I flipped through the 2004 Jewish Ad directory as I waited for my Transport this morning. In an ad, clear as day, was a party DJ calling himself DJ Jazzy Jeff. The funny thing is the fact that a year or so ago, I called myself DJ Jeff Jazzy to avoid confusion with the guy who works with Will Smith. Guess this guy had no such consideration...

I just saw a show of Jazz Classics on CoolTV.

I didn't recognize him at first, but as soon as he performed "Hidi-hidi-ho" I realized that this was Cab Calloway.

Funeral Home Sued Over Decomposing Body (From Rednova)

Like is the case often, I'm amazed at some of the lawsuits in the news...

I just changed over the Comment system on all my Blogs... to say that it led to strange temporary glitches in each one is an understatement!

One real negative for the entire system is that it no longer has 'noscript' tags. Hopefully, few folks who visit here have javascript turned off.

Well, the Jazzfest finished last night, and I only got to the first day.

I'm disappointed, but not completely. Yes I wish I was able to see more, but this was a day more than I've been to in 5 years. Besides: with all the people who attended, I wouldn't have been able to get around... so one day is a victory for me!

JamBase | Go See Live Music!

I haven't found the section yet, but there are reviews of the Jazzfest on it.

I purchased CoolTV for my grid yesterday: replaced a channel I never watched, A&E. Videotron's free viewing ended, and as I've said getting that station was a no-brainer for me.

It's a great time to be a Jazz fan in Montreal: I was just reading the program book for the Festival, and had it confirmed that we'll have a definite Jazz-themed radio station this fall. Because of some technical snafus, they couldn't debut during the festival.

So now we have one of the best Festivals in the world, I have CoolTV as a channel to choose on TV, and we'll have a radio station too... I'm in Paradise.

Jazz Fest - Day 1

They were still building things for the opening day. Johnny Clegg came on stage almost 40 minutes later. He seemed fairly disinterested in his performance, keeping his hands in his pockets for the most part until he had a guitar to play.

Even then, he and his band only performed 4 songs before they wrapped up - and they never even acknowledged Montreal.

I hope that isn't a sign of things to come. I'll next be back there Sunday.

There's a poster for Ray Charles. He opened the festival in 1980. That was the second one I believe.

Edit: Clegg was probably just doing a stage rehearsal for his big show in the evening, and Ray was the first performer at the first Festival.

I'm preparing for my trip to the Jazz Fest today. I got cleaned up, packed my bag, put on my first dose of sublock for the day... I even watched some CoolTV to get me in a Jazz mindset. I may be physically exhausted by the afternoon, but it'll be worth it!

It's official: I've reserved my transport for the opening day of the Montreal Jazzfest. Now, barring rain, I'll be there... even if it leaves me as a puddle.

I finally changed my air conditioner plug to a different socket than my computer, so I can have both on now instead of switching to the fan mode when I use my PC. No more concerns about power spikes! Words aren't enough to convey how good it is to now compute in a cooled room.

It's now 6 days before the Montreal International Jazz Festival... it being the 25^th anniversary, I'll be there if I have to be pushed around on a wheeled mattress... There's been a lot of press about the event, especially an indoor concert by Jazz guitarist Keith Jarrett. I'm not a real fan of guitar jazz, but I understand he hasn't performed live in several years... in major part due to health troubles. The indoor show I'll be sorry to miss will be a tribute to the late Ray Charles. Ray performed at the 'fest since its earliest days. Montreal has many special memories of him.

I've been watching CoolTV, the Canadian Jazz specialty TV channel, all day.

As if I needed more reason to add the channel to my grid after the free-view is over (already a given), they air a concert with Holly Cole, my favorite Jazz diva.

Not that in my case a hard sell is neccesary!

I watched some CoolTV this morning... a show called SmoothJazz TV. What freaked me out was when they called Sade a jazz singer. I never thought of her as one!

CNN.com - Noisy McCartney angers residents - May 13, 2004

Man, a former Beatle, and his neighbors get annoyed? Can you say, "Dumb."?

Comcast fires entire TechTV staff

It's not related to Jazz, but this channel was the major reason I came back to Videotron when I moved to my new apartment. Now, the big media monster bought the station - and in a major jackass move, hit it with a "slash and burn".

Why do I suspect the channel will now disappear?

The Friday Five has closed up shop! So much for padding out this blog with its memes...

