My A to Z Themes in the past have covered a range of topics and for 2024 the theme is a personal retrospective that I call "I Coulda Been" which is in reference to my job and career arc over my lifetime. I'll be looking at all sorts of occupations that I have done or could have done. Maybe you've done some of these too!
Do you sometimes feel like we're in a calm before a storm? So much going on throughout the world that it seems like things are going to explode. And in the U.S. it's another presidential election so we're probably going to have a sort of a repeat of 2020 except bigger and more disruptive.
Oh well, whatever. Perhaps I'm delving into the realms of conspiracy so why don't I get back on track to the reality at hand, the thing that means the most to this blog at this time and place. Let me tell you the outcome of my most recent Battle.
Battle of the Bands Results
Rosewood Bitters
...was the name of the song as performed by the songwriter Michael Stanley alongside Joe Walsh's fine cover. I think the song fit Walsh's style perfectly, but like many of you my own preference was for Michael Stanley.
Okay, music lovers and all others--time for that fan favorite--->>>>
Battle of the Bands
Battle of the Bandsisthe blogging event started byFar Away Seriesand now hosted byStMcC Presents Battle of the Bands. This event happens each month on the 15th and on some there is also a Battle on the 1st of the month. My blog is one of those with a second Battle excepting over these summer months. The premise is simple: Listen to the songs presented below and then in the comments vote for your favorite and tell us why you liked it. Then visit the links listed near the bottom of this post for more Battle action.
Battle of the Booze
Thinking about joining in on this current alcohol themed band battle thing, a song long in my queue of someday songs immediately came to mind. I added "Rosewood Bitters" a couple years ago after hearing that its writer Michael Stanley Gee had died. The story I heard and song clip intrigued me because I really liked this song that I didn't recall ever having heard before from an artist I don't recollect. The only decent cover of the song was by Joe Walsh. For me that's a good enough Battle.
And I wanted to share the song if you'd never heard it before. So I hope you enjoy it. I did.
Time to Vote! I won't be bitter if you don't vote, but I do wish you would. In other words, which song version do you like best? Hopefully you have an opinion of some kind. You don't have to know about music to have an opinion since it all comes down to your own personal taste.
Please vote on your favorite by letting us know your choice in the comment section and tell us why you prefer the version you chose. Then after you've finished here, please visit the other blogs listed below who may or may not be participating this time around. And if you've put up your own BOTB contest let us know that as well so we can vote on yours. I don't know if anyone else will be doing a Battle this time around, but you can still check out these sites. Here are some other places where you might find BOTB posts: StMcC Presents Battle of the Bands 'Curious as a Cathy' Sound of One Hand Typing Jingle, Jangle, Jungle
Yeah, we're off to a start, my wife and I. Not a bad beginning to a new year and maybe totally appropriate...
Betty was already nursing a positive COVID reading prior to the Big Eve. On that celebrative evening I don't think my wife was drinking any alcohol. For lack of anything else, I filled a tall glass tumbler one third gin and the rest root beer. After my initial surprise as to how good it tasted, I reflected on the nature of the two drinks--juniper berries and some kind of aromatic roots--and it made sense that they would work well together.
At about 9 PM Betty headed up to bed and I was right behind her. The drink had really done me in. I was asleep before 9:30. However we didn't miss the arrival of the new year thanks to all those assholes around our neighborhood who shoot off car-alarm triggering big boom fireworks at regular intervals for a long time. I probably dozed off again by 12:30.
After a fitful sleep I awoke at daylight burning up. My wife checked my temperature. It was normal so she administered a COVID test (we had some on hand so might as well use them). I tested positive and did so for the next three days. I wasn't like dying sick, but it was more like I need a longer nap sick. Then it passed and now it's like maybe it didn't really happen.
Maybe it didn't...
Battle of the Bands Results
High and Low Low
Rather than being a lulu, my first Battle of the year was a rather lackluster event. No one seemed particularly enthused about either of my song picks. I liked them both but my favorite was definitely "Mt Whitney" which is the one that inspired the Battle in the first place. I think it's a lovely song and Palmyra does an excellent job with the back up vocals and instrumental backing.
Final Vote Tally
Palmyra 3 votes
My Jerusalem 7 votes
Next Battle on Monday January 15
Since Stephen T McCarthy and some others indicated that they were doing a mid-month Battle then so will I. Well, I probably would have done one anyway. See you then.
