In response to this cartoon, poet Pat Grizzell wrote:

bears writing haiku
now that is really funny--
fuggedaboudit.

The tip jar at Espresso Metro.

Nemo chases the laser pointer

I visited the new Fry's Electronics which has a railroad theme, including this locomotive "crashing" out of the front wall.

Our kitchen remodel, continued

Outside the Frasier Winery cave they set up a giant screen for an outdoor film festival. Here the projectionist was testing his focus.

With Brad Little at the wine cave

I played with Brad Little at the Frasier Winery Wine Cave in Napa. Just a huge thrill. He is a giant talent and the people loved him. He sang many songs but I especially liked "She Was There" from Scarlet Pimpernel. Of course, (befitting a guy who has played the Phantom over 2,100 times) his encore was "Music of the Night."
The girl in some of the photos is Tori who sang "When You Wish Upon a Star" offstage to open the concert.

For the first time ever...

...I found (dead) termites inside a brand-new piano.

Someone donated this barista figurine to the Starbucks across the street from Music Circus.

Brad Little (left) is currently playing Javert in the Music Circus production of Les Miserables. Next Wednesday, he's going to do a one-hour concert at a Napa Valley wine cave, with me playing piano. Little toured with Phantom and played the Phantom over 2,000 times.

Across from Espresso Metro is a new place, soon to open, called Crepe Escape. Note the word OPENNING on the banner.

Jennifer got the last Harry Potter book in the mail today and started reading it immediately. We also went to Downtown Mall to see the latest Harry Potter movie (excellent!)

Ricardo Favela, founding member of the Royal Chicano Air Force, artist, CSUS professor, and community activist, died this week. Read the obituary here.
He was a modest man. You never would have known about his history and accomplishments. In fact, we met him when he was teaching at Rachel's day care. He called her "Rocky."

Refreshing!

Wearing sandals, I accidentally stepped into this puddle.

Look carefully at the two pictures of Eve. Apparently, she is being thrown out of the Garden for her terrible dye job.

Irish army knife

Seen at Fair Oaks Hardware.

Found behind the wall during the kitchen remodel: a shellac 78 of Eddie Duchin playing Gershwin.

We started our kitchen remodel today. If you're interested, you watch the progress at the web album here.

Fire dancing

This dancer (named Sequoia) bellydanced with fire sticks and wearing a belt of fire while a didgeridoo played.

Floating candles

See What I Mean?

Really great art installation at 19th and U Streets. The video was as good as any I've seen in any museum.

Rachel and my tags hanging from the bulletin board.

One of my customers gave me this great 100% wool jacket which fits perfectly!

This Pepsi machine also looks like it is yours for the taking.

On Arthur Street in Davis, these skis are yours for the taking.

This looks like an artsy window display, but it actually happened by accident.

A very old-fashioned bathroom switchplate.

A collection of 200 coffee mugs.

I bought some Wensleydale cheese (favorite cheese of Wallace and Gromit). Delicious!

Today I removed a piece of paper from this piano. It was a thin strip that said:

3. I keep you from sneezing

One of the little girls at our block party is named Brooklyn. She is not named after the city, but two relatives named Brooke and Lynn.

Some opinions on MySpace from the Franklin High newspaper.

Fireworks at our block party

At our 4th of July block party, a girl with a necklace made of Fender guitar picks (by her boyfriend).

Need a bunch of aquariums (aquaria?) or a pram? They're free for the taking on Lonsdale.

Can you talk flavored tortillas? Here's a job for you.

What part of NO don't you understand?

In this case, I don't understand any of it.

As part of her summer internship, Rachel is going to be working in the wardrobe department of the TV show Heroes. She hasn't moved into her LA apartment yet, so she has to drive from Irvine to Universal City to get there. My high school friend David, who lives nearby, has agreed to let her stay overnight so she can drive tonight instead of tomorrow morning. Thanks, David!

Yesterday I played a wedding on the Delta King riverboat with Stan Johnson. The Delta King is one of the least convenient venues in town because it's so hard to get your equipment in and out. But it's fun when you finally get in there.
Stan is a band teacher and his son is a keyboardist in LA who is the musical director for Steve Tyrell.

This is a backyard on Garden Highway. Even though the pool below the balcony is a good twenty feet above the level of the river, it was underwater for six months last year. The roses bloomed anyway, poking their blossoms out like water lilies.

I played a trio job at the Croatian Cultural Center. The theme of the party was, I think, Chicago in the 20s. The men dressed like George Raft and the women wore flapper dresses.

This is an image I may use for this year's Christmas card.

This could be the Jetsons' chair, except for the old-fashined materials. You can rotate the seat back and forth or even take it out and put it right on the floor.

A broken headlight on a Jeep being held together with cable ties. You can fix almost anything with cable ties.

When you find a dead bird, you're supposed to report it (because of West Nile Virus). But to whom?

Natasha put googley eyes on her contact lens case.

Chris the barista says this isn't a wife-beater, it's a wife-lover.

Elaine and Diane have their backyard done completely in Tiki. Here I am possibly raising a piña colada.

Every music stand in the pit had this little horse on it. Clara, the heroine of the show, is a little retarded because when she was a girl, a horse kicked her in the head.

Last night I sat in the pit between the pianist and harpist for Light in the Piazza. The piano part is amazing and so is the player, who's only 25. The harpist, Lynette, is also fine. She is playing an electric harp that she bought from Mary Jane. She also subs for Laura Sherman, who I met while playing Peter Pan in Stamford.

Every dog is a Buddha.

Something was given away free. But what?

This amazing painting is a portrait of my customer in front of a Reno casino. It really captures the underside of the dream of the West.

I tuned this morning at Discovery Park where radio station The Zone is sponsoring an outdoor festival. Every band has their equipment set up on rolling platforms which the stagehands will switch in and out. Overheard: "I can't hear you because I'm ignoring you."