Category: Thought and Opinion

Thought and Opinion

Sunday in Seattle

Today is my last day in the Pacific Northwest and truth be told although I’m excited to see the Seattle Seahawks play today ( the main reason I made the 2,500 mile three time zone trek), I am also missing home.

I’ve spent most of the past few days exploring the Emerald City and catching up with some old friends. I made a promise to myself to do two mandatory things on this trip in an effort to save money: not rent a car and stay in a hostel. Once the plane landed I was able to make good on the first promise. I bypassed the car rental counters and passed through the garage to the Light Link Rail.

There is a new train line that takes you from the SeaTac airport to pretty much anywhere you want to go in Seattle. For $2.75 a trip you just can’t beat it. I quickly hopped aboard with my backpack and made my way to University Street.

I then walked the last few blocks to Pike Place and checked in at The Green Tortoise Hostel (which is directly across from the world-famous market).

Hostels are quaint, little rooms with little more than a common area, a bunch of bunk beds in each room and a bathroom. I thought of it as a college dormitory. Since I planned to explore the sights most of my stay and not be stuck in the room watching HBO or uh, some of those “other channels” it sure beat paying four times the price for a room in a hotel. Ironically, some of my roomies turned out to be from Canada and were also in town for the game so it worked out ok.

Since the sun was shining upon my arrival, I quickly made my way to the Space Needle and took the ride 605 feet to the top where I admired the panoramic view of the downtown region and beyond. The weather in the distance was a tad bit cloudy but I was still able to make out Mount Rainier off in the distance.

 Someone once told me that on the clearest of days in addition to the wonderful views of the Rainier volcano you can also see Alaska and Canada. (I got a Sarah Palin sort of chuckle out of that comment).

I also wandered around Pioneer Square, perused the freshness of Pike Place Market (yes, I saw them throw the fish) and drank enough Starbucks and Tully’s to last a lifetime.

 

The Seattle waterfront really is a sight to behold. From pretty much any vantage point you can see the Cascade mountains on the horizon. I watched the sun set beyond the range and heard the roar of the traffic on the highway as people busily get to wherever people need to get to be. I took in a deep breath and wondered how with all of this hustle and bustle, people could possibly just drive on and ignore something so beautiful? Stop and smell the roses couldn’t be any more truer than now.

Yesterday I took a bus to nearby Tacoma to visit a friend I hadn’t seen in a few years. Skies were gray and as the bus rolled along I-5  I watched the rain droplets roll down my window. At that point I realized that maybe I was now officially experiencing the Seattle everyone was telling me about.

And I love it.

Thought and Opinion

Seattle – Day One

It’s finally here. My first trip to Seattle in eleven years. A long day of travel is in store for me but I’m looking forward to coffee, football and seeing friends I haven’t seen in a long, long time.

I’ll be posting daily blog entries here on WordPress about my trip to the Pacific Northwest. If you want to follow along with my excursions more frequently, check out my Twitter (@JimEWood) or Tumblr pages. (jimewood.tumblr.com).

Let’s GO!

Thought and Opinion

Time is Not On My Side

Why can’t there be more time? There is so much I want to do but never enough time to do it.

Here is my agenda for today: Finishing this little blog and cup of coffee, mow the grass, clean the upstairs bathroom and go to my daughter’s 4 hour double-header softball game. By that time the day will pretty much be shot. Oh, and I’ll still have to make sure the family and animals are fed and try to squeeze in an hour of gym time as I’ve been slacking in that department the past few days.

Inevitably though, before I know it, the day will be done and another work week will be upon me. What I really need is more time.

We all wish we had more time for the typical things we need to do like cleaning the house, mowing the lawn or spending some (or more) time at the gym. But what about all those other things we could accomplish if we only had thirty hours in a day instead of twenty-four?

Maybe you might have a notion of going back to school and learning a new skill, writing your own Great American novel or even volunteering some of that time to a worthy cause. All noble ideas but time waits for no one.

Sometimes not having enough time can be very frustrating. Take me for instance. Here are a few personal things I’ve been struggling with for years. Things I know I could accomplish if only I had more time:

Playing guitar: I’ve been playing since the age of 15 and still haven’t figured it out the way I want to yet. When you first start learning you are taught all of these scales. Repetitive patterns you play over and over again in different variations. I had no problem with that.

