Neighborhood noise - music to my ears

 LAST SATURDAY I spent most of the afternoon puttering in the yard. It was still a bit chilly but reasonable. I got some yardwork done and started a fire with all the sticks and limbs downed over the winter.

A few houses down the alley live Jim and Donna. They have grandkids. They were over for Easter Saturday and I think there was an Easter egg hunt. There was lots of giggling and bellowing and excitement. At one point, little brother said, "I don't know HOW to battle!" 

"That's okay. We will teach you," said older sister, barely able to contain her laughter.

On the other side of the street, in the alley, three young boys were shooting hoops. They were out there all afternoon. Dribble dribble dribble SWOOSH. Or, dribble dribble dribble CLUNK and "you missed!"

When I stuck my head out in the early evening, they were still shooting.

All of these sounds are music to my ears. We live in a world of iPods and video games and you don't see kids running around just playing. It should happen more often.

Seems to me on Rue Mercier, Riverside Drive and Rosewood the Hart kids were always outside. I was smacking a hockey puck on a frozen driveway, pitching against the back of the garage wall or on a hunt for golf balls at the nearby golf course. I walked down railroad tracks and disappeared into woods and creeks and into off the trail hiding places. All you needed was imagination. The setting was always there.

More sounds of kids playing and laughing, please. It makes everything better.

 

 

Updated gig schedule

A lot of shows added since a month or so ago ....  There are some new Ridge View Winery in Camp Point dates added to this list, and a few others. As always, double check with the venue on the start times, but this should be accurate.

Date/Band/Venue

Saturday April 26: Travis Hoffman and Rodney Hart, Quincy Brewing Company, 7-9 p.m.

Saturday, May 3: Travis and Rodney, Dogwood Parade party at Lorenzo Bull House, Noon.

Saturday May 3: Prospect Road 2.0, Shorteez, Clayton Ill., 7:30 p.m.

Saturday May 10: Second Stringers, Mayfest, Quincy, 1 p.m.

Saturday May 17: The Whatevers (Allison and Rodney), Quincy Brewing Company, 7-9 p.m.

Saturday, May 24: Prospect Road 2.0, Down On The Corner, Marceline, Ill, 7 p.m.

Saturday, June 7: Whatevers, Private Party, Quincy

Sunday, June 8: Whatevers, Ridge View Winery, Camp Point Ill., 2-5 p.m.

Saturday June 28, Prospect Road, Sportsmen's, Mount Sterling Ill., 8 p.m.

Sunday, July 6: Travis and Rodney, Ridgeview Winery, Camp Point Ill., 2-5 p.m.

Jersey Boys, Quincy Community Theater: July 10-13, 17-20

Saturday July 28: Prospect Road, 19th Hole, Augusta Ill, 2 p.m.

Saturday Aug. 9:  Travis Hoffman and Rodney Hart, Quincy Brewing Company, 7-9 p.m.

Saturday Aug. 16, Whatevers, Pour Haus, Quincy, 7 p.m.

Saturday Aug 30: Prospect Road 2.0, Private Party, Quincy

Saturday, Sept. 6: The Whatevers (full band), Adams County Bicentennial party, Adams County Fairgrounds, more details TBA

Saturday Sept. 13: The Whatevers (Allison and Rodney),  Quincy Brewing Company, 7-9 p.m.

Saturday Sept. 27: The Whatevers, Private Party, Quincy 

Saturday Oct. 4: Prospect Road, Pour Haus, Quincy, 7 p.m.

Sunday Oct. 19: Whatevers, Ridgeview Winery, Camp Point Ill., 2-5 p.m.

Sunday Dec. 14: Travis and Rodney, Ridgeview Winery, Camp Point Ill., 2-5 p.m.

 

Clothes shopping made fun - really

  

What a fab find!

RECENTLY I SAW a post from a local band suggesting it was a good idea to "dress sharp" when playing local gigs.

