Happy Green (whoops...I was going to say "Day" until I realized those googling a band I despise will end up on my blog and we just can't have that!)

So Juked Magazine published Star Man today, my first so-called Scifi attempt though of course as I mentioned a few days ago it seems to have turned out otherwise and smacks of my usual warped themes.

Last night I forced myself outdoors and had dinner with Julie at one of her suggestions: Standard Tap. Yep, she was right. I absolutely loved it. Right up there with the best bar food I've ever had. It was definitely my kind of place...like it says, no T.V., just hipsters spanning all ages sitting around talking and drinking a great selection of beer or in my case, moaning over hand cut french fries. The highlight of our meal though was this outrageous, buttery flaky warm pecan pie topped with homemade whipped cream. You would have thought I was having a sexual experience while I ate that. Ha. Last night was a set-back for me; I've actually lost almost ten pounds in the past month without really trying. See what obsessing over a novel will do to you? I've been forgetting to eat or just not hungry in general while I work on that thing.

They need to do something about their music choices, though. I felt like I was listening to an up-dated version of disco. Oh my god, if disco is back I'm just going to end it all now.

(Actually, on their website they mention a juke box playing everything from Iggy Pop to Tom Waits. So I must have gotten screwed last night by a patron with really bad taste in music feeding said juke box. Okay, now that I know that, I will go next time armed with dollar bills and load that sucker up before I even sit down to eat.)

Speaking of writing, recently I was contacted by a group of writers from the Middle East who are interested in learning more about American authors. Their website is all in Arabic so exactly what they are all about I can't tell you, but they were referred to me by a great writer pal I trust who had also furnished them with his stories and an interview. Anyway, I agreed to be a part of their project, and it was way interesting, especially due to language differences. Our email correspondence alone was pretty amusing. They started out by seeking out like everything I've ever written and analyzing it and then they furnished me with a set of questions in line with my writing. I don't want to publish the questions and my answers yet in case the interview is published in English (well, they sort of say it will be in their last email) but I do want to share a bit of the experience.

Here's part of the first email when I didn't respond to the interview right away because (1) I was working on my novel and (2) I had to read over the questions several times before I at least thought I understood what they meant.

Dear Robin,
Answer as you wish, omit what you disliked, and ask for details or modifications when necessary. You will be our guest for some time. Help us to show your qualities and abilities. Fresh photo and a brief are needed then, we expect you to look shiny and marvelous, as you are indeed.

I'm shiny and marvelous? Hey, I like that!

When a few days passed and I didn't respond to their questions right away, I got the following:

Dear Robin,
we did some progress with your materials, dear Robin, but so far we do not know if you are happy about the interview, and when the expected date for answers. We need to know to update our schedule. Please do make your word.

We're waiting for you.

We read a lot and prepared a lot.

we like to have you with us as a friend, member of the family.

So then I felt bad/guilty and also a bit shaken by the "We're waiting for you" part, I completed the interview as best I could and sent them my shiny, marvelous photograph. After which I received the following:

Dear Robin,

Many thanks for this fabulous response. We are pleased to inform you that the materials were passed on for translations.

In few days to come you will receive a link to have a permanent access to the site, and the workshop. You will meet some old friends from the states like ____ and ___ and so on…

a link with either writesight or authors den will follow.

Be alarmed...

Ahem. Be alarmed? Okay...not a problem.

Be Alarmed! is definitely going to be the title of my next novel. I'm dead serious about this. Really. I think it's awesome and I'm using it.

I showed the above correspondence to the man who referred them to me and after he finished laughing and teasing me about my new NSA file, we both agreed it was a cool experience and I'm actually looking forward to seeing the interview and their impressions of my work. What really intrigued me is that they went back to a story I'd written in 2004 and left a comment under it on the magazine's website dated March 6, 2006 which was most interesting. How do I know this? Because as you already know, I'm an anal retentive who googles herself every five minutes.

Just kidding. I only do it a couple times a week.

Oh god I'm such a mess.

