Bucky's Rock Review 2011

Well, the end of the year is almost here, and I’ve been taking some time to revisit some of the more memorable rock albums of the year. While this is by no means a complete list of every album that’s been released in 2011, these are just a few of the ones I’ve bought this year.

Country Line by Aaron Lewis
The Staind frontman’s first solo EP is the first country CD I’ve ever put in my collection. This is a short disc of seven quick songs (three of which are the different versions of the disc’s single “Country Boy”), but it’s well done and really brings out Lewis’s strong voice and acoustic guitar really well. The track “Tangled Up In You” is a reworking of a ballad off of Staind’s last album, and it clicks as a solo acoustic song.
Recommended Tracks: “Country Boy” (radio version), “Tangled Up In You,” “Massachusetts”

Home School Valedictorian by Adelitas Way
If you’re a rock radio listener, you’ve probably heard the first two singles “Sick” and “The Collapse” off this band’s sophomore album. The rest of the album is mixed between uptempo rock songs like these singles and slower ballads like “Good Enough.”
Recommended Tracks: “The Collapse,” “Sick,” “I Wanna Be” (with cameo vocals from Tyler Connolly of Theory of a Deadman)

Between The Devil and the Deep Blue Sea by Black Stone Cherry
Hard to believe that this is the Southern rockers’ third album already! This CD follows the same formula as most of their other songs, with great guitars and catchy lyrics that are more fun than thought-provoking.
Recommended Tracks: “White Trash Millionaire,” “Blame It On The Boom Boom,” “Can’t You See”

Shallow Bay: The Best of Breaking Benjamin by Breaking Benjamin
There’s been a bit of controversy over the single “Blow Me Away” from this best-of collection. Apparently guitarist Aaron Fink and bassist Mark Klepaski approved the version for this retrospective featuring vocals by Sydnee Duran of the band Volara to their record label without frontman Ben Burnley’s consent, which led to Burnley firing both Fink and Klepaski from the band during their current hiatus. I have no problem with either the version that’s on this album or the original version without Duran’s vocals from the Halo 2 soundtrack. I also like some of the B-sides, cover songs and live acoustic tracks on the second disc of this greatest hits collection, and am hoping that Burnley can eventually get over his “Axl Rose lead singer syndrome” to get back into recording music again with this band.
Recommended Tracks: “Blow Me Away,” “Enjoy the Silence” (Depeche Mode cover), “Breath” (acoustic live)

Songbook by Chris Cornell
This new disc by the Soundgarden and Audioslave is a compilation of fifteen live tracks culled from his solo acoustic tour and one new studio acoustic song. This is a great live CD for anyone who’s a fan of Cornell’s work and either went to one of these shows, or just for someone like me who is a fan and is kicking himself for missing this tour. These songs showcase Cornell’s powerful vocals and remind you that he’s a better guitar player than he’s usually given credit for.
Recommended Tracks: “Black Hole Sun,” “Doesn’t Remind Me” (live from the Fitzgerald Theater in St. Paul), “Imagine” (John Lennon cover)

Superfiction by Cold
This is the first disc by the Florida band in six years, and musically it follows the same path as their previous album A Different Kind of Pain. The heaviest track is the first song “Wicked World.” That’s my favorite track on the album, because it harkens back to the band’s harder rocking sound on previous efforts like Year of the Spider and 13 Ways to Bleed Onstage. Frontman Scooter Ward’s vocals are very produced, although he turns down the Autotune much more than he did on his solo effort The Killer and the Star. This is more of a concept album where the songs are connected almost as if it was telling one big story, and it’s kinda interesting to count how many of the Cold spiders there are in the illustrations in the CD booklet.
Recommended Tracks: “Wicked World,” “American Dream,” Welcome2MyWorld”

The Lost Children by Disturbed
This is the first B-sides and rarities collection for the Chicago metal band, and their first album not to reach number one on the Billboard album chart in its first week. If you’re a fan of the band, you’ll enjoy these rarities and cover songs while the band takes a healthy break.
Recommended Tracks: “Hell,” “3,” “Midlife Crisis” (Faith No More cover)

American Capitalist by Five Finger Death Punch
The third album by this speedy metal band picks up where their last two discs left off – it’s a quick album full of fast-paced rock anthems paired with a few slower, Steelheart-type ballads. It’s a formula that works, so why fix something if it isn’t broken, right?
Recommended Tracks: “Under and Over It,” “The Pride,” “Remember Everything”

Wasting Light by the Foo Fighters
One of Dave Grohl’s band’s most solid works to date, and probably their best album since The Colour and the Shape. This disc had me reeled in from the first song “Bridge Burning” to the finale “Walk.” Welcoming guitarist Pat Smear back to the band gives the trio of Grohl, Smear and Chris Shifflett a more complex, layered guitar sound on this album. They also have some good guest stars on this disc, like Bob Mould of Husker Du on vocals and guitar on the song “Dear Rosemary” and Grohl’s former Nirvana bandmate Kris Novoselic playing bass and accordion on the song “I Should Have Known.” Be careful when you open the CD booklet though, because each one includes a small piece of the analog tape that this album was recorded on!
Recommended Tracks: “Bridge Burning,” “I Should Have Known,” “Walk”

If Not Now, When? by Incubus
This is the first album in quite some time by the mellow pop/rock band, and it doesn’t disappoint their fans. While it’s not their best effort, the soothing sounds on this album are perfect background music for a busy workday.
Recommended Tracks: “Friends and Lovers,” “Isadore,” “Adolescents”

Th1rTeen by Megadeth
Yes, the title of this album is spelled correctly above! It’s the thirteenth studio album by frontman (and former Metallica guitarist) Dave Mustaine’s band, and it continues their heavy metal legacy, picking right up where their last album, the underrated Endgame left off. The return of bassist (and native Minnesotan) Dave Ellefson to the band brings their signature sound back to one of the better metal albums of the year.
Recommended tracks: “Public Enemy No. 1,” “Whose Life (Is It Anyways?),” “Black Swan”

Twenty (Original Motion Picture Soundtrack) by Pearl Jam
If you enjoyed Cameron Crowe’s documentary film on Pearl Jam, this double-disc set is a great companion piece to the movie that celebrates Pearl Jam's two decades in the alternative rock scene. The first disc is full of live tracks from the film, and the second disc is a cornucopia of demos, acoustic and live bonus tracks that are perfect for the Pearl Jam fan of any age.
Recommended Tracks: “Say Hello 2 Heaven” (Temple of the Dog demo featuring Chris Cornell on vocals), “Given To Fly” (Mike Mcready acoustic instrumental demo), “Bu$hleaguer” (live)

Dedicated to Chaos by Queensryche
Queensryche is known for their concept albums (and concerts). I really wanted to like this album after enjoying their previous concept disc American Soldier, but this is simply a disorganized, pop-influenced mess. Song titles like “Got It Bad,” “Wot We Do” and “Big Noize” don’t exactly inspire their loyal fans either. I think this will eventually be an album like Metallica’s St. Anger or Motley Crue’s Generation Swine, one that the band will hopefully deny it ever existed!
Recommended Tracks: I can’t recommend any song on this album, it’s my 2011 “clunker” of the year!