My main problem is trying to break out of these patterns when playing. It frustrates me to no end when I get to a point when performing where it’s time for a solo and all that pops in my head is the pentatonic minor scale. It’s something I just can’t seem to break out of. I suppose some guitar lessons would help me straighten this out once and for all but when am I going to find time for that?

Karate: When I first saw the movie Karate Kid ( I mean the original one from 1984 and not the bogus one with Will Smith’s kid) I wanted to break boards and faces. I could name names of people who I wanted to open a can of whoop ass on. But I’d follow Miyagi’s rule of being for self-defense only (of course)..

Problem is, when a fourteen year old boy has to go to karate lesson every week with little to no progress well that was too much for me. There was no time for that. So, like many other things I regret, I bailed on it. I wanted immediate results. I mean, seriously, what happened to wax-on, wax-off?

Painting: I do still enjoy painting on occasion. I wish there were more hours in the day for me to delve into it like I used to do. Back when I had no responsibilities other than play Dungeons and Dragons and go to school.

This is how interested I was in painting: My parents couldn’t afford to buy a $200 easel for me to paint properly. Fortunately though, we did have one of those adjustable rolling hospital trays lying around. I’d raise the tray to a proper height. Next I’d take an old outside folding picnic chair and angle it in an upside down “V’ configuration on top of the. Finally, I’d lean my canvas on the chair and VOILA…instant ghetto easel.

I have to admit, it surely took some skills to not knock the canvas off but I managed to paint some cool little diddies on it.

I think if Congress ever authorizes more hours in a day (and surely they can since they can do everything else) there will eventually be a real easel sitting in my basement. Bob Ross would be proud.

Writing: I’ve written plenty of songs and stories over the years. But for every one that I’ve written there are at least three that are incomplete.

Maybe someday I’ll get around to breaking out of the guitar rut, learning karate, painting properly and finishing some incomplete writing. I just need time to be on my side.

What are some of the things you’d like to do if you only had more time?

Childhood Memories, Thought and Opinion

The Boys Are Back In Town

“Guess who just got back today?
Them wild-eyed boys that had been away
Haven’t changed, haven’t much to say
But man, I still think them cats are crazy”

Phil Lynott – Thin Lizzy

One day, not too long ago, I woke up and they were gone. The friends I had known and loved since childhood had just up and left without so much as even saying goodbye.

Perhaps it’s my fault. I was the one who abandoned them. I’d always assumed they’d be there when ever the urge would strike me. Sure, I’d walk down their street quite often when out on grocery excursions but sometimes I was just too caught up in the task at hand to even stop by and say “Hello”.

I’ll admit, when I heard the news of their flight I felt an empty feeling in my stomach. A churning sensation. And I knew my days would never start out properly anymore. I lamented the laughter. The good conversations we all had. The little plastic things made in their image that they used to bring me as presents. All those thoughts and feelings came rushing back.

Days turned into months without so much as a word from them. I considered posting their images on a milk carton (skim of course) but the dairy farmers all laughed me to scorn. They didn’t get it. So I did the next best thing to get the word out.

I took an image and had my picture taken with the band Night Ranger at a recent concert. My hope was to get the message out that my friends were missing and I needed them back more than anything.

That’s when the General Mills Gods must have heard me.

Last night around 10pm I received a call from a friend of mine who used to hang out with the boys too. I could hardly hear what she was saying through all the tears. She told me she had spotted the boys at the Wegmans supermarket. They were there and they were asking about me.

Even though the hour was late, I quickly grabbed my keys and made haste to the local Wegmans. As I rushed in the door I was greeted by the strong smell of cinnamon. I surmised that either the bakers had made rolls this morning or the Apple Jacks kids were firing one up in celebration. I chuckled assuming it was the latter.

I quickly went to the spot we always used to hang out in. Nothing. I saw nothing but frogs, rabbits, magicians, some crazy bird and a leprechaun. My friends were no where in sight. That empty feeling in my stomach was back and I assumed tomorrow would be no different then it has already been for so many months.