But one positive thing: I've taken what might be a permanent leave of absence from Zoetrope Studios. I've made my friends there and they are fantastic but the others...the trolls, the stalkers, the terrible writers, the self-absorbed freaks who do nothing but talk about their own work and never congratulate others on their success...arghhh....I just couldn't stand it any more. Luckily my close Zoetrope friends and I email and meet up in the real world regularly so I no longer need to be aggravated on a daily basis by "the others". But who knows, that could be just my mood of this month...I know I'll at least return temporarily when my pal Ellen's book comes out this summer because I want to be part of the excitement on her behalf.

Most importantly, since I stopped hanging out at Zoe I've been writing like crazy, so that's even more reason to stay away.

Anyway, yeah, Eric did play with John Wetton last night and he told me some funny stuff but since I'm going to the Saturday show I didn't go last night and therefore do not have any photos yet. I've asked a couple people who were there to email any they might have to me and if that happens today, I'll come back and do a new post; if not, I'll wait until I take my own pictures this weekend. Yeah, I know, I could write all about it now without the photos but I have my own strange way of doing things and I like to have pictures with my stories.

But in case anyone reading this is in the northern New Jersey area, Eric will be performing with John Wetton and the Rock School All-Stars tonight at Bergen County Rock School and I hear it's an amazing show.

Later,
xo

Heat of the Moment...

That, as you know, is my son Eric along with amazing Rock School violinist Katie Jacoby, who will both be performing tonight with:



John Wetton

Ha ha - I could have predicted this. Eric Slick will be behind the drums on the School of Rock John Wetton tour for at least three songs, including Court of the Crimson King, beginning tonight at the Downingtown School of Rock, tomorrow at Bergen County School of Rock, Saturday at the New York Knitting Factory, and Sunday at 6:00 p.m. at the Troc in Philadelphia.

I remember Eric telling me back in August when he graduated Rock School he was officially "retired" and wouldn't be performing with the All-Stars again. Ha! Let's see. He played the Music Player Live Tribute to Les Paul with the All-Stars in October, he went to NAMM with the All-Stars in January, he played with the All-Stars and Belew two weeks ago...and now Wetton. He went to Rock School just to hang out last night and ended up sitting in on drums because one of the new All-Stars couldn't make rehearsal, and well, you know...Eric rules.

I love you, Eric. Music is the best!

Okay, back to my novel, which finally has "legs"! Now. Which one of my good pals would like to read the first 50-100 pages next week?

Just kidding, just kidding.

The Ides of March post

The above photo of Bosco with Adrian Belew when he realized the camera was on him makes me laugh out loud.

So sorry, sorry, things have been quiet around here...wait, that's not actually true, I've been working like a crazy on novel revisions and my brain is in total turmoil so I'm trying to focus solely on finally finishing this book so I can sleep at night again. Today needs to be a turning point...Julie goes on Spring break next week and we've hardly spent any time together this entire semester. She really had a heavy, all day class load and her remaining hours were spent in the studio, at work, and with Matt. So I'm really looking forward to our dates to the Italian market and breakfast and lunch in cool restaurants...maybe even a day trip to New York. I've been a complete shut-in lately which is kind of scarey but I'm obsessing over this book. If I can have a finished draft by Sunday, I'll feel really good about taking a week off and then going back to the manuscript with fresh eyes for edits.

Eric, on the other hand, has been running around like a maniac. I think I've seen him maybe a total of one hour since Friday. He's been rehearsing with Project Object for the upcoming tour (and I provided the link because there are more dates and venues added), rehearsing with Shannon Penn because they're going into the studio at the end of this month, getting ready for an April Fool's Day gig with Doctor Dark...and yesterday, after coming from one of the above rehearsals he met up with John Wetton and then ended up hanging out with him at Rock School and "reminding" John of a few licks...in fact, Eric is going back tonight to help out again. He said John is funny as hell and the two of them had a very interesting one on one conversation.