HAHAHAHAHAH,

Since I can't look sharp, I don't worry about it. Most of my "gig" wardrobe is older than the Lab Brats at Blessing. Combined. And don't ask me to tuck in that shirt with bananas on it.

That's where it started, with the bananas shirt. Who knows where I got it. A week ago Alicia McCarl of Prospect Road said she loved the bananas shirt. So it got me thinking ... maybe I need to update the gig wardrobe.

Who am I kidding? I get chastised on a daily basis for wearing "blue on blue" and donning white socks with black sneakers. That's a bad thing? 

So I decided to update the gig wardrobe, whatever that means. I enlisted the fashionista of girl singers, the lovely Allison McElroy of The Whatevers, to help. "Yes! I love to thrift!" she said.

Thrift?

"We gotta check out the thrift stores," she said. 

"Agreed," I said. "I did not know 'thrift' is a verb."

So, Saturday afternoon, we embarked on a thrifting adventure. I hate shopping for clothes but Allison made it fun. She is very into the fashion thing and she often lets me know what she is wearing before we play a Whatevers gig.

"I'm wearing this and NO you can't wear that," is usually what she says.

Turns out the thrift stores didn't have much. I found a hat that says "Weight Watchers" on it, which makes no sense for me to have, so I got it. And a shirt with palm trees. But that's all we found

"I think we need to go to Kohl's," Allison said, referring to a local clothing store.

"Good idea," I said. "Let's hurry before the tariffs hit so I can still afford it."

Nope. Not gonna happen, girl singer.

This was a great idea. Kohls had tons of cheap shirts perfect for gigs. Allison even found one for herself with a slogan about Old Fashions on it. She loves Old Fashions. 

I found one with a ridiculous cat mosiac theme, another with Garfield the cat, a Pink Floyd Dark Side of the Moon shirt and a horrendously gaudy dress shirt with something leafy or with birds on leaves on it. Score!

 "That one with the cats is you," Allison said. "Coco will love it too."

We ended up laughing our way through Kohls the whole time and it was a blast. Afterwords we met up with Allison's husband, Ryan, and had ourselves a fine cigar at Lux Stogie. Yup. The girl singer is getting into cigars. I'm still pinching myself.

So now I'm set for a few gig debut "outfits" and very excited. Wait. What the heck is wrong with me? Did I just actually say that?

Ugh. Allison ... you are a bad, bad influence on me. Or a fashionable one, at least.

 

Redo

 SO THE BLOG domain expired a few weeks ago. Not good timing, with all kinds of things going on.

It's been reset.

- First of all, congrats Linda Moore on becoming the first woman mayor in Quincy. She is all fired up and ready to get to work. 

- The Jeff Vankanegan celebration at the Dock Sunday was a roaring success. It was just like falling off a bike playing again with Cheeseburgers John Hodge, Burt Shackleton, Brad Fletcher and Kirk Gribbler. Little Sister was amazing and thank you Eric McKay for the music and putting things together with Rollo Sound. Jeff was and is loved and missed.

- The spring and summer is getting booked up. Saturday is a big night at The Club Tavern with Prospect Road. I'll update the gig calendar in a few days. Let's rock!

- Congrats to Dr. Emily Hart's Florida Gators, the NCAA men's basketball champs. Emily says the campus has been going crazy and I bet there are some groggy students this morning. Undoubtedly the reason the Gators won was because they hired Dr. Hart as a professor. She's planning on teaching again next year, so Florida will likely repeat.

- Hopefully I'll be a little better in doing this blog regularly. Among the adventures coming up are a family wedding, the 10-year men's health medical update (ugh) and how to be nice to difficult people who are idiots. That last one will write itself. Stay tuned!

 

The mayor and public safety

WE ARE EIGHT days away.

I'm all in for Linda Moore. I'm all out and against the current mayor, especially when it comes to public safety.