It was at that moment I had an epiphany. I noticed that the store had already begun putting out trick or treat candy some two months early. I wondered if they might possibly be hanging out in the Halloween aisle. Like me, they always liked that creepy stuff too and at this point it was worth a shot so off I went.

Trolling through piles of bite sized Snickers and Milky Ways the heaven’s parted and there they were. My friends. The ones that had gone on a long vacation were back.

We just stood there looking at each other not really knowing what to say.  Finally, my joy became too great and I shouted: “Hey Guys it’s me, Jimmy!!”. A tear rolled down my cheek and I noticed that one of the shopping cart boys who had witnessed this reunion was now fleeing from my vicinity.

We finally embraced and I brought the boys home. I didn’t ask them why they left or how long they might be staying. I just wanted this moment to last forever.

I’ve decided that after breakfast this morning I’m sending my testimony in to Maury. I think between all the “You ARE The Father” segments, this reunion would make a nice story.

 

Thought and Opinion

Jerry Lewis And The End Of An Era

Labor Day’s official definition in the United States is “A Federal holiday held the first Monday in September to honor working members of society”. For many, in addition to being a day off from their own manual labor, it’s also synonymous with being the last Monday before kids go back to school.

But this year though, between the football games and the picnics, the Labor Day holiday will feel a bit empty and out-of-place. For the first time since it began the annual Jerry Lewis Muscular Dystrophy Telethon will not be hosted by the man whose been the mainstay of its existence since 1966.

Jerry Lewis, one of the very last surviving members of the golden age of comedy and someone who has spent the last 45 consecutive Labor Day weekends raising more than 2 1/2 billion dollars to fight this debilitating disease, has been told by producers of the telethon that his services will no longer be required. In addition, the telethon has also decided to drop the “Jerry Lewis” from the title and go simply with “MDA Labor Day Telethon”.

Now some of us see Jerry as the sidekick to Dean Martin back in the day. Others remember him as the original Nutty Professor before Eddie Murphy took that mantle. But like him or hate him, here is a man who devoted half of his life to raising awareness and money to help end human suffering. To simply brush him to the side without public recognition of his services is reprehensible.

Lewis himself, like every one of us will someday, has been sidelined over the years with heart and other health related concerns. It seems hypocritical of the MDA to remove the one person who has hosted the telethon and raised funds for the fight against disease simply because he himself is battling it.

Critics will say Jerry is old and his time has long since passed. Well, I’m of the opinion that longevity and commitment should be rewarded.

Obviously, you simply can not have someone hosting a show who has mental lapses or some other mental or physical ailment. But surely, there must have been some place for Jerry Lewis in his own telethon.

Alas, 2011 will mark the first time Jerry Lewis will no longer be a part of the Muscular Dystrophy Telethon. I sincerely hope the MDA has another successful year so that we can end the suffering of millions of people. But I’m still a bit sad that I won’t get to hear him sing “You’ll Never Walk Alone”.

How ironic it appears that’s exactly the way the MDA has left him.

Article first published as Jerry Lewis And The End Of An Era on Technorati.

Thought and Opinion

Coming Soon

Just a quick post to let you all know what’s on tap in future blogs.

Coming Soon:

Tomorrow: A blog post to celebrate what would have been a milestone and three moments to last a lifetime.

Friday: A blog review of the Journey, Foreigner and Night Ranger concert from The Allentown Fairgrounds. I’ve got a backstage pass to all of the action.

Sept 30th – Seattle: I’ll be blogging about my trip to Seattle, WA at the end of September. To show how much of a fan I really am, I’m heading to the Pacific Northwest for the weekend (a six-hour flight) just to watch my Seattle Seahawks play the Atlanta Falcons.

I will be making the trip solo and will spend the weekend drinking Starbucks (of course) and bumming around the Emerald City. Lots of good stuff as I’ll try to blog early and often.

1986-2011: This year marks the 25th anniversary of my Senior Year in high school. Lots of posts coming with excerpts from the journal I kept during that time.

More short stories: I’m working on a pretty interesting one right now.

If there’s anything you’d like to see me write or want my take on,  please feel free to let me know.