CoolTV is playing in the background right now... with my PC now back from repair, I've been using it as much as possible. It's strange to use TV as a radio... but until we get a decent Jazz station in Montreal, that's the best I can do.

Videotron has given us over a month of free viewing on a lot of channels. They have a lot of new ones added to their selection, so they're hoping many of us will be tempted to sign up.

One of the new channels is one I mentioned here last year: CoolTV. Jazz-themed movies, biographies of current and former jazz performers, and extended video events.

It's pretty much a given I'll get this one, probably to replace Showcase, which I never watch.

Here in Canada we must now be the RIAA's worst nightmare: song downloads have been judged not copyright infringement.

From the latest Friday Five:

If you...

1. ...owned a restaurant, what kind of food would you serve?
Most likely my favorite cuisine, Mexican.

2. ...owned a small store, what kind of merchandise would you sell?
Predominantly, it would be a book store, with a large section devoted to roleplaying games.

3. ...wrote a book, what genre would it be?
That would be the genre that I currently try, science fiction.

4. ...ran a school, what would you teach?
That would be what I excelled in in high school, drama. I would also fill my geek quotient though, teaching computer classes, especially Web design.

5. ...recorded an album, what kind of music would be on it?
Considering my intended focus for this blog, saying the music would be jazz should come as no surprise. :)

Has it been over a month since updated this blog? Ouch!

Sorry about that. A lot of bad things have been happening in my life of late, including my apartment being robbed. This sapped me of a lot of energy to do anything else. Still, a month is a long time...

Slashdot | Adrian Lamo Pleads Guilty

Ultimately, his sentence will be 6-12 months... but that's not the point.

FACT: he never was a malicious hacker. He always turned i8n all results of his actions to the folks in charge, so they could improve things.

FACT: he turned himself in.

If he'd just let the company in question be, let malicious folks cause damage to customers, or even just forgot to ever mention his actions... he'd be scot free. Instead, he did everything for good reasons, turned himself in, and he gets punished.

How is this a good message?

I haven't really spoken of this since I put it up for 9-11, but with the earthquake tragedy in Iran, donating to the Red Cross is now even more important.

Through the Red Cross donations will actually get to the people. instead of to the corrupt governments.

I can empathize with people who lost over 100 relatives. Most Jews with family who survived the Holocaust can.

From Friday Five (appropriate for this time of year:

1. What was your biggest accomplishment this year?
I'd say that would be making the winner's circle for NaNoWriMo: I wrote the first draft of a 50,000 word novel in 30 days in Novenber.

2. What was your biggest disappointment?
That would be my two rejected short stories from anthology contests. Not the rejection letters themselves... they were friendly enough that I'm hopefully getting closer to an acceptance. I'm just disappointed that I didn't get published in a book this year.

3. What do you hope the new year brings?
Obviously that I get one of my attempts published this year.

4. Will you be making any New Year's resolutions? If yes, what will they be?
I haven't really made any since 1999, as I'm still keeping that resolution to track down high school contacts.

5. What are your plans for New Year's Eve?
I'll be going to my aunt in Vermont. This will be the last time before they start to fingerprint everyone at the border...

CNN.com - Freedom Tower to rise 1,776 feet from ashes - Dec. 19, 2003

Proof yet again of how people never learn from the past. This is a good way to deal with the destruction of a tall building and all the deaths: build another one as a target.

(Yes, I'm being fascetious.)

NotePAD Entry - 12/15/2003: "Julius Schwartz in hospital"

Julie is a legend in both the worlds of comics and science fiction.

I have a copy of his autobiography. I was hoping to get it signed soon. I hope he lives for me to get it.

A new meme, via Friday Five:

1. Do you enjoy the cold weather and snow for the holidays?
I don't enjoy cold weather at any time of the year actually.

2. What is your ideal holiday celebration? How, where, with whom would you celebrate to make things perfect?
For the past several years I've had the chance to celebrate various holidays at my aunt (mom's sister)'s home in Vermont. She's disappointed if she has less than 20 guests; I'm just happy when she gets to actually sit to enjoy the meal herself.

3. Do you do have any holiday traditions?
Every 'Hanemas' (Hanukkah/X-Mas) I spend the holiday eve/day at my sister's home, to watch my nephew and nieces open their gifts.

