Jay – Page 10 – The Boring Old Man

Cleaning out the pipes…

Today I started a 10-day “cleanse” as recommended by my Accupuncturist/Nutritionist. Probably long overdue.

Some time ago (sometime between 1-2 years), the Mrs. and I did a 21-day cleanse and it turned out to be one if the most miserable experiences of my life. BUT! Despite the misery, it did help me kick some bad habits (like too much coffee, carbs and sugars), I shed maybe 9-10 pounds, and when all was said and done I DID actually feel better.

But old habits die hard, as they say… The coffee intake kept creeping up, pizzas and pastas and potatoes and breads and all the foods that make life worth living became more of the norm instead of a treat. Sodas started showing their ugly heads again. And don’t get me started on the Holiday Season – basically all self-control went out the window from about a week before Halloween until a week after New Year ’23.

But it’s catching up with me, and then some. My gym routine is non-existent at the moment and my “diet” has been whatever sounds good at the time. Not a big deal when you’re 17 and on the swim team, in the marching band and riding a skateboard a few miles per day. Now? At 55? Spending most of my day at a desk and commuting 2hrs. per day in a car? Not so much. Turns out, too much of a “good” thing is NOT so great for us geezers-in-training.

Not feeling like I’ve hit “rock bottom” or anything, but haven’t been feeling, or doing great this year. And the mediocre health is bleeding over into everything else in my life, which is a big red flag signaling that a change in in order.

No time like the present I suppose. Things are in a bit of a lull. No upcoming shows this month, no auditions, no extraordinary projects and no road trips until the end of July. So now is as good a time as any to lean into the misery.

So wish me luck. I’m kinda dreading the next 10 days, but also hoping this is just the kick in the pants I need to get me back on the right track. There are still waves that need to be surfed, trails to be hiked and drums to be played… I need to get back in “fighting” shape if I’m to enjoy any of that!

Thanks for stopping by!

Road Trip! Pismo Beach, CA.

EDITOR’S NOTE: This post is being published about a week late… I guess in the thrill of it all, I forgot to hit the Publish button… I’m going to go ahead and post, as this blog has become my “backup hard drive”, and helps me remember what I did last week. Without further delay:

Loaded up the wagon with the board, wetsuits, assorted delicious things for eating and drinking and the Mrs. and headed 3.25 hours south for a few days in Pismo Beach!

Easy drive, perfect weather, not terribly crowded…so far so good! Pray for good surf!

Our home away from home for the next few days…

Thanks for stopping by!

Better Late Than Never.

Here it is, the LAST day of June ’23 and I FINALLY got back in the water and took the surfboard for a spin!

The conditions are not great, and truthfully they usually aren’t at this time of year in this locale, but it felt GREAT to just get out there and be IN the ocean after such a long pause.

I love the beach, always have, and can hang out on the beach all day, but it pales in comparison to being in the water. There is just something magical about it.

Feeling very fortunate at the moment, and grateful for the pause in “real life”.

Might do another session tonight, and have one planned for tomorrow morning with one of my oldest and dearest friends, so more to come.

Thanks for stopping by!

Happy Independence Day!

Be safe out there!

Concert Review: Grandson & K.Flay at the Warfield Theater, San Francisco.

Monday night brought us back to the historic Warfield Theater in San Francisco for the much anticipated Grandson and K.Flay show. This was the Mrs.’ “birthday” show and we’ve been sitting on the tickets for months, so the excitement levels were off the charts and it turned out to be an awesome night!

Opening act Jack Kays was already on stage when we got to our seats and he was OK. Nothing surprising or spectacular, but solid. I wasn’t familiar with his work and what I heard gave me an early 00’s “Emo” vibe. Not really my thing, but I’ve certainly heard worse. At the very least he seemed to be engaging and enjoying himself.

Next up was K.Flay. All I can say is WOW! She came out swinging and delivered an amazing, high energy set that was just off the charts. Her band was outstanding; energetic, technical prowess and just great tone. Her guitarist, who’s name I just couldn’t catch unfortunately, was OUTSTANDING. Really a top-notch, stellar performance. These guys, and K.Flay herself earned my highest regards. This was our 3rd time seeing her show, and it just keeps getting better!!

Grandson’s set was a mixed bag to be honest. Jordan (who essentially IS grandson) was great. He is so enigmatic and enthusiastic it’s impossible to NOT dig what he’s doing. He’s a little creepy and comes off as a little dangerous, but in the best possible way. His performance was certainly as strong as ever before, but the song selection for the set was a bit lacking. And if I’m being perfectly honest, his band was not up to the level we’ve come to expect. His guitar player was good, really good even. But not great. The bass player has been replaced by backing tracks, and the lack of real, interactive bass was noticeable. And his new drummer… I’m not saying he was bad – quite the contrary. He was actually extremely proficient and had chops for days, but he was NOT the right drummer for this band. Yes, I’m highly biased and critical of drummers – 45 years behind the kit will do thst to a guy. Now, I don’t know who this guy is, but I kept hearing gospel drumming throughout the set. Don’t get me wrong, gospel drummers are some of the hottest guys out there, it just didn’t work for me in the context of Grandson. Overall though, it was still a great set.

In the end I’d have to say that K. Flay stole the show, but it was a great night of high energy and excellent musicianship. If you ever have the opportunity, I highly recommend both artists!

Thanks for stopping by!

The Storm Before the Calm.

Well it’s been a while and I’ve been lagging here, so I figured I should at least do a little catch up.