And while I'm talking about Eric, as I've said, he's also scheduled to do an east coast tour with Chris Opperman, who plays keyboard with Steve Vai and the song they did together was nominated for a Grammy this year. Chris is a character, and I'm one of his My Space friends (Yes, I know. I cannot believe I have a My Space friend, either. I agree, I'm about ninety years too old to even be anywhere near that site, but music nut that I am, I go where the music is). Anyway, I got the My Space "Your Friend Chris has posted something" email message and I clicked on it and how interesting is this:

"Today I attended the "Art of Writing" class that The Learning Annex put on with Ray Bradbury. Well, how could I possibly pass up a chance to meet someone as amazing and wonderful as Ray Bradbury? Especially considering that he inspired the song "Telepathy on Mars?" as well as the painting of the same name, which is my favorite painting of mine.

Anyway, it was an extreme treat. He told a lot of stories about his life which was very interesting and his basic message was a message of love. You can tell from the way he spoke how much in love he is with everyone and his life. It was really excellent.

He also said that everyone should just piss on their computers because they don't give out information, just factoids, and he said that he told the New York Times that he thought that we should move all of the Jews out of Israel and into Florida where they would be safe from harm, that magazines are now pathetic because they're more about the advertising than they are about the information, and that they'd better damn well build a monorail in LA soon because the freeways are going to become to congested to use at all. I thought he was a riot and he signed a book of short stories for me, and I felt very honored.

He wants Peter Jackson to direct a movie of "The Martian Chronicles" and Peter said he'd consider it in a year. Ray said he's going to do his best to hold onto his life until it's finished. I sure hope it happens, that would be awesome. And he said that it was awful that King Kong was ignored at the Oscars this year."

Okay, I'm new to SciFi and don't know the personalities of even the most famous authors in that genre so I don't quite know what to make of Ray. I'm not sure if I should be offended by the moving all the Jews out of Israel and into Florida statement or laugh my ass off. I'm not sure about his other comments, either...wonder what Neil Gaiman thinks of him. Maybe I'll try out that search feature on his journal and dig into the archives and see. (This coming from the person who announced at the top of this blogpost that she's focusing solely on the novel. So far I've resisted going into Neil's journal archives -- which date back to 2001 -- because I know once I start I'll have to read everything. And that will probably depress me, because I'll see how he first starts out five years ago and damn it, right as I discover him, that's when he goes Hollywood. I'm almost dreading reading his newest posts because he's on the Stardust set in Scotland and I'm not sure if I want to know about Clare Danes, Michelle Pfeiffer, Robert DeNiro, etc. But we'll see. I'm no one to talk. I'm the first one to broadcast names, photos, and stories about all of the rock stars I hang out with courtesy of Julie and Eric. Oh alright, I admit it. I'm looking forward to reading about Clare Danes, Michelle Pfeiffer, Robert DeNiro, etc. I'm just jealous it's not me who wrote a book optioned for a movie starring the above and tooling around Scotland with them. By the way, here's a fun fact. Robert DeNiro and I share the same birthday along with Mae West)

Anyway, back to Ray Bradbury...right now I'm going with Chris' opinion that he was hilarious and maybe his remarks were all tongue in cheek. Yeah, on second thought, they've got to be, right?

Okay, I choose to laugh my ass off.

And now said ass must go offline and upstairs to write.

Later,
xo

For die-hard music fans only....the first of the Attack of You Tube

You have to let this load about 6 minutes...it's a highlight clip from Zappanale in Germany last summer...but if you are patient and a true die-hard Zappa fan, you'll get to see the Paul Green School of Rock Music All-Stars in action, including some impressive drum solos by Eric Slick, he of the long brown hair, sunglasses and bright red t-shirt. I think I also saw All-Star drummers Dave M., Sara Neidorf, and Joey Reno in there, too...Dave at the very beginning, then Sara, and Joey towards the end. And you will also see a cool solo by C.J. Tywoniak, Jeremy Blessing, Fil Smith, and Kenny Luu among others.

This was Eric's second or third to the last All-Star performance before he officially graduated, but he is still occasionally brought out of retirement to join the new All-Stars...like last Sunday when he played with Adrian Belew. And Eric is of course not retired, he merely turned 18 and graduated...right now, one month before his 19th birthday, he's about to go on tour with Project Object as I've mentioned here ad nauseam.