4. Do you do anything to help the needy?
I visit the Charity USA Website daily, to help add to its daily donations.

5. What one gift would you like for yourself?
A new printer. My current one is pretty disappointing.

Entertainment Story - canada.com network Diana Krall and Elvis Costello have possibly wed.

A few weeks ago, I heard Elvis on NPR playing jazz standards on piano. He was no slouch in that area either.

I think they make a good match.

Today marked the 23^rd anniversary of the murder of John Lennon.

One of my jazz radio streams plays a set of Beatles songs in jazz form.

John is gone, and George Harrison. 1/2 of the known Beatles. Add former members Stu Stucliffe and Pete Best, and really 2/3^rds of them have left this world. That's extremely sad.

While writing my NaNo, I've been listening to Jazz radio streams through iTunes, as I mentioned in my last post.

(If you'd like to know about my progress in the project, I've often spoken about it here.)

One of the stations, World Jazz Federation Radio is actually my first opportunity to hear sattelite radio.

If this is an example of the medium, I'm not impressed on 3 separate days, I heard the exact same program broadcast - and multiple times in a row!

Yes, we need better alternatives to commercial radio - but this doesn't fit my definition of "better".

I've been using the one feature of iTunes that we can use here in Canada (the MP3 jukebox feature also works, but in this I mean the one different from my other audio apps): streaming radio (OK, Radio Free Virgin does that too... but here I can actually choose radio stations; RFV offers channels that overtime repeat themselves frequently). Mostly I've been listening to the Jazz ones. I know: big surprise.

One thing that bothers me though, is how many of them have fund drives like the PBS stations. It bugs me in that you end up hearing more pledge-begs than the actual music they hope you'll support.

I've spoken here before - MANY times - about my views on the whole MP3 and song-swapping thing.

Well, I now have two programs on my PC, both that allow the 99-cent song downloads. I'm eager to do the right thing and help artists to make some lucre back on their works...

Only problem: neither program (iTunes and MusicMatch Jukebox) are available for Canadian users.

So much for doing the right thing...

I've been seeing ads for a new digital TV channel called Cool TV. Classic musicals, with legendary jazz musicians to close the night.

The channel isn't yet offered on my digital service, but once it is, I'll probably change one of my other choices to get it.

Modern Pulp.com

As a pulp fiction and comic fan, I found this site worth mentioning.

Kansas Public Radio

I've been meaning to track down NPR streams for a while now. This one offers some fantastic jazz programs on weeknights. I learned tonight that they also have an excellent one for Broadway music too.

KCLU Public Radio

Jazz and NPR. A great combo.

This week's Friday Five touches on several themes I've covered in this blog for a long time:

1. Who is your favorite singer/musician? Why?
Overall, my favorite is Billy Joel. His songs have always told stories that resonate with me.

I still remember listening to the Glass Houses album over and over on a car trip to Florida when I was younger.

In Jazz, I've been a huge fan of Holly Cole. Her haunting song styling hypnotized me years ago. Ironic, since one of the songs she's well-known for is a cover of Trust in Me from the Disney film The Jungle Book - a song sung by the snake character as it tries to use its hypnotic powers.

2. What one singer/musician can you not stand? Why?
I've never been able to get into Diana Krall. Maybe because I'm a fan of Holly, granted - but I listened to one of Diana's albums and was bored out of my mind.

Outside of Jazz, I can't stand Eminem. He comes across as a jerk, and his voice is one that gets on my nerves the moment he performs.

3. If your favorite singer wasn't in the music business, do you think you would still like him/her as a person?
Billy seems in interviews to be a cool guy. I'd still like him if I had the chance to meet him.

4. Have you been to any concerts? If yes, who put on the best show?
Let me see:

Cindy Lauper put on a very fun show. This was in the 1980s, during the height of her popularity.
Julian Lennon I saw a few months later. MAJOR snore fest.
The Jackson Family I can't remember ever wishing such hurt to Michael. The show was great, but he was still a freak back then.
Huey Lewis and the News was another fun show.
U2 during their Joshua Tree tour. That was a very high energy concert.
Whitney Houston was fantastic musically, but she came close to topping Diana Ross in insincerity. The difference was that Whitney did sound bored.
ZZ Top was fun for all the trademark spots we knew, but their show just felt lacking in many ways.