The last couple weeks have off the charts ridiculous at work. Longer hours, bigger work load and fewer guys to distribute the load to. And oddly instead of commute-time traffic getting better after schools letting out for Summer, it’s been exponentially worse the last few weeks. Not that I’m not accustomed to bad traffic, its just that extra hour – hour and a half a day eats into my non-work life…

I did get a day out fishing last weekend with my brother-in-law Kaptain Karel. Unfortunately after a couple hours at sea, seasickness whipped me pretty good as the swells got a little gnarly. Nonetheless, it was still a good day overall and I’ve got a bunch of nice fish in the freezer.

On the music front, things have been slower than I’d like, but I’m still getting out and playing here and there, even posted up a few new clips in my YouTube channel.

Random beats. I record ’em so I don’t forget ’em

I’ve also got a new potential band in the works with some folks I found on BandMix.com. We’ve not yet met in person so it may be nothing, but they’ve given me a few tunes to learn over the next couple weeks while the guitarist is out of town. So who knows? Come mid-July I might finally be back in an actual band for a change. I don’t like to get my hopes up, as I’ve been down this road many, many times over the last 4 decades. Nonetheless, I’m excited about it and looking forward to jamming with some new folks.

The best news of all however is that I’m officially on vacation for the next week! And it’s shaping up to be a good one. We’ve got a concert to go to, its the Mrs.’ Birthday, and we’re heading back down to Pismo Beach for a few days. That should also allow for me getting back in the water for the FIRST SURF OF THE YEAR! Geez, how sad is that? The year is half over and I haven’t surfed a single time. Something has gone sideways if that’s the case… it HAS been a weird one, that’s for sure.

Anyhow, that’s about the size of it for now. June has been a blur thus far, but a much needed respite is in the wings. More to come…

Thanks for stopping by!

Bay Area Gem: Sonia’s Kitchen, San Jose, CA.

Sonia’s Kitchen is one of my favorite places of all time. I’ve been a huge fan ever since my first foray into the place, which was somewhere about late 1987.

Now, I will say in spite of being a regular there for 35ish years, I’ve never, and I mean NEVER had anything besides the cheesesteak sandwich. Why? Because it is THAT good! Seriously. That being said, I cannot attest to anything other than their cheesesteak sandwiches.

Now, I LOVE cheesesteak sandwiches and I have eaten them at many an establishment over the years, but Sonia’s are the one by which all others are measured. And they have yet to be bested. What is amazing is that they have remained consistent, as in exactly the same today as they were in the mid-80’s. That is saying something!

Now, I have my gripes with them too… Primarily the hours of operation: Monday- Friday, 11am – 4pm. Back in the day they were open later, and you could grab a sandwich after work, but as the employees aged (and passed away, sadly), there are only two of them left, and I guess that’s all the business they can handle themselves. The situation being what it is, anytime I have a day off during the week, we make it a point to make the trek. And I never regret it. When I first started going there, I worked maybe a mile from the place. A year or so later, I moved downtown and I only had to go about 6 blocks, an easy bike ride. Now it takes a 15-20 minute drive to get there from home, and it is worth every mile!

Nowadays I really try to relish each visit, knowing each time could be my last. The proprietor is at an age, she could’ve retired 15 years ago easily, and the cook has been there every single time I’ve been there, at the same grill. He’s no spring chicken either, but he still whips up a mean sandwich! They started with 4, now it’s just the two of them and I’ve NEVER seen an “outsider” working the shop, not a single time. She works the counter, he works the kitchen, and that’s it. So, yesterday’s sandwich may have been my last. I certainly hope not, but I know such a thing of beauty cannot last forever.

So if ever find yourself in San Jose, and you’re a fan of cheesesteak sandwiches, you owe it to yourself to stop in at Sonia’s Kitchen. They are on William St., between 9th and 10th streets. As my pops likes to say, “you better get, while the getting is good!”. The best kept secret in San Jose. Don’t let the look of the place fool you, it’s a diamond in the rough!

Thanks for stopping by!

Double Nickels today…

Hit another milestone today, the 55th year of my existence begins. Ugh. Hard to believe.

It’s been a good day tho. Took some time off work. The Mrs. treated me to donuts (a blueberry fritter, no less!) and I spent a slow morning doing odds and ends before heading to my studio for some drum time. Even took the time to replace my severely worn out snare drum head.

Early afternoon I picked up the Mrs. from work and she accompanied me to a local legendary record shop, Streetlight Records in San Jose. I’ve been going there since maybe 1982 (the old location that was in a converted house!), but the last time I was there was ’19, before “the Plague”. I had a nice time flipping through the racks, and was happy to see they are really leaning in to the vinyl Resurgence! I found a vinyl copy of an instrumental Beastie Boys album, and left “feelin’ like a kid again”. The icing on the cake was stopping off for a Slurpee on the way home! Good Times!!

In the evening our Girl came over for pizza – my favorite – and some classic comedy movies. A quiet but delightful night!

On top of it all were well wishes from family, friends and even a couple co-workers.

All in all, I couldn’t have asked for a nicer day!

Thanks for stopping by!

Flashback Friday! In the Beginning edition

I’ve spent a lot of time over the last couple weeks both immersed in music, but also catching up with old friends and reminiscing about the “good ol’ days”. All that put me in a mood to do a flashback featuring songs we used to cover in my first REAL band. And by real, I mean we actually got out of the garage and played gigs, in front of real, live people. Sure, we were only 15 and 16 years old at the time, and were probably terrible, but that band – The Laters – would set a couple of us on a lifelong path of passionate love for live music, writing songs, performing for audiences…all that good stuff.

Ahhh…good times!

More than a couple of these are considered classics now, but this was cutting edge stuff back in 1983/84. Enjoy!