Somewhere In The Stratosphere by Shinedown
I’d recommend this double CD, double DVD collection to anyone who’s a Shinedown fan or who want to relive seeing them live in concert. This album devoted both a CD and DVD to a pair of concerts, one being an acoustic, VH1 Storytellers kind of intimate affair in Kansas City, and a more traditional electric live concert in Washington state that you may have seen on the Paladia channel on cable.
Recommended Tracks: “Times Like These,” (Foo Fighters cover – acoustic), “45” (electric live), “Second Chance” (both acoustic and electric live versions)

Live-Made In Stoke 24/7/11 by Slash
This is a great live double album by Slash and his solo band featuring Myles Kennedy from Alter Bridge on lead vocals. Recorded in Stoke-on-Trent England, where Slash lived for a while as a youth, this concert is a joyful homecoming, full of songs from his first solo album, plenty of Guns N’ Roses tunes, a few Slash’s Snakepit and Velvet Revolver tunes and a few instrumental numbers thrown in for good measure. I counted about a dozen songs from this collection that I got to hear this band play live at the casino in Walker, MN last year, along with several more on this disc that sound excellent live in concert.
Recommended Tracks: “Nothing To Say,” “Godfather Solo” (a ten minute instrumental jam featuring the love theme from the Godfather movies), “Beggars and Hangers On”

Staind by Staind
After Aaron Lewis’s acoustic country EP and the band’s break, Staind returned to rock radio this fall with a self-titled album that rocks harder and features more of Lewis’ screaming vocals then their previous two efforts. I was surprised to hear Snoop Dogg (yes, THAT Snoop Dogg) on the track “Wannabe,” but otherwise the band turned in a solid effort, their last album with original drummer Jon Wysocki who left the band in May after recording his parts for the album.
Recommended Tracks: “Not Again,” “Eyes Wide Open,” “Something To Remind You”

The Truth Is… by Theory of a Deadman
These four guys from Canada struck gold with their last album Scars and Souvenirs, and their new album continues in those same footsteps. Loaded with infectious and somewhat male chauvinistic R-rated rock songs like “Lowlife,” “Bitch Came Back,” “Gentlemen” and the title track that guys can enjoy, as well as a mix of slower ballads like “Out of My Head,” “Hurricane” and “Easy To Love You” for the ladies, this is another solid outing from the rockers who realize they’re rock stars but still don’t take themselves too seriously.
Recommended Tracks: “Lowlife,” “Bitch Came Back,” “Out of My Head”

Well, that’s all for now, so have a very safe and happy New Year, and I’ll be back blogging in 2012!

Bucky's Helpful Hints for Having an Excellent Concert Experience

This blog topic's been simmering in my mind for a while, so I thought I'd unleash it just in time for the holidays. I've been to a lot of great concerts over the years, so I thought I'd share a few tips that I use to make these experiences much more memorable.

1. If you must eat or drink, do so before or after the show.
I can't tell you how many times I've seen people at rock shows have a few too many and end up making complete fools out of themselves and become a distraction for others who are trying to enjoy the music with their friends. I don't drink anymore, but when I do feel hungry or thirsty I either enjoy a nice meal before the show or satisfy my craving after the show when I've had time to absorb the great time I've just had at a concert. That's why I enjoy going to shows at casinos, because there are usually quite a few good options available.

2. Hit the merchandise table early.
I've scored a few meet and greet passes and some other collectibles that were only available in limited numbers at merchandise tables at some concerts right when I've entered the venue. You can wait until after the show, but some vendors close shop early, so the T-shirt or CD you had your eye on might be packed up by then.

3. If you value your hearing, bring earplugs.
At the last Sevendust show I was at, I was complimented and given a hearty slap on the back by a fellow concert-goer next to me who remarked that I was smart and remembered to wear earplugs. I replied that I'd learned my lesson from previous shows. After one show featuring Everclear and Nickelback at SCSU's Halenbeck Hall about ten years ago, my ears were ringing for three days straight, so I definitely learned my lesson then!

4. Respect the people around you.
This point is worth bringing up, because while I've had the good fortune to meet a lot of really great rock and roll fans over the last decade at different shows, there's inevitably a rotten apple or two who parties a little too hearty either before or during the show and just ends up being a jerk. Have some consideration for your friends and other fellow concertgoers and enjoy in moderation, OK?

Well, that's all for now. Next week, I'll post my final blog of the year, which will be a review of the best rock albums of 2011 that I've added to my collection. Until then, have a great day and Happy Holidays, everyone!

Another Damn Great Sevendust Show!

I realized last night that I've become a Sevendust "veteran." The show was my sixth Sevendust concert in the last nine years. Although that's not as many shows as some people in the audience, I'd still been to more Sevendust shows than most people around me at the Myth in Maplewood who had either seen the band play live once or twice before or were Sevendust "virgins." I've been rocking to these guys for almost a decade, and if they keep playing hard, aggressive shows like they did last night, I'll keep coming back for more!

When I heard that Sevendust was playing at the Myth on Monday with four other bands and that tickets were only $20, I knew I had to go to this show! I hadn't seen them since their show at First Avenue in downtown Minneapolis in November last year, and I knew from experiencing their 2008 show at the Myth Nightclub that it was a great venue to enjoy such a concert experience.

I braved the Twin Cities traffic, arriving in enough time to do a little Christmas window shopping and to grab some supper before the show. The first band, Sucker Punch, hails from nearby Minneapolis and they showed promise with their original songs and an interesting metal cover of "Summer Nights" from the John Travolta movie Grease.

The next band, Pennsylvania-based Candlelight Red got the growing crowd into the show with some fun original songs from their January 2012 debut album The Wreckage, including the title cut and a cover of Roxette's song "The Look," among others. I enjoyed their set, and made a mental note to check out their album when it comes out.

The third opening band, Seven Day Sonnet, hails from Chicago. They played about a half-dozen songs including their current single "Hapless." I wasn't as impressed with them as I was by Candlelight Red, but they kept the crowd thoroughly entertained until the next act hit the stage.

The final opening act, Eye Empire, took the stage shortly after 9 p.m. The band was formed by former Dark New Day members guitarist B.C. Kochmit and bass guitarist Corey Lowery, who happens to be Sevendust guitarist Clint Lowery's brother. Clint even popped up on stage to join his brother's band to play guitar during the song "Victim" which he and Sevendust frontman Lajon Witherspoon recorded parts for on Eye Empire's album Moment of Impact. Before I knew it, their ten-song set was over. I thought Eye Empire did a great job, and was thoroughly ready for Sevendust.

After getting to see Sevendust's always unique backdrops (the curtain behind the drum riser had the band name in white on a red background with a cartoon character of a skull wearing dreadlocks and a cowboy hat with the number "7" on it) and the usual equipment checks during a set change, the house lights went dark and guitarists John Connolly, Clint Lowery and bassist Vince Hornsby led a thundering, thomping version of the song "Splinter" from 2010's Cold Day Memory. This heavy song set the tempo throughout the set, as the band played more bruising numbers like "Denial," "Praise," "Enemy," and "Strong Arm Broken."

Because this was such a driving metal show full of heavy lyrics and guitar, I didn't get to hear some of their lighter fare like "Angel's Son," "Xmas Day" or "Follow" this time around, but I really didn't mind because it was such a great aggressive set with songs I don't normally hear during their concerts like "Alpha", "Forever," and "The End is Coming." Sevendust closed the night with their usual encore song "Face to Face," and left their fans chanting "Sev-en-DUST! Sev-en-DUST!" yearning for more.

I splurged for the meet and greet pass, and got the opportunity to talk with Corey Lowery of Eye Empire near the merchandise table while waiting to meet Sevendust up on the third floor for the after-party. I first saw Corey play live with his old band Stereomud at the old Del-Win Entertainment Center in St. Joe, and got to remind him about old times. The after-party was great. We all got autographed set lists and band photos to get autographs for. I got to talk with all of the Sevendust band members again, but didn't get everyone's autograph this time, as some of them snuck out a little early to rest up for the next night's show. I didn't mind, however, because I enjoyed reminding Lajon of meeting him outside First Avenue before last year's show, talking to Vince and his friends about ice-fishing, chatting with John about shows and concert venues, talking more baseball and hearing some funny stories about Avenged Sevenfold frontman M. Shadows from drummer Morgan Rose, and talking music and life in general with Clint. Those memories will last a long time. Besides, I got all their autographs on the very same kind of photo sheet last year after their First Avenue show!