Lastly, if you’ve got a good idea for a name for this blog please send it along. I’m think the generic “James Wood’s Weblog” has run its course. It needs something catchier so any thoughts you have please send them my way.

 

 

 

Things I Think, Thought and Opinion

Five Things I Think – Why I Love Being A Man Edition

Hurricane Irene  is approaching and will bring torrential rain and wind and generally wreak havoc on my weekend off. Just curious, but why does it seem that these huge storms are always named after women (ex. Katrina, Gloria, Diane, Irene)?

As this feminine force of nature makes a washout of the next few days it made me think about the many reasons why I love being a man. So here you go:

Top Five Reasons Why I Love Being A Man

5. No waiting for public restrooms. Ever have to use the facilities at a busy bar or sporting event? When my bladder is full and I make my way to the restroom it kind of reminds me of the Disney Fast Past Line in the Magic Kingdom.

I see huge lines of women waiting with legs crossed while I am able to just mosey right on in.

Sorry ladies….

4. Love of Professional Sports – Even if you go to a party and meet a bunch of guys you’ve never met before, you always have something to talk about. Sports is the universal language of man. Oh I’m sure there are plenty of female sports fans there who can talk a good game too. But I’m also willing to bet they became fans by growing up in a household of men.

3. Less Time To Make Myself Presentable. This one is a no-brainer. Tell me I have to be shaved, showered and ready to go in thirty minutes and I’ll make it with ten minutes to spare. Tell that to a woman and she wouldn’t even be towel dried when the timer went off.

2. The Three Stooges. Trying to explain my love for these guys to a woman is pointless. I’ll be laughing my head off and she’ll look at me with a huge scowl on her face. I guess it takes the XY chromosome to be able to really appreciate their slapstick. Although it simply MUST be the classic line-up of Moe, Larry & Curly. No exceptions. Those other guys just weren’t as funny.

I suppose it’s kind of same reason you have to be female to understand the beauty of those awful Twilight books and movies.

And the Number One thing I most enjoy about being a man?

1. No Monthly Visits From Unwelcome “Friends”.  I think most women know what I’m talking about here. And for those men who are still single it’s best to avoid women if at all possible during the visit.

While we men can procreate at will and not think twice about it a woman’s body is synchronized with some kind a monthly cycle. Something they must attend to or, eh, well, the results will be less then flattering let’s put it that way.

So there you have it. The five things I do enjoy most about being a man. As for you ladies who may be disgruntled about this blog please don’t hate. I’ll still be here the next time you have a tight jar or bottle you need opened.

Oooh, now that makes six things. 😉

Music, Thought and Opinion

Adrenaline Mob Rules

August 14th, 2011. I’ve written it down because it’s not often you are privy to the beginning of music history.

You see, I wasn’t even a twinkle in my father’s eye when The Beatles were an up and coming act. And I was just a child and never got to see when guitar greats Jimi Hendrix, Eddie Van-Halen and Randy Rhoads began and all took it up a notch.

Alas, I was starting to feel that being part of the beginning of something special just wasn’t in the cards for me. Last night though, I finally got that chance when I saw the very first Adrenaline Mob performance in Allentown, Pennsylvania.

Adrenaline Mob is the new project from some of the most talented musicians around. Featuring drummer Mike Portnoy (Dream Theater, Avenged Sevenfold), lead vocalist Russell Allen (Symphony-X), guitarists Mike Orlando (Sonic Stomp) and Rich Ward (Stuck Mojo/Fozzy) and bassist Paul DiLeo (Nena).

Having never seen an arsenal of musicians of this caliber come together before I didn’t quite know what to expect. But as the band took the stage to the familiar sounds from The Godfather movie and tore into Psychosane, the first song from its debut self-titled EP, any doubt I had as to whether or not they could pull it off was gone.

It truly was a headbangers paradise as the band wooed the audience with songs like Hit The Wall, Believe Me and the Black Sabbath/Dio classic (and very appropriate) Mob Rules.

Mixing in a few songs from their soon to be released full length album, Russell Allen told the audience “This next one’s our ballad” and I found myself wondering if this would be just another gratuitous throw away song. I was pleasantly surprised to find that their “ballad’ was actually on par with all of the other songs and Mr. Allen’s vocals were both smooth and powerful.