The best concert to me: Styx a summer earlier. They had a huge library of songs, and I'm a huge mark for harmonies. Plus, when they praised Montreal, said it was special to them we knew they meant it; ours was the city where they first got their big break.

5. What are your thoughts on downloading free music online vs. purchasing albums? Do you feel the RIAA is right in its pursuit to stop people from dowloading free music?
Why stuff like Kazaa and the P2P era became so popular was that 20 years after the introduction of the CD the cost of one still didn't go down. It's near 20 bucks to buy a disc where you may like 2-3 songs. Listeners got fed up with that expense, and record industry greed.

I think the RIAA has gone too far in their moves. Like David Bowie said: "You don't sue your customers." With over 63 million potential buyers, the music industry will take a huge hit if a large enough number of them get angry enough to stop buying anything - and all the RIAA is doing is turning these folks against them.

The Apple I-Tunes store has proven what should be done. Not lawsuits, just having people pay for what they want.

look! cute little kittens! blogjam random kitten generator

Since I'm such a cat lover, this site had me cooing over photos repeatedly.

This week's Friday Five:

1. Is the name you have now the same name that's on your birth certificate? If not, what's changed?
It remains the same, although my full name of Jeffrey I usually shorten to Jeff.

2. If you could change your name (first, middle and/or last), what would it be?
I would take my original middle name of Alan, as I'm the only person in my group of siblings not to have one.

3. Why were you named what you were? (Is there a story behind it? Who specifically was responsible for naming you?)
I'm named Jeffrey from my zeide's name Jack. In our Jewish traditions, childrens' names come from those of deceased family or friends, to honor their memory.

My non-existent middle name has a story:

I was supposed to have Alan initially. I have a nasty aunt who made a big stink that it was the name she intended for her son. I've come to the conclusion that this aunt is bi-polar. It's the only reason that makes sense for her always being so antagonistic to me. That, and she's always been competitive; I was the firstborn, and not to her, so she always treated me and anything about me badly.

Long story short, she ended up giving her son the middle name Ian. I think she just wanted that extra small victory.

4. Are there any names you really hate or love? What are they and why?
I've always been partial to the names Amanda for a girl (also the name of one of my nieces), and Jake for a boy.

5. Is the analysis of your name at kabalarians.com / triggur.org / astroexpert accurate? How or how isn't it?
My analysis at kabalarians was fairly on the mark. It gives the image of a warm, caring and artistic person.

Triggur is way off the mark. Mind you, it aims at a very dark, negative description anyway.

Astroexpert was hard to get through to an answer, but this part fits me to a 'T':

The native will be of intellectual kind and his mind will be ever active and sharp. He will be restless, versatile and inclined to have changes often. He will be much interested in reading and writing and may develop special interest in a few subjects.

The native will be known for his wit, logic and intelligence. The native will quickly learn new things. He has the ability to do a task with great skill and grace. The native will prefer company of learned and wise persons.

Well, 9-11 wasn't as difficult to get through this year - although the fact that it was dealt with so off-the-cuff by many, only two years past, disturbs me.

- Oh: I had the casualty numbers much higher than they really were... there were nearly 3100 lives lost, not 8000. Still, anything over 0 is still too much to me.

It's now the eve of the 2^nd anniversary of 9-11... I suspect it will be a very emotional day for me.

I couldn't help but find it "convenient" that a new tape of Osama bin Laden was "discovered" just on the eve of that horrible day.

Regardless of my feelings about G.W. Bush (you'd have to be hiding under a rock to miss them), the fact remains: this is a mmnan who orchestrated the murder of nearly 8000 innocent lives, under a foolish belief that this was a choice that a higher power wanted. To him, these weren't people, just means to an end.

I don't know if he's actually alive, or if his image is being used by other jackals. Regardless, these are evil men, and they have to be found and brought to a justice they deserve.

CNN.com - Bush to ask billions more for Iraq - Sep. 7, 2003

When 'Dubya' was named President (I don't say elected; the popular vote was won by Gore) my words in this blog were:

I hope we live through this mistake. - or words to that effect.

Now, while the American economy is in the dumps, what does he do? Ask for more money than what was originally figured.

The country will ultimately be one of the worst off economically in the world... but hey, we'll have a pretense of terrorism squashed, huh? Neither Osama bin Laden or Saddaam Hussein have been caught yet (nearly 2 years since 9-11 too), but let's not mention those things...

Sad. Very sad.