If you're into heavy rock or metal, and haven't been to a Sevendust show or picked up one of their CD's, I would strongly encourage you to do so immediately! They are one of the hardest working and hardest rocking bands today. Every show of theirs I've been to has been very memorable, and last night was just one more damn great Sevendust show!

P.S. I'm also including in this review a scanned copy of the autographed set list we received during the after-party. The band didn't play the song "Black," but otherwise every other song listed on the set list was played during last night's show.

The Art of Writing

Well, another November has come and gone. Only so many shopping days left until Christmas!

Last month, I did something I've wanted to try before but never did: I participated in the annual National Novel Writing Month, or NaNoWriMo, for short. The goal is to write a 50,000 word or more novel during that month.

For me, I took this task as a challenge. I wrote my first words with a basic idea in mind, but had no idea as to what would really happen over the course of this story until I continued writing every day. I really took this seriously and committed myself to it every day, just like I'm doing on my current job search. Although some days I wrote more than others, on November 29th, I finally finished the goal of completing my novel. At over 50,600 words and more than 100 chapters, a prologue, and epilogue and a few author's notes at the end, this was a hefty task, and I'm proud of myself for accomplishing it. While I've written plenty of articles, press releases, and a few half-finished stories before, this was the first time I've written a full-length book, so I'm pretty darn happy!

As a treat for you, I thought I'd publish the prologue and the first two chapters of the book here. I haven't decided yet if I'll put the rest of this online, maybe if I do so, it'll be a downloadable file that requires a password. If I do any writing this month, it'll probably be editing a few minor plot points. Writers are never quite satisfied with their first drafts, after all! In the meantime, enjoy and have a great week!

Karma

A work of fiction by Aaron Backes

Prologue

“Man, how bittersweet is Karma!”

- “Karma” by Sevendust from the album Cold Day Memory

January 10, 2012

The bitter winds of another harsh Minnesota winter blew across the frozen Lake Krendle, a mid-sized lake that was just one of the state’s 10,000. Today’s projected high temperature was supposed to be a balmy negative fifteen degrees Fahrenheit, according to the ditzy blond weather lady, Maci Hughes, the early morning “Minnesota Metro News” meteorologist on the Twin Cities CBS Channel 8. Coupled with the bitter wind chill, it felt like fucking forty degrees below zero. Thankfully, it wasn’t snowing yet, although a couple of inches of fresh powder were in the forecast for tomorrow. It was too damn cold to snow much more than that, I guess.

A cold sun shone across the frozen lake, a light which I could see scant glimpses of through the small smudged window of the fish house I was currently sharing with my two good buddies Eric and Ron. We were fishing for panfish like we usually do once or twice a week during the winter. The fish haven’t been biting too well today, but we didn’t seem to mind. Besides, with all we’ve been through lately, it just felt good to get away for a while, drink a few beers, shoot the shit and take our minds off of the outside world, at least for a few hours anyway.

“Man, that wind is a motherfucking bitch,” Ron exclaimed while shivering nervously. His shoulder length grey hair swayed slightly as he shivered. A California native, Ron had only been living in Minnesota for five years, moving himself, his wife and their identical twin daughters from sunny La Jolla, CA to the sometimes aptly-named town of Autumn, MN when our now former employers relocated his position. He told me once he’d never even seen snow in person, except for a few ski weekends in the mountains of northern California, until he moved to Minnesota. “Why the hell are we still here? Winter in Minnesota sucks ass!”

“Yeah, no shit,” said Eric as he half-heartedly fidgeted with his fishing pole and nursed his beer. “We should’ve taken off for somewhere warm, like Florida or Mexico or something,” he said, taking another swig from his can of Dark Harvest beer and inching closer to the space heater that kept us from freezing our extremities off in the fish house. “I know I’d sure like to be laying on a warm beach somewhere right now!”

“That would be nice,” I replied as I fished around in the cooler for another cold one. Ideally at that time, we should have been taking a mid-winter’s vacation someplace nice and tropical, although we all knew we couldn’t leave the state. At least, not until the murder investigation was over, anyway.

Part 1

Chapter 1

How did it all begin, you ask? Well, it’s a long, complicated story. I can’t believe half the shit that happened. If I hadn’t lived through it, I’d have thought it was all a dream, or maybe some Stephen King story, the kind that keeps you up all night reading the entire thing from cover to cover, because the story just draws you in, so much that you feel like you’re a part of it. Might as well start from the beginning, I suppose. That’s how most storytellers do, anyway. Be pretty silly of me to start at the end, now wouldn’t it?

The ball started rolling almost three years ago at ITU, our former employers. ITU stood for International Technologies Unlimited, although there are now a few other choice words we’ve come up with now to creatively spell out that abbreviation. You can make up your own if you’d like, of course.

ITU began out of a rented warehouse in Yonkers, NY in the mid 1970’s as a small commodities trader. When I started there, they were known as an international insurance and securities broker, offering commodities in offices from Wyoming to Sweden, and almost everywhere in between. They had offices in thirty-two states and the one I worked at was the only branch in Minnesota. Besides their main lines of financial and insurance services, they also offered product warranties, computer software, and multiple other miscellaneous products and services.

When friends and family have asked me what I did at ITU, it was kind of hard to explain. Sometimes I said I was a jack of all trades, master of none. Other times, I said that I wore many hats. A few coworkers called me “Mr. Nice Guy.” To Angela Engelbretsen, the “grandmother I never had” (even though she was barely old enough to be an older sister to me) in Accounting, I was a veritable saint, especially considering all the crap I’d put up with in the long run. She always quick with compliments!

As far as what my actual job was, I was the chief administrative clerk for the Insurance and Financial Services – Upper Midwest Division. I basically did all of the office work, the “behind the scenes” details for the six sales reps (one each for Minnesota, Wisconsin, Iowa, North Dakota, South Dakota and Michigan), the local level marketing consultant, and our regional sales manager. The Minnesota office was the only one in the Upper Midwest (except for a small billing and accounting office in Wausau, Wisconsin), so it made sense to base the reps for all of those states in one central location.

My main task every day was to log the sales data from each rep into the company’s database. Sometimes that involved deciphering some interesting chicken scratch scribbled by certain sales reps whose penmanship skills left a lot to be desired. After logging all of that information, I still had to (according to company policy) file the physical contracts in our file cabinets. I also had to scan and print each contract and save them in the respective file cabinets. I didn’t mind the tedious aspect of the job, although it made me think that for a company who emphasized the option of paperless billing to its customers, they sure killed a lot of trees!

About twenty years ago, the building was a warehouse and manufacturing facility for various automobile, truck, motorcycle and RV parts and accessories. It even had a small three-stall garage for repairs and maintenance for fleet vehicles, and had a two-stall car wash, before that part of the building was later torn down. It was part of a small national chain that went belly-up around the time of the dot-com bubble’s burst about ten years ago. When that business went under, ITU bought the building a few years later. I haven’t found anything remaining from that old parts franchise, but a few coworkers swore that the building was haunted by a couple of workers from that business. If you ever visit that building now, you may still find a stray desk or filing cabinet, although I imagine most of the building’s been vandalized or occupied by a stray homeless person or now since then. It’s been vacant for quite a while now. The last time I drove by there, it almost looked like a bomb had hit it, which in a way, I guess it kind of did!

Chapter 2

I started working at ITU about two and a half years ago. I’d just moved to Central Minnesota from Duluth after a nasty divorce. I still love my ex-wife Candace and will have some feelings for her, but she fell out of love with me while we were still married. Shit happens, I guess. She later married my old grade school buddy Greg Hansen. He has a good construction and remodeling business going in both Duluth and Two Harbors, so Candi can continue being a part-time substitute teacher and spend more time with our two boys Will and Austin.