I felt like part of a brotherhood listening to Paul DiLeo’s killer bass grooves and sonic euphoria while shaking his head along with the rest of us.

I’ve never seen Mike Orlando perform before and as a guitarist myself I stood there in awe as I watched him shred. He is one of the most phenomenal players around and makes it look so easy. Afterwards I asked him how long he had been playing and he told me “About a week”.  Very down to Earth guy. What I should have asked him was if he was available next week to give me lessons.

Rich Ward played to the crowd showcasing his amazing talent and at one point allowing members of  the audience to play his guitar while he held it over them.  I wished I was down front so I could have also been a member of The Mob for just one night.

As for Mr. Portnoy, well what can be said that hasn’t already? The man is a genius, one of the greatest drummers ever and also one of the nicest guys you’ll ever meet. Just a year out of leaving the mega band Dream Theater, Mike is back with a vengeance.

After a thrilling 75 minute performance, the band exited the stage once again to The Godfather theme along with intentional feedback from Mr. Ward’s guitar.  Indeed, there was no better way to end the beginning.

If you haven’t done so already, I highly recommend picking up a copy of the Adrenaline Mob EP and seeing this band on their current tour so one day, like me, you’ll be able to say: “I was there when it all began”.

Article first published as Adrenaline Mob Rules on Technorati

Life, Thought and Opinion

The Things We Take For Granted

It was a rainy Sunday morning at the Wood Estate. I had just poured a cup of coffee and made the excursion out to pick up the Sunday newspaper which was sitting in a soaked plastic bag at the bottom of my driveway.

I know that in this digital age of technology I could have just popped open my laptop and browsed the news websites but the feeling of physically holding a newspaper and reading the headlines is one of the things I’ve just grown accustomed to.

While perusing the usual headlines of economic decline and political bickering I came across the movie listings. Something I typically just browse right over unless by chance I’ve already made plans to see a movie and needed to know the showtimes. This was not one of those days.

And yet I found myself stopping in mid page turn and going back to the listings to see what was playing at the two drive-in movie theaters we have in the area. 

As most people know, drive ins are on the endangered species list and I thought about making plans to take the family before summer ends. I always enjoyed the experience of going to a drive in movie growing up. I even worked at one as my first job out of high school.

All the while a voice in the back of my head was telling me that it’s already the middle of August and soon school will be starting and work will start getting busier again. The plan of my car covered in popcorn and soda might end up falling by the wayside but I justified it by thinking “Ah, the drive-in will always be there”.

But would it? All it takes is one bad year and the headline “Drive In To Close” could greet me in a future Sunday newspaper.

There are so many things we take for granted in the course of life. Little things, big things. Some that seem meaningless at the time. I found myself thinking about such things.

Real Things:

Our family: Grandparents, parents, aunt and uncles, brothers and sisters. We always think they’ll just “be around” until the day they no longer are.

Our children: Even though they grow up so quickly we always seem to take for granted the days that they’ll be the little toddler, the ten-year old playing softball or the bratty teenager. It never really hits us hard until they’re receiving their diploma and leaving the nest for new horizons. I wager I’m going to feel a huge emptiness on that day.

Simple Things:

The smell of honey suckle: I wrote about this in a previous post about motorcycle riding when I first reunited with a fragrance that signified the innocence of my childhood and running through fields.

How long until huge housing developments tear up the fields and make it obsolete?

Obscure Things:

The sun and the moon: These little spheres have been doing their thing in the sky forever. Without them, we’d be living in a block of ice and there’d be no high and low tides. But have you ever noticed the moon up there in the night sky and thought to yourself that people like Jesus, George Washington and Beethoven all walked under it the same way we do now? Probably not. But maybe you will tomorrow or the next day because it’ll still be there.

These are all things we don’t pay much attention to due to all the hustle and bustle of our lives. And why? Because we’ve taken for granted the fact that they’ll always be there. Always there for that one day when we actually want to call them, smell them, admire them.

As I closed the newspaper I thought more about making a family excursion to the drive-in. We can’t go tonight, it’s going to be raining. Maybe next weekend if the weather is better.

There I go again.