CNN.com - Ugandan dictator Idi Amin dies - Aug. 16, 2003

Is anyone actually sad for this? He was one of the bloodiest dictators of our times.

Now, if only Osama bin Laden and Saddam Hussein obituaries were posted too...

CNN.com - Actor-dancer Gregory Hines dead at 57 - Aug. 10, 2003

Another part of my youth gone way too young.

Peter's Place Of Freelance Journalism

As a writer, I can't support such reference sites enough.

CNN.com - Gary Coleman on California ballot - Aug. 6, 2003

OK... with comedians Ghallager and D.L. Hugelly in the running as well and Arnie... it has officially become the most bizarre election in North America.

CNN.com - Schwarzenegger announces bid for governor - Aug. 6, 2003

Could Arnie follow in the footsteps of Clint Eastwood here?

Original Cartoons and Games by Camp Chaos!

Most of the toons here (and the language) are very adult in nature... however many of the anti-Mettalica and Napster toons are here, and they are pretty funny.

CNN.com - Bush uncertain about gay marriage ban - Jul. 2, 2003

Nothing like flip-flopping views from "Dubya"reported on the same day. Well, the stories were 28 days apart, but I read them on the same day. 28 days to give opposite views; another strike against Bush's presidency.

I'm hetro, but some of my friends are gay. I'm sick of this BS against their happiness.

CNN.com - Bush wants marriage reserved for heterosexuals - Jul. 30, 2003

He says he wants the USA to be a "welcoming country", but also wants to ban homosexuals from marriage.

Can you say hypocrite?

You'll find a new addition to this blog now: a Creative Commons license.

I'm not 100% sold on it's validity, but I saw Leo Laporte talk of it on Call for Help today. I wanted to protect my words.

Note that all copyrights to other people's works revert to them.

There was a drawback to republishing my archives, but a rather small one... the original site designs were lost. Not a big thing: I'll make a new page to show the warts of this blog's genesis in thumbnail images.

I finally succeeded in republishing my archives so that they were readable!

About time. 3 years worth of material to re-code would have been exhausting work.

Once again, a Friday Five (a day late), that interested me:

1. If your life were a movie, what would the title be?
Hmm... the filmmaker in me comes out... I'd say I Get Up Again.

2. What songs would be on the soundtrack?
Obviously Tubthumper by Chumbawumba, the title track... also Destiny's Child Survivor, Kate Bush / Peter Gabriel Don't Give Up, Queen Show Must Go On... I have to think of the others a bit. I'd dream of a musical score by John Williams, but he generally does bigger epic film scores.

3. Would it be a live-action film or animated? Why?
Live-action. This would be a story requiring real feelings, real emotional depth... animation would distance viewers from that a bit.

4. Casting: who would play you, members of your family, friends, etc?
Let me see... I'd cast Johnny Depp in my role, because he's proven to be fantastic in such complex roles. As the parents... if Annette O'Toole were a little more mature, I'd cast her as mom... maybe Diane Wiest as mom, Tommy Lee Jones as dad, Winona Ryder and Brittany Murphy as my sisters.

(I'm basing that by fitting cast to their age ranges, nothing else.)

As my best friends, I'd say Sean Astin to play Pat, Michael Rosenbaum (with hair grown in) as Mike.

5. Describe the movie preview/trailer.
(Show my character, getting a University degree)

VOICE OVER: He had the brains.

(Cut to me performing voices in a sound lab for cartoons, mixed with stage performances singing.)

VOICE OVER: He had the talent.

(Cut to a doctor's office. Mom and dad are seated with me. My right arm appears "off". The doctor is speaking to us.)

V.O.: Then, life tossed in a roadblock.

DOCTOR: You have Multiple Sclerosis.

(Cut to a montage of scenes from the film: me going through a range of emotions, learning of the suicide of a high school friend who also had MS, shots of me reading and writing, heated talks with Pat and Mike on the road in a car.)

V.O.: Follow an emotional journey of a man forced to redefine his life, to come to grips with the worst, finding the strength to go on and live.

(Close with a scene of me walking on with Canada Crutches for support. My face shows both determination and peace. The title appears on screen. The title song by Chumbawamba is playing. The announcer says the title.)

V.O.: I Get Up Again.