When Candi first told me she had feelings for Greg, I blew up. We were at one of our favorite restaurants downtown, celebrating a rare night out without the kids when she dropped the bomb on me right after we’d finished the main course, and man did it hit me hard. I felt like I’d been kicked in the nuts with a sledgehammer! We’d been together for almost fifteen years and been married for ten, so of course I took the news pretty hard. I almost caused a scene at the restaurant, and narrowly avoided getting us kicked out. The manager of the restaurant was a friend of a coworker of mine at the time, so of course word got around town, and I had to lay low at work for about a week! My office door at the car lot remained closed most of the time I was at work, because it was the only way I could get any work done without some snarky comment by my less than sensitive coworkers.

The next weekend, I ran into Greg at a McDonald’s in Duluth, where I was taking the kids to lunch after treating them to an animated Disney matinee in town. He was there on a lunch break from one of his remodeling jobs with a couple of guys in his work crew. He made an effort to say hi and make some small talk, but because I had the boys with me, I couldn’t tell him what was really on my mind. I mentally pictured cursing him out, and then picking him up by his coveralls and tossing him head-first out of Mickey D’s. Thankfully I didn’t carry out that idea, or else I probably would’ve been arrested. Gee, that wouldn’t be traumatic for the kids now, would it?

Greg later sent me a couple of emails and a few odd texts, tiptoeing around the fact that he and Candi were an item, offering a few half-hearted apologies. He even offered to buy me a beer at one of the local bars we used to hang out at to make it up to me, but to me the damage was already done. I should have known something was up weeks earlier when he “unfriended” me on Facebook, but social media’s something I have a hard time getting into – my kids are better at that kind of stuff than I am, anyway, although I knew they were far too young to be monkeying with that stuff.

A few weeks later, I came home from a rather disappointing day at work to find Candi still in bed, nursing a hangover from a “girl’s night out” with her girlfriends the night before. While I was sitting on my side of the bed (the kids were still in school for a couple more hours), my foot landed on a piece of clothing under the bed. I kneeled down, and found a pair of boxers that weren’t my brand. Furious, I coerced Candi into revealing that Greg had slept with her a couple of days before when I was at work. Turns out, this wasn’t the first time either.

A couple of months before, when I took the kids to visit my folks in Lakeland, Florida during their school’s spring break, Candi stayed behind. She told me that she had some student evaluations to work on, and that she was going to spend some time organizing the spare room of our house that she’d been using as a home office. At the time, I didn’t think much of it, but lying there in bed nursing a hangover, Candi confessed that Greg had slept over all week that week until the kids and I returned. At that moment, I realized my marriage was over.

Things unraveled from there rather quickly – my marriage fell apart, not to mention my friendship with Greg. (His marriage ended soon after too, although he and his wife Sherri had been living apart for two years. They were in the same house, but slept in separate bedrooms. They had no kids, and his wife was as shocked as I was, so I guess I can’t feel too badly for him.) After I signed the divorce papers (we worked out an arrangement with our respective lawyers to share custody of the kids – they’d still live and go to school in Duluth and I could spend time with them on weekends), I decided that I had to get the hell out of town, not knowing when or if I’d ever return. I quit my job selling new and used cars at the Duluth Automart too. At that point in my life, I just wanted a new start.

After packing what was left of my life’s possessions after the divorce into a U-Haul truck, I decided to head to Autumn, MN because my old college roommate Ramon lived there. I hadn’t seen him in a long time, but he was the kind of good, reliable friend who understood exactly what I’d been going through, because he went through a bitter divorce himself a few years ago. He told me I could crash on his couch for a few days. He also told me about a job at UTI that he’d recommend me for. Candi used to give me grief constantly because I never finished college (I went to two semesters of general education classes at UMD but dropped out to spend time with my mom after she had a stroke), but I’ve been working at a lot of different jobs, ever since my dad had me start mowing my Grandma Hazel’s lawn during the summer I turned thirteen. Hence, the “jack of all trades, master of none” moniker.

At the time, I was also offered a job with another firm in town selling life and health insurance for Seventh National Trust. I’d just been selling insurance for MNWI Co. in Duluth for five years before I got into the auto industry, and I really had no interest in selling insurance again. It was easy money for me. I had a natural ability to sell, and I had built a good client base, but I really got bored with it. After all the turmoil in my life, I just wanted a fresh start. Looking back on how things all unfolded now, however, I kinda think that I made the wrong choice.

Bucky's Jobhunting Tips

Over the last four months, I've learned that looking for a new career is a lot different than it was just five years ago when I last looked for work. It seems like there are more and more job seekers applying for fewer positions than I've noticed when I last searched for a job about five years ago. Back then, I had lots of responses. In fact, I remember one week where I had seven interviews. This year, I've probably had about seven interviews all year! With the recession in mind, I decided that this was a great topic for my next blog post. Here's some constructive, practical advice for job hunters and possible employers. As always, your feedback is greatly appreciated!

Tips for Job seekers:

1. Set goals. With the extra free time I've had lately, I've found that it's easy to get distracted, especially when job hunting and working on resumes at home. A way to keep myself focused is to set goals, like applying for 5 jobs a week, for example. Another way to keep myself focused has been to physically remove myself from distractions at home by jobhunting at other sites, like the local library or workforce center. I've learned to really get in the mindset that job hunting is now my full-time job, at least until the next great career opportunity comes along.

2. Network, network, network. I've found that it's helpful to keep in touch with friends and acquaintances. There's no shame in letting them know that you're looking for work, because quite often your friends and former coworkers are quite sympathetic and receptive to your situation. A few of them may even refer you to good job opportunities! Social media networking on LinkedIn and even on Facebook apps like BranchOut are also good online networking options.

3. Keep the communication lines open. If there's a really good job opening that you've applied for or interviewed for, I strongly recommend following up with that employer. I keep a day planner and write down who I interviewed with and applied for and when to follow up with them. I usually follow up with a thank-you letter and/or email after an interview, and I would also recommend a follow-up call.

4. Stay positive. I know the job search can be frustrating, and it's very easy to get down on yourself, especially after a rejection letter finding out you didn't get the job you interviewed for, or just flat out hearing nothing after applying or interviewing. However, by keeping a positive attitude, I've told myself that if I didn't get a certain job, that just opens the door for other possible job opportunities. It's also helped me open my mind to look at other companies or fields that I might not have considered before. Positive self-talk is another good way to stay motivated. My motto during this experience has been "never give up," and it's a creed that I plan to stick with throughout.

5. Make some time for yourself. I know that job hunting can be a grind sometimes and it's not always easy to keep your hopes up, despite the positive self-talk that I just mentioned. That's why it's OK to make time for yourself sometimes. Before I lost my job, I already had plans to go to a couple of Twins games and rock concerts this summer, and I kept those plans - losing my job wasn't going to prevent me from having a little fun! Even just taking little breaks from the job search by taking a walk, watching a movie, reading a good book, listening to your favorite music or even lunch with friends can instantly improve your mood.

I also came up with a few helpful hints for employers, from the job seeker's point of view:

1. Keep the communication lines open. I've repeated this topic for the employers section of this blog, because when I've talked with other fellow job seekers about their searches, the most frustrating experience they've shared with me is the lack of follow up from employers after applying or an interview. I understand that employers don't physically have the time to follow up with every single applicant for every single position, but contacting candidates who've been interviewed for a particular position is another story. It can be very disheartening to put forth a great effort in applying and interviewing for a position that you know you can excel at, only to not hear from the people you interviewed with.

