put to sleep but he lived a full life.

Fast forward about 15 years without a dog and the ex and I have acquired our first house in Portland in mid-1996. As we settle in we settle on the fact that we need a dog particularly since our house already came with a completely fenced in yard. I can be convincing at times and the choice was made to acquire another OES. Early spring of 97' rolls around and I am on the hunt. I locate one in the want ads of the Oregonian and the deal sounds too good to be true-$100 including a large transport crate. Heck, those things ran about $150 new back then.

We visit the couple with the OES (she's got papers and she goes by Elsie-yuck!) and the story is that they got her as a puppy from a respected breeder after the last of their kids went off to college. Turns out, bad planning as he is a building contractor and she is a real estate agent they don't have the time to care for her and train her properly as she now approaches age two. At first I was hesitant. Yes, it was clear that they didn't have time to take care of her-in fact, they had her coat sheared and she looked goofy all buzzed. Second, she seemed a tad rambunctious. Well, I thought, I am always up for a challenge. They liked the fact I knew the breed and even arranged to drive across town and drop her off. Oh my...

It was very apparent immediately that Windsor (as we dubbed her-gotta keep with the British Isles names) had almost no training, no barriers at all. She was bonkers to say the least. All energy, all random action. We didn't know what to do and Cyndy was openly distraught. Well, after a month of this chaos, we learned about this ex-Marine dog trainer who did things differently. Instead of paying for a set of classes or by the class, his deal was you paid a one time flat fee. Not cheap. But he guaranteed success no matter how many sessions it took until you were happy with the results. If it took 10 sessions, so be it. If it took 50, fine. Well dang, it worked after about 15 sessions. Of course most of the training was training us what to do. That was fine. I was only interested in results and it worked.

Shortly thereafter we took Windsor on her first trip with us for a week for our first time all the way down the glorious Oregon coast camping and rafting and then inland for hanging/hiking at Crater Lake NP. She did alright for the most part (except for the time she jumped out of the car with the window rolled down while we were crawling through the campground-she was fine-and the time she accidentally nipped my nose all open and bloody while barking at a semi trailer truck loudly going by while she was leashed in the back seat) and it looked like a long term match for sure.

In short time, she developed into our greatest bud. Curiously, she loved other people but had almost no tolerance for her canine peers. She learned to roller blade (well, as in, I roller bladed down the street as she pulled me with all her might while I veered back and forth like a was water skiing holding her leash-it was the neighborhood sensation). And she even learned to fetch instead of herding, a genetic trait she would roll out on occasion that cracked everyone up.



Through thick and thin she has always been there for me with a big wet tongue, her prancing antics and ready for a lay on-the-back belly rub with her back legs kicking. I am writing this as she turns fourteen today which is marvelous and almost unheard of for OESs and almost all other breeds of her size (she once weighed 85 lbs. but is down to 77 which is normal at her age). Essentially, she is in great shape and usually very healthy with no illnesses. Yes, of course, she is suffering from the vagaries of old age (her hearing is diminished, her eyesight is down to about 25% which is not a big deal for dogs as they don't really rely on sight so much anyway and her joints have gone downhill in the past two years-she's on a joint medication prescription which helps but she can still smell her beloved cheese from across the room). She can hardly run anymore but she tries when we hit the nearby park-she's a trooper and I adore her. Something tells me she still has another year or two left in her-as long as I am around to lift her off the Spanish tile that she prefers to lay on despite the fact that I have large area rugs for her around my house-I guess being English she is a bit stubborn, particularly in old age.

The Greatest Albums of All Time In No Particular Order (entry # 3)

Wire- 154 (1979)

Can never figure out the Wire fans who consistently list this last out of the first three albums. Pink Flag has it's moments but most of it's attempts at "punk rock" or whatever are cringe-worthy and embarrassing at times but understandable on a first release. Chairs Missing ups the ante and finds them branching out and finding their sound more without regard to the prevalent punk attitude of 1978. 154 (supposedly named after the number of gigs they had done up to the time of this recording) solidifies their unique vision and around 1979 only PIL and Joy Division share a similar uniqueness of sound that defy pigeon-holing in the post-punk realm and explores whole new possibilities of style and sound. In fact, they worked with producer Mike Thorne on this who later worked with the likes of John Cale, The The, Laurie Anderson and Soft Cell. Thus, it makes sense that they broke up after this masterpiece (how could they top it?) and haven't even come close since reforming and mostly dabbling in electro-punk-pop (or something like that).

Side one is simply a masterpiece and easily outdoes side two but that is no slight. It starts off languidly and stoicly with “I Should Have Known Better” with deep tenor vocals by bassist Graham Lewis. This start is juxtaposed by the short, aggressive alienated art-punk numbers “Two People in a Room” and “The 15th” sung by Colin Newman. “The Other Window” is otherworldly with a plaintive spoken word account by Graham from a train seat augmented by eerily echoed guitar lines. Shortly thereafter, the side nears an end with the epic and bombastic “A Touching Display” that builds in facets and haunted by Graham's vocals.

Side two is the “poppier” side for lack of a better term. “A Mutual Friend” followed by “A Blessed State” reminds one of an Eno piece circa “Another Green World”-lilting approaches with lots of open space and exotic Hawaiian style guitar effects. Ironically, the “hit” (after all, they were signed to a major label deal of sorts in the U.S. but of course the label didn't know what to do with them ) “Map Ref. 41N 93W” is probably the most straight forward pop track on the album, seemingly a left over from the Chairs Missing sessions. The album closes with the mountingly claustrophobic “40 Versions” building to a crescendo and a feedback embellished crash.

I first got this album in late 1980 and it's production values and sound still sound classic today and have stood the test of time-Radiohead, who I do enjoy only wish they could come up with something this original-but in their defense it was already done. I've listened to thousands of albums in a quarter century (it simply blew my mind when I came across it in high school) and 154 remains easily embedded in my all time Top Ten. Indeed, they were the post-punks beating Pink Floyd at their own game around the time they came out with the splendid “The Wall”.