This week's Friday Five:

1. Do you remember your first best friend? Who was it?
That's a tough question... I was only 7 when we moved from Chomedy. I remember being friends with twin brothers, but I don't remember their names.

2. Are you still in touch with this person?
As my lack of name memory shows, no.

3. Do you have a current close friend?
There's a guy I still consider my closest friend, but I haven't seen him a lot in the past few years. Only once every few months or so.

4. How did you become friends with this person?
We met through Comicopia, the fanzine I founded 13 years ago. We learned we were born the same day, the same year, just hours apart and on different sides of Montreal. We've often referred to ourselves (and been called such by others) as Astral Twins.

5. Is there a friend from your past that you wish you were still in contact with? Why?
Actually it's three people - my friends from High School that were my clique (actually, I think we were four). I saw them all briefly once or twice years ago, but we never really kept in touch. I'd like to catch up with them.

Damn. I heard on the radio today that the Iranian co-joined by the head twins who'd tried surgery to separate them died.

They had stated they'd rather die than continue life so joined, but it's still sad news.

Well, it's official: thanks to the high heat and planning, I've missed my 3^rd Montreal Jazz Festival in a row. Bah.

I spent it all listening to jazz radio on a TV satellite station instead.

No doubt about it: come hell or high water, I won't miss it next year. It will be the 25^th anniversary festival. Such an historic event I have to be a part of.

Buddy Ebsen, who played Jed on The Beverly Hillbillies died during last evening.

On the 26^th I posted about him going into hospital, and hoped he'd pull through. Looks like my hopes were for nought. sigh.

I'm such a long-standing (and proud) comic-book nut... I just read the latest issue of Amazing Spider-Man. Spidey gains a huge sum of money from a slimy mobster he was a bodyguard for (really, just there to stop the story's villain from killing the mobster's daughter, an innocent).

At the end of the issue we learn what he spent the money on: he puts up a plaque that reads "Future site of the Gwen Stacy memorial library".

This is really a note for those of us who were readers in the 1970s. We know the significance of Gwen - and were moved by it.

Today is Canada Day, my country's birthday...

Considering that I don't drink and I'm already pretty much off all the time, another day off doesn't really matter to me.

Tomorrow will potentially be a tense day in Montreal: the artificially created moving day in the city. I managed to avoid it last year, and I'm glad I don't have to worry about it this year either!

CNN.com - Legendary actress Katharine Hepburn dies - Jun. 30, 2003

She was one of the last remaining people from "old Hollywood", a classic and classy actress. She was in many of the most memorable films I saw in film school.

She'll be deeply missed - by many people, but by me especially.

CNN.com - Country singer turns to jazz - Jun. 29, 2003

The new Blogger works for the BlogThis! link!

This doesn't sound like the gag from Spinal Tap fortunately... (the group calls their latest ramblings jazz)

Finally. FINALLY!

I fixed up the template for this blog last night. All it took was moving the style sheet code a line, and my problem with posts shrinking each time was solved.

Now to see if I can fix the archives as well.

Buddy Ebsen the actor who played Jed Clampett on The Beverly Hillbillies, just went into hospital from an illness.

To be honest, I didn't even realize he was still alive. It turns out that he's the incredible age of 95.

We can hope that like Bob Hope, he makes it to 100.

How's this for hypocrisy:

"Comical Ali", the enthusiastic media rep for Saddam Hussein who always denied the regime was in trouble, was captured.

He was found watching sattelite TV, something Saddam had banned.

Dumb Warnings

Some of these attempts at "covering your backside against lawsuits" are just too funny for words. Mine, at least. You have to see them yourself.

No More AOL CDs!

I've gotten about 8 of them in my mail the past year alone...

I don't need that many drink coasters, so I'm mailing them here.

The Montreal Jazz Festival starts June 26^th this year. That's next Thursday.

I'm hoping to try a trip or two to it this year. In a way, this will be a trial run for using my wheelchair at WorldCon...

"He was the John Lennon of newsmen."

These words by Pat O'Brien on tonight's Access Hollywood may have been a very apt way to describe legendary David Brinkley's role in life. He was 82 years old, and next to Walter Cronkite a national treasure I'll sorely miss.

I also leaned today that another legend, Gregory Peck, died in his sleep yesterday at 87. Only a few days after his lawyer role in the film To Kill a Mockingbird was voted number one in the AFI Top Heroes of Cinema.