That's why I recommend that job seekers take the initiative to follow up themselves. In my opinion though, I strongly feel that interviewers should also follow up with every person they interview for a given position in a timely manner. I know that companies are often bogged down with dozens and dozens of applications and resumes and I don't expect them to follow up with each and every applicant, but if someone takes the time and effort to fill out their applications completely and promptly, asks good questions during the interview and is someone who could be a good fit for the job in question, it's well worth an employer's time to recognize that effort with a good followup call, email or letter. Keep the communication timely, too - if you tell a candidate they'll hear back from you in a week, then be sure to reply by then. If you offer to answer questions after an interview and a candidate calls with one, make time for them and answer their question while it's still fresh in both of your minds.

2. Keep communication personal. Another annoyance I've experienced after what I thought were good interview experiences has been to receive a form rejection letter or email. The worst one I received was when I was in college. I'd interviewed at a local company, and I'd thought the interview went well. Imagine my surprise a week later when I received a standard form rejection letter. To top it off, the human resources person at that company didn't even sign their name to the rejection letter. Instead, the salutation was "Sincerely, Human Resources" and the HR person signed the words "Human Resources" instead of their name to the rejection letter! I'd received form rejection letters before, but this one really stunk. It led me to believe that this was an impersonal company that I was better off not working for. I even toyed with the idea of sending them a form letter in reply, signed "Sincerely, Applicant" instead of using my name! Fortunately, after a few laughs, I thought better of that idea - no sense in burning bridges, right?

For the employer, I'd recommend a personal reply via phone, letter or email, which should thank the person for interviewing, and maybe even mention a few positive items from the interview. I've had the good fortune of interviewing for a couple of very good companies this year and although I didn't get the jobs, they were very prompt and personal with their replies, which made me feel that the effort I put forth to apply and interview them were well worth it. This type of positive feedback is something that makes me proud to refer job seeker friends to these companies, because the impression I received from them is that they are personable organizations who value their employees (and applicants)! I would also recommend these companies' products and services to family and friends because the impressions I received during these interviews is that they are reputable, trustworthy businesses.

3. Don't have an overly long list of job qualifications. When talking to other job seekers, some of them have mentioned that seeing a job posting with a long laundry list of qualifications and expectations can instantly discourage them from even applying for that job because they don't have all of the skills needed. I've seen some of these postings too, and they usually make me wonder how many of those required skills are really necessary. If they're all necessary, fine.

However, in my experience, that hasn't always been the case. Instead, I'd recommend listing only the key skills that are most important to the job being offered. If some of the skills required in a job posting aren't really necessary but fall in the "would like to have" category, perhaps the company should think about offering training, either on-the-job or offsite, for some of these skills. Personally, I don't have much experience with AS400, medical coding, or cloud computing, but if I was starting or considering a job that required those skills, I would take it upon myself to learn them, either on the job or on my own time.

Well, those are just a few observations from my job search. I'll try to update you on my progress in my job search, and if you are unemployed yourself, please feel free to let me know how you're job search is going. If you benefit from any of this advice above, then this blog post is a success. Stay positive, and realize that a good job is out there for you - I know mine's out there somewhere! Thanks and enjoy your day, everyone!

Nice Guys Finish Last

Well, another Minnesota Twins baseball season is finally over. Remember how the Twins went from last place in 1990 to first place and eventual World Series champs in 1991? Well, this time around, the Twins went from division champs in 2010 (the first MLB team to win their division, in fact, after playing a 163rd game for the division the previous 2 years) to WORST team in the American League this year with a 63-99 record, only ahead of the 1982 team that went 60-102 for the second-worst Twins team in their 51-year history in Minnesota. What the heck happened?

Well, there's several answers I can think of that caused their epic demise this year:

1. Injuries, injuries, injuries. From the position players in the Opening Day lineup, only 3B Danny Valencia avoided spending significant time on the disabled list. Notable omissions from the lineup on a regular basis include C Joe Mauer (what the heck really is "bilateral leg weakness" anyway?), 1B Justin Morneau (still suffering from concussion symptoms and other ailments), OF/DH Jason Kubel, 2B Alexi Casilla, CF Denard Span (also a concussion sufferer) and newly imported Japanese INF Tsuyoshi Nishioka.

2. Pitching. The Twins made a major mistake in not pursuing capable replacements when free-agent relievers Jesse Crain, Brian Fuentes and Matt Guerrier left after last season. Instead, we Twins fans were "treated" to the likes of Alex Burnett, Jim Hoey, Phil Dumatrait and Dusty Hughes, just to name a few of the lesser-known names in the Twins bullpen this year. We were also treated to down years by all of the starters, from ace Carl Pavano, Liriano, Brian Duensing, Nick Blackburn, Scott Baker and especially Kevin "I don't want to be here anymore" Slowey, who mailed in an 0-8 record with a 6.67 ERA this year.

3. A decimated farm system. I understand why Triple A Rochester's manager Tom Nieto was fired following consecutive 90-loss seasons, but their failure wasn't his alone. By making poor decisions (like trading young C Wilson Ramos to Washington for us to experience the misadventures of Matt Capps on the mound) and a lack of depth in the Twins' minor league system, the Twins front office played a big role in this year's disappointing collapse.

4. Poor free-agency decisions. Instead of keeping infielders Orlando Hudson and J.J. Hardy from last year's pennant winning club, this year the front office decided to jettison both players in favor of infrequently capable players like Alexi Casilla, Matt Tolbert, Luke "Skywalker" Hughes and the Japanese import Nishioka, who was signed to a 3-year contract and even admitted that based on his own poor play that he would have sent himself down to the minors this year. I think the Twins were expecting another Ichiro Suzuki, and instead got a Hideki Irabu.

5. Not playing the "Twins way." The thing that most clubs admired about the Twins while Tom Kelly was the manager was the "Twins way": timely hitting and good defense. In other words, doing the little things that help win ballgames. With the injuries and patchwork lineups this year, last year's AL Manager of the Year Ron Gardenhire was at times forced to put in players like Trevor Plouffe, Hughes and Tolbert who are not exactly known for their defense, as well as players like Rene Tosoni, Rene Rivera and Drew Butera who are not exactly known for their offense. The one thing that really bugged me about this year's team were the mental lapses some players had on offense, running the bases and on defense, which were not the same fundamentals that Kelly (who also helps out in spring training at times) preached for years.

6. A lack of conditioning. Entering the first year of a big contract, Joe Mauer had offseason surgery in December and he (and from the looks of it, many of Gardenhire's starters) took spring training as a kind of lackadaisical practice, going through the motions without putting much effort into it. And Joe wonders why his body wasn't ready in time for the regular season?!?

Some of the highlights this year included Liriano's no-hitter in Chicago, the team's touching tribute to Hall of Famer Harmon Killebrew after he lost his battle with cancer, former pitcher and Twins broadcaster Bert Blyleven's induction into the Hall of Fame, Jim Thome's 600th career home run, and closer Joe Nathan breaking the team's career saves mark.

In their second year at the beautiful Target Field, Twins fans expected more out of this team. In 2009, Mauer and Morneau combined to hit 58 home runs. This year, that same duo clubbed 7 round-trippers. I think it's safe to say that Mauer underperformed in the first year of his 8-year, $184 million contract. Mauer doesn't often come across as a leader and keeps to himself, but by signing that large of a contract, it's virtually implied that he be a much-needed leader on this team, whether by example on the field or in the clubhouse. The Twins also have some decisions on players like Michael Cuddyer, Kubel and Nathan. I think either Cuddyer or Kubel will stay but not both - I just don't think they can justify the expense for the production they've been giving the team lately.