Greetings to 2024! What does your year ahead look like? Will you sink to new lows or reach your highest heights? I'm going to be a realistic optimist as always...
As for 2023 mine was a pretty good year. There was no sickness in our household and life went pretty smoothly for the most part. No major expenses and no devastating calamities. Calm before a storm? I hope not, but I'm ready for whatever gets dumped on us. Or whatever blesses us if that could be a thing in these times.
One of my highest highs of the preceding year was a wonderful vacation trip back east to visit family in Florida, New Jersey, and Tennessee. Everything went so smoothly and my wife and I had a great time everyplace we went. Since that trip started in mid-May and our return was in the second week of June, it was a nice way to kick off our summer which turned out to be a very pleasant and peaceful season. The year wrapped up with visits from family and good times in general. It was the kind of year that I wish every year could be like.
I can't say what the year 2024 will hold for us, but I hope it treats us all well. As of now I don't have any specific plans, but hopefully I will attack some of my dream projects with greater fervor. There is much that I need to finish as well as so much that I yet need to start. Hope the craziness that this year could be doesn't get in your way or mine. We've got things to do! Right?
So with all this in mind let me continue with my first blog post of this New Year...
January 3 question: Do you follow back your readers on BookBub or do you only follow back other authors?
You can answer this question on your own if you want to, but as for me I've got nothing regarding this. I'd never heard of BookBub until now and don't feel any great draw to look into it. I can't even keep up with posting on GoodReads or reading reviews others have put up. Life is too full!
Instead, I'm going to look at some of my own writing highs and lows of the past year and my hopes for the coming year. As I mentioned, on a personal level my year was pretty darn good, but not so much true for my writing and blogging.
My year started off with computer problems which greatly hindered my blogging activity. I still have not solved those problems, partly due to financial issues, but also a lack of initiative to do anything about this matter. I get by just using my wife's computer for the time being and finding other activities to occupy my time. To the detriment of my writerly life, those activities haven't so much involved blogging or writing.
However, on the up side, I've written some (what I think are) pretty good songs and have come up with some ideas that might have some real potential if I continue to pursue them. I completed another Blogging from A to Z this past April and plan to do it again this coming April. Hope you'll join us for that. While we're waiting for that April event to come, we've got some time for another...
Battle of the Bands
Battle of the Bandsisthe blogging event started byFar Away Seriesand now hosted byStMcC Presents Battle of the Bands. This event happens each month on the 15th and on some there is also a Battle on the 1st of the month. My blog is one of those with a second Battle excepting over these summer months. The premise is simple: Listen to the songs presented below and then in the comments vote for your favorite and tell us why you liked it. Then visit the links listed near the bottom of this post for more Battle action.
Highs and Lows
In my state of California we have plenty of highs and lows that we could bring up, but for this Battle I'm going to just stick with geography. When I was in elementary school in San Diego we were often reminded that Mt. Whitney was the highest point of the state. I've lived in California for near forty years now (between my childhood in San Diego and the past thirty plus years here in L.A.) and I've never been to Mt. Whitney. Nor have I been to the lowest point of Death Valley. Been kind of nearby, but always opted for Vegas instead. To be sure, my wife was having none of anything like Death Valley so that curtails any trip I'd be taking there with her.
Oh well, maybe I won't go to either place, but at least I've got a couple of songs about them. The first is by a prog folk trio I heard on the PBS show Song of the Mountains , which has inspired a few of my other Battles. The second was chosen from other songs with the same name that after listening to all of them I decided on the one that I enjoyed the most. Since both videos are live performances I think it also provides a nice contrast in similar formats. Please listen and decide on your favorite...
Time to Vote! Of these songs, for you, which is the high and the low. In other words, which song version do you like best? Hopefully you have an opinion of some kind. You don't have to know about music to have an opinion since it all comes down to your own personal taste.
Please vote on your favorite by letting us know your choice in the comment section and tell us why you prefer the version you chose. Then after you've finished here, please visit the other blogs listed below who may or may not be participating this time around. And if you've put up your own BOTB contest let us know that as well so we can vote on yours. I don't know if anyone else will be doing a Battle this time around, but you can still check out these sites. Here are some other places where you might find BOTB posts: StMcC Presents Battle of the Bands 'Curious as a Cathy' Sound of One Hand Typing Jingle, Jangle, Jungle
Hope your year starts off well and gets even better as it goes on. I'm not going to worry about what's going on. I'm just going to try to enjoy the ride as best as I can. What's the worst that could happen?