The NBA Finals are actually interesting this year; it isn't a case of the overpowering Lakers (the Bulls before them) and the team they dominate. This makes the second year that the New Jersey Nets are there, but we get to see them against the San Jose Spurs this time.

I'm looking forward to an actual challenging series this year!

How out of it do I feel about this:

Justin Hansen, the drummer from the group behind the annoying song M'bop, has not only been married now for a year, but is also the father to a 7-month old child. Oy...

This didn't seem appropriate to print yesterday, but I feel I have to speak out:

All of this supposed patriotic zeal in the US, booing the Dixie Chicks just because lead singer Nathalie Mayne spoke out on "president" Bush? Grow up people!

Last I heard, Freedom of Speech was a right in America. Now people are giving them grief because they actually used it. To me, that's really pathetic.

37th Montreux Jazz Festival

Seems like the Montreal Jazz Festival isn't the only one to deviate to other musical styles. Jamiroquai?

Diana Krall Already At Work On Next CD

Personally, I'm not a fan of hers, but she has won many accolades of late (Grammy, Juno), and General Motors has really pushed a series of ads with her... I guess I have to grudgingly accept her as one of ours.

We had hot water again this evening. The city turned it off since Tuesday.

That meant my first shower in 3 days. Words can't adequately express how good it felt!

It's been far too long that I haven't been updating this blog. Time to change that.

I think that in trying to post mostly jazz-related content here, I may have limited it a bit. I mixed in many other things before, and it resulted in more frequent postings. So, I'm returning to that.

This week's Friday Five:

1. Would you consider yourself an organized person? Why or why not?
I try to be, but there's always room for improvement.

2. Do you keep some type of planner, organizer, calendar, etc. with you, and do you use it regularly?
I used to go with a manual paper organizer, but as writing by hand became more difficult I migrated to using Outlook on my PC.

3. Would you say that your desk is organized right now?
Far from it! My desk is a mess.

4. Do you alphabetize CDs, books, and DVDs, or does it not matter?
The most I've done here is to group CDs by the same artist together.

5. What's the hardest thing you've ever had to organize?
Just organizing unpacking in a new apartment. Almost a year later now, and I still have a lot to do.

I can't believe how much time has passed since I last posted here!

Musically, I've been following this year's American Idol, just like last year. It's obssession enough that I've been missing the final episodes of Buffy the Vampire Slayer for it. Those I'll likely be able to see in re-runs.

This is a few days late, but here's this week's Friday Five:

1. Who is your favorite celebrity?
Since I mentioned him in the last quiz, this should come as no surprise: Billy Joel.

2. Who is your least favorite?
Least favorite would either be Tom Green or Geraldo Riviera. Green because he's possibly the least funny comedian, Geraldo because he always does dumb things, often that put others at risk, and tries to claim they're for the public good.

3. Have you ever met or seen any celebrities in real life?
I met Doctor Demento and "Weird" Al Yankovitch when they came to the Just for Laughs festival in Montreal in the late 1980s. I even have autographs from them.

4. Would you want to be famous? Why or why not?
Not really. With the lack of privacy that comes with fame, I'd probably go crazy.

5. If you had to trade places with a celebrity for a day, who would you choose and why?
If I had to, I'd love to have been Charlton Heston, just to meet some of the other great figures he's known.

From the Friday Five:

1. What was the first band you saw in concert?
The first solo act I saw in concert was Cindy Lauper. I think the first group I saw was Huey Lewis and the News.

2. Who is your favorite artist/band now?
That's a mix. In jazz, the Marsallis Family have really been capturing my interest. In other genres, Moxy Fruvous are a perennial favorite for me. Billy Joel is my favorite solo performer.

3. What's your favorite song?
Holly Cole's version of I can see clearly now. Actually, pretty much anything she sings.

4. If you could play any instrument, what would it be?
That would be the saxaphone.

5. If you could meet any musical icon (past or present), who would it be and why?
No-brainer here! Billy Joel again. Every interview of his that I've heard he sounds like a fun person to talk with.

I realized the date... it's only two months away from the Montreal International Jazz Festival! I'm hoping to actually attend it this year. The high heat and lack of courteousness in attendees to folks with canes or what-not has kept me away... but a fellow physio participant has been going for years even with such problems. That encourages me to try.

Legal MP3 Downloads

This site offers a good selection of jazz MP3s.