In narrowly avoiding becoming the 2nd MLB with a payroll over $100 million (it came in at around $115 million this year) to lose 100 games, the Twins sputtered to the finish line in August and September, but gave significant playing time to rookies like Chris Parmalee (whose four homers for the big league club tied him for fifth on the team this year), and OF's Joe Benson and Ben Revere (whose "somersault triple" remains one of the funniest things I've ever seen in person at Target Field). There is some potential there, but the team really needs to take some drastic action to avoid becoming another team of nice guys who finish last again in 2012.

NOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO!!!

As my close friends and family know, I'm a huge Star Wars fan. I got the "Star Wars" bug at the age of 8, and it really hasn't let go since. I've seen all the movies dozens of times (I watch the original trilogy at least once a year), and I even went to the Star Wars exhibit at the MN Science Museum and Star Wars in concert in recent years.

With that being said, the original Star Wars trilogy are still some of my all-time favorite films. My favorite movie of all-time is "The Empire Strikes Back," which several critics have rated one of the best sequels of all-time too. When I heard that Star Wars creator George Lucas was tweaking some of these movies for the Blu-ray release, my first thought was "not again," remembering how he'd altered selected scenes for their intitial DVD release.

Some of the Blu-ray changes being made to these films include blinking, clicking Ewok eyes on "Return of the Jedi," some minor cosmetic changes in "A New Hope" and fixing the Wampa arm in the beginning of "The Empire Strikes Back." I'm OK with Yoda being changed from the Frank Oz puppet to a more in-sync CGI version in "The Phantom Menace," but the thought of Darth Vader crying "NOOOOOOOOOOO!!!" as he throws Emperor Palpatine down the Death Star shaft to save his son in "Return of the Jedi" rankles me. That scene was perfect the way it was - why, George, why, do you insist on changing things again? I know these films are his creation and his vision, and he has the right to do with them what he wants, but every time he tweaks one of them, I reflect back on Darth Vader's quote to Lando Calrissian during "The Empire Strikes Back": "I'm altering the deal. Pray I don't alter it any further!"

To me, the worst changes to the the last release were:

1. Greedo shooting first in the famous "A New Hope" cantina scene.

2. Replacing Sebastian Shaw with Hayden Christensen as Anakin Skywalker as Luke sees his father, Ben Kenobi & Yoda's ghostly images at the end of "Return of the Jedi."

3. Having Temeura Morrison (Jango Fett) replace the lines spoken by the original Boba Fett actor Jeremy Bulloch in "The Empire Strikes Back." I know Boba is Jango's clone, but I still liked Bulloch's voice in that role better.

4. Having a lame voice-over replace a line by James Earl Jones after the famous duel with Luke in Cloud City in "The Empire Strikes Back" and worse yet, recycling footage from "Return of the Jedi" to show Vader's shuttle landing in his Star Destroyer in a totally unnecessary added clip.

5. Removing the Ewok song at the end of "Return of the Jedi" and replacing it with a generic song being played while other planets celebrated the end of the Empire. Come on, I mean, that Ewok song was a single on the radio in 1983!

6. Replacing the original Sy Snootles and the Max Rebo song in "Return of the Jedi" with a worse song featuring a very fake-looking CGI alien.

I imagine at some point I'll end up buying the Blu-ray release because of the 40-plus deleted scenes and additional material, but with the knowledge that Lucas will release these films in 3-D beginning with "The Phantom Menace" next year (Jar-Jar Binks in 3-D? Who asked for that, really?) and the corresponding DVD or Blu-ray releases that will follow, I hope Mr. Lucas can understand why many diehard fans like myself wish he would stop tinkering with what were already great films, and just go ahead and release the original films on disc for us to enjoy unfiltered. Didn't he get the hint with the South Park parody? Enough already, George!

Carnival of Madness at the Minnesota State Fair

Until yesterday, I hadn't been to the MN State Fair in a few years, not since the company I worked for at the time had a booth in the Grandstand. I guess the long days working the booth kind of burned me out on the State Fair for a while, but when I heard the acts that would be at the Carnival of Madness tour this year, I decided to give the fair another try, and now I'm very glad that I did!

I did my homework and bought my fair and concert tickets early. I left home in plenty of time, and endured mild traffic congestion until I found an easily accessible park and ride lot. I got off the park and ride shuttle and got into the fair early yesterday afternoon, just in time to see part of a parade go by. I decided to visit a few buildings I hadn't been to before like the Creative Services building and the Arts building.

After admiring the work of several very talented Minnesota artists and grabbing a quick lunch, I headed down to the Grandstand, becoming part of the voluminous sea of people visiting the fair that day. I took my time viewing some of the many booths on both floors of the grandstand, until it was almost time for the show to start.

Shortly before 5 pm, I made my way to the concert general admission area in front of the large State Fair stage, just before the band Emphatic launched into a quick 20-minute set. The lead singer looked kind of like a young Sebastian Bach (original singer of the band Skid Row) and although I didn't know anything about this band, I liked their music enough to make a mental note to check out their debut CD Damage.

Following a quick set change, the next act, Adelitas Way, took the stage. Their energy was contagious, affecting concertgoers around me. I enjoyed hearing the radio singles "Sick" and "Invincible" and was ready for more music after their set - that is, right after a quick break for supper first!

I headed to the left side of the stage during the set change when I noticed a line forming by that side of the stage. I joined the growing line once I found out that fans were waiting for autographs from the members of the evening's headliners Theory of a Deadman. When my turn came to meet the band, I quickly greeted them, and complimented them on their new album. I told frontman Tyler Connolly that my favorite cut of The Truth Is... is the song "Bitch Came Back (it's the second song on The Truth Is..., which is not the nicest song in public, but one that I can't help rocking out to in the car)," to which he replied, "we'll have to play it for you tonight then!"

After the autograph/supper break, the pop/rock band My Darkest Days started their half-dozen song set. I had seen them open for Sevendust last fall at First Avenue, and their set wasn't much different from that first performance. I wasn't sure if My Darkest Days would be at this show, because I couldn't find their logo on the official Carnival of Madness website or the tour T-shirts. They kept the crowd entertained throughout their set, though closing with their biggest hit, "Porn Star Dancing."

When southern rockers Black Stone Cherry began their set, the crowd was really ready to rock! This was another band I'd heard play live before, when they also opened for Sevendust at the Myth three years ago while supporting their self-titled debut album. I enjoyed getting to hear newer songs like "Blind Man" and "Blame It On The Boom Boom." In fact, I was so enthralled in hearing the current single "White Trash Millionaire" and seeing lead guitarist Ben Wells play the voicebox and his cool white electric guitar with an Elvis portrait etched on it, that I almost missed seeing a couple of inebriated fans getting escorted out of the stadium by security officers. I also have to give frontman/guitarist Chris Robertson props for adhering to the fair's rule of no cursing, something which probably has to do with the fact that several Twin Cities news stations have booths very close to the Grandstand and have live broadcasts from the Fair every day. However, as the concert continued, I knew that the later acts, especially Theory of a Deadman, would quickly break that rule, and it didn't bother me one bit!

As the skies began to darken, Alter Bridge frontman Myles Kennedy took to the stage by himself as he sang and slowly played guitar for the brooding song "Slip To The Void," the first song on their third album AB III. Halfway through the song, the rest of the band joined him (who are also in the band Creed) for an uplifting start to their set. I'd watched Kennedy front Slash's solo band last year, but I had no idea just how great a guitar player he is. I admired his solos, especially the "shred-off" between Kennedy and lead guitarist Mark Tremonti after the single "Isolation," which led up to a rousing version of their hit single "Rise Today" to finish their set.