By the way, this is not my personal film...this is a Rock School You Tuber...but just you wait. (Sigh...maybe not for a few days...Eric slept out last night and is way busy with various rehearsals and teaching this week...but once he gives me instructions as to how to line up the music with the video, the full assault will begin!)

Happy Sundae

Louie Graff and Eddie Vedder -- Julie is against the wall watching with Eddie's equipment guy; that's Paul Green seated on the stage floor

So this will have to be a short post because no one is home and I must write!

Anyway, unfortunately, I cannot start deluging you with my You Tube films today because I still need Eric (who will not be home until late tonight) to show me how to do something...but rest assured the torture is on its way.

You'll see everything from snippets of the kids in concert (muhahahaha - starting at age eleven) to Louie Graff (see above photo -- Louie is a Rock School grad guitarist extraordinaire) and my daughter Julie as pre-teens busy painting son Eric's face with Hershey's chocolate syrup when he fell asleep on my sofa.

Ahem. At least I think they were pre-teens. Watch. Eric will tell me it was last year.

But yeah, that's right. They poured chocolate syrup on Eric WHILE ON MY SOFA in an attempt to turn him into some sort of human sundae. Obviously, I was upstairs at the time. So they filmed it, all proud of themselves.

Luckily I decided early on that I was not going to care about furniture while the kids were young and I got heavy duty leather stuff which I just recently finally replaced.

But still.

So yeah, I'll probably make it a weekly feature -- Slick Family Warped Home Movies brought to you by You Tube.

Wait: Hang on, here's one which shows a brief glimpse of Eric when he was musical director of the Devo show at Rock School last year. That's Eric with the long brown hair and turquoise shirt leading the group chant "Devo! Devo! Devo!" and you also see him right before the show...with a clipboard? Eric! You nerd!



In other news, Juked Magazine is publishing my first ever SciFi piece, Star Man, so I'm very stoked about that. I'm in some heavy duty company at that magazine...like most of my favorite authors, so okay, I admit it, when I just got the editor's email I started whooping. I'll post a link when it's published.

I fell asleep early and did not get to see the Arctic Monkeys on Saturday Night Live last evening so in case anyone cares about my opinion, I still have none. I guess I could pull them up on Pandora but right now I've got like ten windows open doing a little research for the novel I should be working on at the moment...

Later,
xo

John Wetton of King Crimson/Asia to appear with The Rock School All-Stars...and some other stuff

So this should really be cool. John Wetton is appearing with the Paul Green School of Rock Music All-Stars for four shows as follows:

Thursday March 16, 7pm
School of Rock, Downingtown

Friday March 17, 8pm
School of Rock, Bergen County

Saturday March 18, 6pm
New York Knitting Factory

Sunday March 19, 6pm
The Troc, Philadelphia

By the way, here's a group shot of Adrian Belew when he played with the Rock School All-Stars a couple weeks ago as well as a couple more on stage:








I dunno, if the Wetton shows are even half as good as the Belew shows, you are in for a hell of a treat and it's my understanding that the Troc is running a two for one special so you should check that out if you're in the Philadelphia area.

In further adventures with Google, it's hard to believe how many magazines and news agencies have picked up that crazy could-it-really-be-him Amazon blurb on my son, Eric, when he played with Carlos Alomar and the Rock School All-Stars at CBGBs in New York following the premier of the documentary, Rock School, and its subsequent soundtrack.