Fateback was down for a while... so even though I've been updating since the 5th, nobody got to see it. Sorry.

Cindy Lauper's 2-part "Goonies" video (from i-mockery.com).

Very sarcastic, but any reminiscence about some of what I loved in the 1980s is cool to me.

I haven't posted anything here in over a month? Ack! I'll try to get back on track. Maybe trying to limit my subject matter here is part of the cause...

Nora Jones was announced as a headliner at the 2003 Montreal Jazz Fest. She apparently played at last year's shows; after winning all those Grammys, getting her to perform now is a real coup, apparently.

Outside of her one hit song though, I don't know anything of her music. Years ago, I suffered through a Julian Lennon concert in town for the same reasons. Not a situation I want to repeat!

The vigil is over. Charlie Biddle died last night.

I was never really a fan of his music - but then again, jazz bass doesn't tend to be showy - however we can't in the least discount his contributions to the jazz scene in Montreal.

Cloned Baby Case Ends up in Court

And the undeserved attention continues...

It just came to me: it has been a month since Eve, the supposed first cloned child, was born. If other scientists were provided with data on her, we never heard about it.

Can you say hoax? I guess it was after all.

A Montreal jazz legend is really in bad shape: Charlie Biddle has cancer.

Charlie is a jazz basist, but his contribution to the Montreal jazz scene is much more: he's the owner of Biddles, a rib restaurant downtown that often has live jam sessions. He was also a pioneer of the Montreal Jazz Festival. He opened the first one 25 years ago, and he's always been a major supporter.

The latest Friday Five:

1. Where do you currently work?

At home. I'm a freelancer.

2. How many other jobs have you had and where?

Let's see... if I count a summer job each time, I've had 10 altogether.

3. What do you like best about your job?

I set my own hours and I don't have to worry about dress codes.

4. What do you like least about your job?

No regular paycheques.

5. What is your dream job?

Having a freelance writing gig become a full-time position.

The Return of the King Protest

This site states clearly that it's a parody of the Two Towers Protest one... it did crack me up.

Dutch lesbian 'has clone baby 2'

With this, there are now two unproven claims, and with this one it seems more a circus act the Raelians are making. Why should the fact the woman is a lesbian even matter?

Vatican slams 'brutal' clone claim

I can't really criticize the Vatican for this. If the Raelians' claim is true, then they performed what isn't a perfected process on an innocent life, callously birthing it with no care that it could be killed by the process.

From the Friday Five:

• 1. What was your biggest accomplishment this year?

My biggest accomplishment was the move to my current apartment. After 9 years living in the same place, I've now moved on.
• 2. What was your biggest disappointment?

More of a sadness, really: a friend of my family, Rose Greenblatt, was diagnosed with major lung cancer. We have maybe a year more with her at most.
• 3. Will you be making any New Year's resolutions?

Not likely. I've been keeping a resolution from 1999 to find old friends I'd lost touch with however.
• 4. Where will you be at midnight? Do you wish you could be somewhere else?

I'll be visiting my Aunt in Burlington, VT. I'll be with my folks, my aunt, my cousins... I wouldn't want to be anywhere else.
• 5. Aside from (possibly) staying up late, do you have any other New Year's traditions?

Not really.

Generally when my local TV stations air ads about their CRTC license renewals, I ignore them.

This year my Global network affiliate announced that they wanted to air opinions on getting a new commercial jazz radio station in Montreal That is something I want to speak out for!

Smooth Jazz New Year's Eve at Time Square West (From Smooth Jazz News)

Man... reading this I wish I was a New Yorker.

Smooth Jazz News

A magazine site to read up on the latest happenings in this great artform.

I'm downloading the latest version of the Phoenix Web browser as I type these words... take the Netscape browser, minus the flaws, add tabbed browser views and built-in pop-up blocker and password manager feature, and you have a great product!

I've wanted to use the Mozilla browser for months, but it takes a more powerful PC than I currently have. Phoenix is a side-project version, without the code bloat Mozilla has.

Most of International AIDS Day is now over in my time zone... for 3 years I've been part of the Link and Think. What's really sad: in 3 years, there has been very little if any progress in treatment of the illness. Even though we know more about it than we knew years ago, they still haven't progressed enough towards a cure.

Here are some links for you to research the disease a bit:

JAMA HIV/AIDS Information Center

HIV InSite Gateway