It started when Bernie Vahlkamp was selected chief of the Quincy Fire Department. This was at the beginning of the current mayor's term. The current mayor didn't like Vahlkamp getting the job, and wasn't afraid to say so in public.

The current mayor wanted somebody else. The three-person Police and Fire Commission uses an exhaustive and comprehensive system to hire chiefs. The commission did its job. Suddenly, the mayor was angry. Lo and behold, two of the commissioners were fired (one illegally), despite many years of good service. Kerry Anders and Steve Meckes deserved better.

The current mayor wanted to get rid of the other commissioner, Barry Cheyne. But Barry screwed up. He was named the citizen of the year by the Quincy Service Club, a prestigious honor. Our mayor had no choice. He kept Barry on the commission. Thankfully the three people have sailed along and have simply done their jobs - congrats, Steve Salrin, on becoming the new fire chief. It was well deserved and the commission got it right.

Then there's the whole police chief debacle. I gotta be careful here and it's no secret Adam Yates is one of my best friends. But that whole thing was a sham and disgusting and I'm amazed there wasn't more blowback, especially after the mayor decided a Springfield attorney conduct an "investigation" into the police chief hiring process. Maybe there was blowback after needlessly spending a lot of money. Maybe there were other issues like the police union contract and the city health insurance not working. Maybe City Council should have had enough and given the mayor a vote of no confidence.

Wait. That DID happen. I almost forgot, sorry.

Hey mayor - just because you hear something coming from around the corner at the barbershop doesn't mean it's true.

Our mayor rigged the system so he could get his guy in as police chief. Thankfully this man turned the job down. I would love to get some honest answers why.

All we know is Adam Yates eventually did get the title of Chief. The mayor himself says Adam has done the job well. Sometimes the good guys do win and things work out.

A good mayor works things out with department heads and works with city council. No doubt that will get a hair easier now with two new faces on City Council. A good mayor encourages debate and discussion on Monday nights, but a good mayor works hard at getting people onboard and moving forward with what's best for the city.

That will happen if Linda Moore is elected mayor in eight days.

 

 

 

 

 

 

Crank it up!

 EVERY YEAR IT seems there's an idea about slowing down, not playing so much.

PFFFFFFFFFFTTTTT.

Here it is, the spring and summer into fall schedule. It will get changed and updated. The highlight is Jersey Boys at the Quincy Community Theatre in July. Monica Scholz is assembling another killer band and I'm already ready!

All times are also scheduled to change - check with the venue before you head out to make sure. 

Date/Band/Venue

Saturday March 29: Prospect Road 2.0, Down On the Corner, Marceline, Ill., 8 p.m.

Sunday April 6: The Cheeseburgers, Jeff Vankanegan celebration of life, The Dock, Quincy, Noon-5 p.m. OG Burgers play approximately 3 ish.

Saturday April 12: Prospect Road 2.0, The Club Tavern, Quincy, 8 p.m.

Saturday April 26: Travis Hoffman and Rodney Hart, Quincy Brewing Company, 6-9 p.m.

Saturday May 3: Prospect Road 2.0, Shorteez, Clayton Ill., 7:30 p.m.

Saturday May 10: Second Stringers, Mayfest, Quincy, 1 p.m.

Saturday May 17: The Whatevers (Allison and Rodney), Quincy Brewing Company, 6 p.m.

Saturday June 28, Prospect Road, Sportsmen's, Mount Sterling Ill., 8 p.m.

Jersey Boys, Quincy Community Theater: July 10-13, 17-20

Saturday July 28: Prospect Road, 19th Hole, Augusta Ill, 2 p.m.

Saturday Aug. 9:  Travis Hoffman and Rodney Hart, Quincy Brewing Company, 6 p.m.

Saturday Aug 30: Prospect Road 2.0, Private Party, Quincy

Saturday Sept. 13: The Whatevers (Allison and Rodney),  Quincy Brewing Company, 6 p.m.

Saturday Sept. 27: The Whatevers, Private Party, Quincy