In case you didn't know, the members of Theory of a Deadman hail from Canada, a fact which was made obvious as the house lights went down and the song "Blame Canada" from the movie South Park: Bigger, Longer & Uncut piped through the speakers. Immediately afterwards, the band launched into the song "Gentleman" from their new album. Known for their ballads and male chauvinistic rock anthems, Theory played a mix of these songs to great crowd reaction. Connolly kept the crowd involved in the performance beginning with the second song "Got It Made" as he pulled out a FlipCam video camera to catch the audience while guitarists Dave Brenner and Dean Back encouraged fans to make as much noise as possible.

True to his word, Connolly and his bandmates played the guilty pleasure song "Bitch Came Back" during their set, as well as the songs "Easy To Love You," "Out of My Head," and the catchy single "Lowlife" from the new album during their set. Theory closed out the night with the big hits from the album Scars and Souvenirs "Hate My Life" and "Bad Girlfriend" just in time for the State Fair fireworks to begin.

I admired the fireworks as I slowly made my way to the exit. On the drive home last night, I reveled in the fact that I lucked out and had a perfect weather day, and got to hear almost four dozen excellent songs from six great modern rock bands (oh, and I later found out that the Twins also won, breaking their losing streak too) - what more could a guy want from a terrific summer day?

Half Way Jam 2011 or Up All Night, Sleep All Day

Well, it's been a while since I've had something to blog about, so here goes: I just went to the Half Way Jam outdoor classic rock festival in Royalton, MN last weekend, and I had a blast! I thought about going to this event last year, but I wasn't too thrilled with the lineup. This year's performers intrigued me though, so I thought I'd give it a try, and it turned out to be a lot of fun!

I decided not to go to the early events, and I was able to find the event parking right off of Highway 15 on Thursday night about 20 minutes before Quiet Riot was scheduled to perform on the main stage. There was plenty of room for people to mill about, buy souvenirs and refreshments, and catch up with friends. I moseyed over to the main stage area that Thursday night just in time for Quiet Riot to begin. I thought that they did a good job of warming up the crowd, and new singer Mark Huff screamed just as loud as the late Kevin DuBrow, especially during their hits "Cum On Feel the Noize" and "Bang Your Head (Metal Health)" to close out their set.

Amped up for more music, I then wandered over to the Rhino Deck side stage just to the left of the gates to hear the local Led Zeppelin tribute band Blimp. I had heard their band members Jeff Engholm, Mark Hasbrouck and Stacey Bauer play in local bands Collective Unconscious and the Stearns County Pachanga Society before, so I knew to expect a good set, but Bauer's powerful vocals channeling her inner Robert Plant took their songs to exciting heights as they partied through songs like "Black Dog" and "Rock and Roll" and took the audience on a soaring journey with the Zeppelin epic "Kashmir."

After watching Blimp's set, I then returned to my folding chair by the main stage to sit back and listen to Firehouse. I've seen Firehouse in concert twice before, once at the old Del-Win Entertainment Center in St. Joe about a decade ago, and more recently at the Paramount Theatre in downtown St. Cloud a couple of years ago, and their set was reminiscent of their last performance. I'm not a big fan of Firehouse, but I thought they did a good job, and kept the couples dancing with their wedding reception-ready ballads "Love of a Lifetime" and "When I Look Into Your Eyes." As the crowd left for the night, we were ushered out by the sounds of AC/DC's hit "Thunderstruck" being performed by tribute band T.N.T. on the Rhino Deck. I left the venue that night looking forward to even more rock the next night - turns out it got even better!

On Friday night, I got to Half Way Jam just as local grunge covers band Wicked Garden was treating eventgoers to a hearty rendition of the Stone Temple Pilots song "Plush." The first band on the main stage that night was the hair rockers Slaughter. I saw some friends in attendance as I walked to the barrier seperating the VIP area from the general admission crowd mulling around the stage. In the middle of their set, frontman Mark Slaughter walked around the crowd in the general admission aread while singing, so I and several people around me got to shake hands with him while enjoying the show. They closed out their set with the singles "Fly To The Angels" and "Up All Night (Sleep All Day)," leaving the crowd ready for more!

Between sets, I returned to the Rhino Deck to hear more of Wicked Garden's covers of songs by grunge-era artists Stone Temple Pilots, Pearl Jam, Nirvana, Soundgarden and Alice in Chains. I liked their covers of Nirvana's "Smells Like Teen Spirit" and Alice in Chain's "Bones," a song which signaled the next act on the main stage, rocker Lita Ford, was ready to begin.

I realized that quite a few people around me weren't even born when some of Lita's hits were on rock radio, but that didn't seem to mind as Lita and her band (including solo recording artist/producer Gary Hoey on guitar) kept the crowd rocking with her songs. I liked hearing some of the rarer tracks like"Back to the Cave" and "Falling In and Out of Love" and the fact that Lita was rather humble, apologizing to the crowd a couple of times on songs that she forgot she was supposed to start on guitar. Towards the end of her set, her keyboardist played the opening to the Ozzy Ozbourne single "Mr. Crowley," which led in to her famed duet with Ozzy "If I Close My Eyes Forever." Lita polished off her set with the hit song "Kiss Me Deadly." I was thoroughly impressed with her performance, and I liked the fact that she played lead or rhythm guitar on most of the songs in her set.

Of all the major acts in this year's Half Way Jam, the one I was looking forward to hearing the most was Cinderella, because they were the band that I knew the most songs of than all the others. Cinderella headlined on Friday night, and it was by far my favorite performance of the festival. Everyone in the band put forth their best efforts, especially frontman Tom Kiefer. In addition to singing all the vocals, he also played guitar with about a half-dozen different guitars, played keyboards on the first half of their anthem "Don't Know What You Got (Till It's Gone)," and even blasted a little saxophone on their encore closer "Shelter Me." Kiefer looked thoroughly worn out at the end of their set, and acknowledged that Minnesota "kicked his ass again." It looked like the band had as much fun as the audience did, so I'm sure they'll be back at Half Way Jam again.

On Saturday, I had just finished a nice meal with family in St. Cloud when it was time to "head back to the farm," as the Half Way Jam radio commercials say. I arrived just in time for Stephen Pearcy and his solo band perform most of the big hits from his band Ratt, who is currently on hiatus. I've been aware of Ratt ever since a friend started wearing her Ratt T-shirt to school in sixth grade, so I enjoyed listening to their classics "Back For More," "Way Cool Jr." and "Round and Round."

The second band on the main stage was Kix, a band I didn't know much about, but they put on a good show for the crowd as the rain began to fall. Frontman Steve Whiteman was a blond ball of energy, as he ran and twirled around the stage throughout their set. I appreciated his self-deprecating humor as he mockingly acknowledged that the song "Don't Close Your Eyes" was their hit. I had forgotten about their lesser-known songs like "Cold Shower" (which was prefaced by an amusing story from Steve about their exploits the previous night, an encounter that I won't reprint here) and "Blow My Fuse" so it was good to see a band having a great time and getting the audience primed for the final headliner of the evening.

After the set-change intermission and hearing a few songs by the Metallica tribute band "One" on the Rhino deck, it was time for the final headliner, Skid Row, to begin on the main stage. My first exposure to this band was listening to a friend's Youth Gone Wild cassette while a bunch of us were hanging out in a hotel room in what was still West Germany about a month after graduating high school. I haven't heard much from this band since they had their original singer Sebastian Bach in the early 90's, but their current singer, self-proclaimed redneck Johnny Solinger did a great job with their newer material as well as the band's greatest hits "18 and Life," "I Remember You" and "Monkey Business." I enjoyed the solos and one-offs by guitarists Dave Sabo and Scotti Hill during the extended bridge of "Monkey Business" and by the time the band finished their encore song "Youth Gone Wild," it was hard to believe this year's Half Way Jam was almost over - most of us still wanted more!

