Oh my God, I'm a top ten finalist for Best Blog of 2006!

This morning I came downstairs to the news that I am a top ten finalist in the Best of Blogs 2006 Awards (category - best diarist).

I'd like to thank the Academy, my brilliant family, Adrian Belew, DGM Live, Andrew Greenaway, Susan Henderson, Neil Gaiman....ha! - and all of you other way cool and interesting people who have crossed my path this year and given me the best material ever to work with.

I'm kind of high over this because, as they say over at the Best of Blog Award website...

"A Note To Nominees

Every year this is the hardest post I have to write - the one where I explain why your nominated blog was not selected as a finalist. First, the odds are heavily stacked against you. This year we received nearly 4,500 nominations..."

Here's the official list of finalists...I'm right up there with Huffington Post, TMZ, Boing Boing, BlogCritics, and even Jon Swift!

So yeah, I am stoked, stoked, stoked. On the right hand side of my blog, you'll see another icon for Best of Blogs 2006. Tomorrow, it will link you to the actual voting site and according to the rules, each reader is allowed one vote per day for 8-10 days (the actual final date for voting has not been announced yet but the FAQ section of the Awards currently says 8-10 days). So once this is all ironed out tomorrow, I will start groveling and offering you copious amounts of Christmas cookies, nude photos (of the dog, of the dog...sheesh)...whatever it takes...and ask that each of you vote for me each day until the polls close. Okay? Okay!

Ahem. Now I am blushing, so I must switch topics. On to my son, who has some pretty exciting news of his own.



That's Eric on stage with Chris Harford last week at the North Star Bar.

This Friday, December 8, 2006, at 12:00 p.m., Chris Harford, along with Eric Slick, Dave Dreiwitz from Ween, the brothers Ween themselves, Gene and Dean, and Scott Metzger, formerly of Particle, will be interviewed and performing live at World Cafe Live, 3025 Walnut Street, Philadelphia, Pennslvania, as part of the WXPN Concert Series, to be broadcast nationwide on NPR as part of their Live Friday series, where, as you can see, in past weeks they've hosted The Slip, Joan Osborne, Sean Lennon, and our pals The California Guitar Trio. So this is pretty major...and I have to admit, I got the chills last night listening to XPN and hearing the commercial for this event...they said something on the order of "Join us for a concert series featuring singer/songwriter Chris Harford and his Band of Changes, featuring members of Ween, Particle, and The Adrian Belew Band."

"The Adrian Belew Band! That's Eric!" I shouted to Gary.

"Yes, I know," he said, patting me on the arm.

"I have to go tell him!" I jumped out of bed and ran downstairs.

"Eric, I just heard the commercial for your show on the radio! I have goosebumps!"

"What did they say, Mom?"

So I told him.

And then he laughed at me.

Why? Because I was excited even though they didn't say his name. Listen, he has to understand. I am still pinching myself over the fact that he's Adrian Belew's drummer. I hear "member of the Adrian Belew Band" and I have seizures when I realize that's my son they are talking about.

Gary understands, though. But he's not uncool like I am so he stayed upstairs while I was the usual official drooling family dork. Ha ha - nothing new about that, but at least no one here gets pissed at me...in fact, though of course they won't admit to it, I secretly think they love my...err...enthusiasm.

So yeah, if you click on the XPN or NPR links I've provided above at noon (eastern time) this Friday, you will hear a live stream of my son and the band but don't worry, you can be sure I'll be posting more specific links on the day of the show.

And um, in writing news, I've just learned that my books Buenos Noches, Justine, Another Bite of the Apple, and Three Days in New York City are best sellers in romantic comedy -- #18, 19, and 20 respectively -- at All Romance Books.

I still say I am not a romance writer...good God...but at least they have me correctly listed as comedy!

Anyway, I seem to be hyperventilating over all of this awesome stuff happening today so I'd better sign off the internet, take a few deep breaths and calm down (like that's ever possible), and work on my Best of Blogs 2006 campaign strategy.

Just kidding. More like I need to finish my novel, buy Christmas presents hopefully before December 24 (yep, I'm always that person standing in the long line as the stores are closing and the sales clerks snarling), and at least take a half-hearted stab at some domestic goddess duties around here so that we have a proper place to put/decorate our tree...i.e., not on top of the pile of umbrellas, bookbags, and various guitars and amplifiers currently scattered throughout the living room. Though I will say this...when the Chris Harford Band of Changes drove Eric home following Sunday night's gig in Washington at 4:00 a.m. and helped him carry his drums inside, they were heard to exclaim "This is where you grew up? You lucky bastard!"

Ha ha - Eric is one lucky bastard, that is very true.

And so am I.

Here's what last Christmas looked like at this nuthouse:





Later,
xo