"This is my first on-line review and I only ventured onto the site to see if others had anything to say about this CD. I am doing it as a favour to the wonderful group I saw perform at CBGB's Wednesday night. I did not see the movie but was invited by my mates to the after party and bought the CD solely based on the music I heard. I've been a drummer with what many say is the world's greatest rock and roll band for several decades and I have to tell you, any one of those kids could fill in for my mates in the band. I understand the little lad, C.J., is the star of the movie and he is just wonderful but for me, there were three heroes that night...the singer, Maddie, the bare chested lad Jeremy, and the drummer, Eric. Maddie has the voice of an old time rocker. No stony faced, spaced out monotones for her. She roared, she was the music. Jeremy Blessing (and is that a name!) is the stuff of the Mississippi Delta combined with Jimmy Page; in fact, I'd like Jimmy to see him live the next time he's in town. I intend to write to the School of Rock for his contact information. There was soul in every note and he owned the stage. But as a drummer, for me the main attraction was Eric Slick. This is a young lad who has obviously studied the masters. He has listened to people like Buddy Rich and Max Roach I am certain, and while I am loathe to say it, I believe he has also listened to me. This kid has no peers in terms of innovation; he has a deeply personal sound and approach. He had a fixed pulse on his cymbals as well as his bass drum; and while many of the young guitar lads would falter from time to time due to what I trust was a problem with the monitors, Mr. Slick never lost a beat and was the driving force that evening. He brought tears to this old man's eyes and he is another I intend to keep my eye on for future projects. He could fill my shoes any time.

I insist you people in the States buy this CD. Don't buy it for the old geezers; buy it for the kids and learn something from them.


Yeah, that freaks me out every time I read it.

Speaking of Eric, I made a grievous error when I reported that he'd turned me on to the Arctic Monkeys. While they are the guests on Saturday Night Live tonight...and I must have heard that in the background on the television while I was typing the blogpost...they are not the band Eric and I both love, but rather, that would be Arcade Fire.

I'll let you know Sunday or Monday what I really think of the Arctic Monkeys after I see them "live". They're the ones who did all the internet promo and other weird related stuff to get famous in a deliberate, shrewd business plan on the order of the White Stripes, who, in my opinion, are the most overrated band of this millenium and while I normally adore Jon Stewart and Conan O'Brien, I've lost a bit o'respect for both of them because they are White Stripes groupies. Now come on. There isn't one Rock School All-Star or even one kid on the Rock School B team who can't play circles around those two; plus, their stage presence is just plain WEIRD. And their songwriting -- in the words of the late George Harrison..."it's been done". (and better)

So yeah, add the White Stripes to my U2 and Aerosmith list as bands which will be playing on the soundtrack in hell when I die. (You realize I do not believe in hell, but it's my standard line)

Anyway, I'm a wreck, I just sent something to a new potential agent; I'm waiting to hear from an editor regarding a story I revised for their magazine...arghh...and I continue to plug away at the new novel with my fingers crossed that I know what the hell I'm doing. Plus, I'd entered my Neil Gaiman essay in a contest and the judges just announced they've extended the deadline by one month. This tells me one of two things. Either they hate every single essay they've received so far (and that of course would include mine), or, only two people entered and they have a grand total of $26.00 prize money. Either/or, it doesn't look good, huh.

What the hell, I'll try and be optimistic. I mean, what other choice do I have? Well, except for the dreaded simul-subbing...

One final note on writing: Here is the absolute best list I've stumbled on yet as concerns places for writers to submit: The Big Ass List of Pubs.

And on a private, personal note: I love you, Dan. I've been devastated that you think otherwise. I play around a lot in this blog and sometimes joking doesn't translate well on line. I love all Rock School kids, but especially those with whom I've had the pleasure of touring and seeing in concert with my kids. I think you all are the most amazing group of human beings I've ever met. But yeah, I admit when it comes to Julie and Eric, I can be, um, a little over-sensitive and protective even though they're both bigger, smarter, and more mature than I am. But I'm working on it, I'm working on it.

Later,
xo

Robin Slick and Neil Gaiman - together again at last

Ha ha - so here is our official portrait. I can thank David Niall Wilson for his photoshop skills and the fact that despite being a brilliant, respected writer, he has a nine to five job working for the government and therefore has plenty of time on his hands during the day.

Here we are taking a stroll on the beach. Neil is obviously cold blooded (he's really bundled up, isn't he?) while I on the other hand am always hot...


Err...is it just me or does Neil have three arms? Woo hoo - I like those possibilities.