I did get to hear more Metallica cover songs by the tribute band One before I left that night, and was thoroughly tired by the time I rolled into bed early on Sunday morning. For a show like that, I think you have to follow Slaughter's mantra of "up all night, sleep all day." For my first Half Way Jam festival, I have to say I was impressed. The bands were great on the main and side stages, everything was well-organized, and I didn't see too many people get too rowdy or out of control. If next year's line-up is half as good as this year's was, I'm sure I'll be back next year to get my fix of some great hairball rock!

CD/DVD Review - Somewhere In The Stratosphere by Shinedown

I've been a fan of Shinedown's for a few years ago - I picked up their debut album Leave A Whisper not long after a friend of mine recommended the band after he saw them open for Van Halen in Fargo. I was fortunate enough to see them play live at the casino in Walker in 2009 as the band was in the middle of what would be an almost three-year-long tour in support of their third studio album Sound of Madness. I recently tracked down their new live album Somewhere in the Stratosphere, hoping the recording would capture some of the energetic performance I saw in person. I have to say after a couple of listens that I'm not disappointed!

The live record is a 2 CD/2 DVD recording of a pair of live concerts: an acoustic show in Kansas City, and an electric live concert in Washington State. The Washington State show has the band in a large auditorium, and features all of their hits plus the soundtrack songs "Her Name is Alice" and "Diamond Eyes (Boom Lay Boom Lay Boom)" that are also on the fan club edition of Sound of Madness. My only complaint on this CD/DVD is that sometimes guitarist Zach Myer's work gets lost at times, drowned out by the prerecorded strings and pyrotechnics, but overall it's a very good concert disc.

The acoustic show was part of the band's tour late last year, and adds additional musicians on percussion, slide guitar, vocals and horns. It takes some getting used to hearing frontman Brent Smith sing in different keys on songs like "45" and "If You Only Knew," but the DVD adds a VH1 Storyteller-like vibe as Smith sheds some light on inspiration for several songs in this concert. There's also a few fun cover songs in this performance: a spirited version of the Foo Fighters' "Times Like These," a cover of the Joe Cocker version of "With A Little Help From My Friends" with guest vocalist Will Hoge and some extra backing musicians, and of course their breakthrough hit cover of Lynyrd Skynyrd's "Simple Man."

While this isn't a perfect concert recording, I have to say it is a solid effort. I'd recommend it for anyone who's a Shinedown fan and/or has seen them live in concert. While this recording isn't easy to find (at least not in stores anyway, it's probably easier to find online), if you're in the mood for a couple of concert discs, it's well worth the effort.

The Kids Aren't Alright

I'm a little disturbed by the recent news of school incidents - two students bringing weapons to ROCORI Middle School in the past week, other reported incidents of threats, and recent suicides makes me think that being a teenager isn't quite what it was when I was in high school.

With the rise of social media and smartphones, bullies have more tools to use against their pawns, which I think makes it even worse for their victims in a much shorter period of time. I never quite understood why bullying was tolerated - I know I was bullied at times in school, and myself and the group of friends I hung around bullied some kids back in the day too. I'm not proud of those things, but it was something we grew out of. Besides, you never know - the person you bullied in school could one day be your boss at work!

The thing that disturbed me about the recent ROCORI incidents is that bullying has been and still is sometimes ignored by parents and school staff. I really think that the bullies' parents and school teachers and administrators need to get more involved and curtail or even stop bullying before it starts. It's just tragic to me that kids feel so lousy about themselves that they feel a need to strike back or hurt themselves or others. It's getting to a point where schools almost have to have metal detectors installed, but by instilling the proper ethics in kids, maybe schools can get to the point where kids never have to worry about their safety while going to get their education.

Unraveling?

Although I took the title for this blog entry from the first single off Sevendust's latest album Cold Day Memory, it's a moniker that could aptly fit the 2011 Minnesota Twins right now. With a last-place 6-12 record and league worsts in runs scored and home runs, it's not looking too good for the Twinkies right now!

Without the services of Mauer and new 2B Nishioka (both on the DL) and Morneau and Young currently batting the flu and other ailments, the everyday lineup has at times looked like they might have a tough time beating an amateur baseball team. Mauer's continued injuries makes me think that a corner infield or outfield spot is in his future.

With so many millionaire Twins struggling, I do admit that I feel kinda sorry for Joe Nathan. I think he rushed back from last year's Tommy John surgery before his arm strength was back to normal. It took some courage for him to admit that he wasn't at full strength and to voluntarily take himself out of the closer's role for now.

It is a long season, and I'm hoping for a stronger team than the one they're currently fielding by the time I get to a couple of games at Target Field this summer. With a payroll of over $100 million, and record crowds at the new ballpark, I think more than a few people share this same sentiment.

Giving Back

It's been a while since I've updated this blog, but on my furlough week from work I've had time to catch up on some things that I don't normally get to do, and updating this blog is one such thing. When thinking of what to write about, I started thinking about the meetings I've been involved in lately as part of the Cold Spring Friends of the Library, as we've met with local city council officers and members of the local DNR, Soil & Water Conservation District, Historical Society and Cold Spring Granite about the possibilities of grants towards a multipurpose building that would include a new library in town. I've been involved in this group for a few years now, and the main reason I do it is because it just feels good to give back to your community.

I've been using this library system since I started reading at age 3, and since my mom was already a member of the Friends group, it just seemed natural for me to get involved. I'm the one the group relies on to spread the word in local media outlets about our fund-raising projects, which I'm glad to do and help with as well. Our library has the 2nd highest circulation in the GRRL system, but is sorely in need of additional space for patrons and resource materials. We've been looking at possibilities of relocating into either a new or existing building, so it's exciting to finally pursue these grant opportunities that make our goal a lot closer to reality than we have been.

At a previous job, I was able to volunteer my time & talents to spreading the word about some great arts events all around us in Central Minnesota. When that opportunity ended, I still felt the need to volunteer, so I'm glad I got involved as a Friend of the Cold Spring Library. I would strongly recommend volunteering for anyone and everyone - just find a group that you enjoy and find out what it takes to volunteer or be a member. I'm sure you'll find the experiences very rewarding, plus you can feel good knowing you're helping your community.

Twins Winter Caravan: A Sure Sign of Spring!

It sure has been a long, trying winter for most of us. Sure, in Minnesota we haven't had as much snow as the East Coast, but with a few sub-zero spells and only a few days above freezing, it's been enough to make some of us yearn for spring. One sure sign for me that spring isn't too far away was the Twins Winter Caravan's stop at the Paramount Theatre in downtown St. Cloud last Wednesday.

I hadn't been to the caravan before, but when I heard that former pitching ace Jack Morris was attending, I found my old scorecard/program from a game I attended at the Metrodome in April 1991 that turned out to be Morris' 200th career major-league victory before going. After a brief ballgame-style meal of hot-dogs, chips and water, the 400 or so in attendance were ushered into the theater as a rebroadcast of Game 6 of the 1991 World Series played on the big screen.

Midway through the game on the screen, Twins broadcaster Kris Atteberry began the show. After a highlight film narrated by Twins TV broadcaster Dick Bremer, Attebery began announcing the evening's guests, which included front-office staff Dave St. Peter (who I'd also seen at the Phillips Eye Institute benefit in the Legends Club at Target Field that my cousin Libby sang at back in November) and Dave Anthony, as well as the Twins' minor league player of the year, OF Joe Benson, and their minor-league pitcher of the year Kyle Gibson, and of course current Twins broadcaster Jack Morris.

I enjoyed the Q&A session, as some of the younger members of the audience asked some good questions, like asking Morris how hard he can run and who was his best teammate. The evening finished with an autograph session, and after I finally got Morris to sign my program from his 200th win, I realized that pitchers and catchers report to Spring Training in about 3 weeks, so the caravan was a sure sign that spring's not so far away after all!