Actually, in case you are reading this blog today for the first time, you need to know that I have a running joke here that I'm in lust with Neil Gaiman and in the comments section of yesterday's blog post, David Niall Wilson and I giggled back and forth about the various uses of photoshop after he presented me with a photo of yours truly and the evil, ugly Kenny Chesney. David was then kind enough to make it up to me by sending me Neil and Robin photos.

And the reason I'm messing around here now is that I really needed a laugh. I know I have a very cool, interesting life but every once in a while, reality rears its head and my said life is far from perfect so I figured I'd use this forum to let off a little steam by having some fun with these pics.

Oh crap, here's Neil with my decapitated head in his backpack as a result of spending a couple of hours listening to me babble non-stop during our walk.



Oh nooo...I bet he's going to bury it in the snow among all those trees where no one will ever find me.

And to think - a mere few hours ago we were out frolicking in the sunshine.

Sigh...I'll never learn to shut up, will I.

Neil, you could have just stuck a gag in my mouth. (Oh right, I might have liked that.)

Anyway, as you can tell, my legs and torso made it home okay, but did you ever try and get dressed while missing your head? I'm guessing a turtleneck sweater is out of the question today.

Oh well. I'll be back. I'm going out in search of a new brain -- I'm thinking I'll take Lorrie Moore's -- and for a head...hmmm...Catherine Zeta Jones? Catherine is gonna be pissed as hell to find herself stuck with my out of shape body, but trust me, Lorrie Moore will bitch slap her if she puts up a fuss.

Ha.

Ack, in reality it's back to writing/revising my new novel and struggling with self-doubt.

The usual.

Later,
xo

Extra, Extra, Read All About It, The Pinball Wizard Has a Miracle Cure...nah...more like, further adventures with Google, etc.

Eric Slick behind the drums at NAMM, January, 2006

Yay! Project Object is in the process of updating their website and Eric Slick is now on the front page! And if you click on "tour dates" there are links to buy tickets to many of the upcoming shows.

So yesterday was way cool -- my blog was mentioned on DGM Live and I ended up meeting all of these really interesting fellow music lovers from literally all over the world who've e-mailed me regarding Adrian Belew and his recent stint with Rock School.

Somehow while corresponding with all of these people I was given this link and if you are a music nut like I am, this will be a fun blog for you to visit daily.

Speaking of blogs, I am a member of a lit blog which is both different and weird so naturally I signed up. Apparently today I'm featured in a little game they play from time to time. I haven't really gotten into using the site to its fullest potential yet but if you are a writer, check it out because you may want to join the site. If you are merely one of my bored readers, at least click on the link and play. Apparently you get to move a photo of my head around but whether you win a prize for turning me into Angelina Jolie or something I can't tell you. Hey, tell you what, if you figure it out, email me and let ME know because I'm too ADD this morning to play myself.

Further adventures on Google: I see Three Days in New York City is being sold on a Christianity website under "religion and spirituality". Ha! That's my first real smile of the day. Should I send them an excerpt from the first chapter? Maybe this one?

"I want you to unpack and show me each item you've brought."

Okay, this is hot but as I'm kneeling down I agonize that my naked ass looks like curds of cottage cheese above the black, sheer thigh high stockings, and even though I've consumed like only two egg whites and four lettuce leafs in the six weeks since we planned this trip, my body gave birth to two children and my stomach will never be flat again. So I try to suck in my gut, keep my balance, and be a sexy game show model all at the same time while I remove each item for his inspection and approval.

Out come the handcuffs, so normal and pedestrian, he immediately tosses them aside. The silk blindfold causes him to smile. But when I hand him the crop, he laughs out loud.

"What the bloody hell is this? A toy for children?"

I think of the more elaborate whips in the sex shop. Hard leather with spikes -- just seeing them caused me apprehension. I bought the beginner model made of leather so soft it felt like velvet. It's short with several hanging suede laces – kind of looks like a horse's tail. Actually, in his hands right now it looks more like a limp dick.

"I'm sorry," I mumble.

"Elizabeth, you coward," he laughs. He starts tickling my naked back with it, running it up and down. "Show me what else you have in that bag."

He continues to lightly run the crop back and forth, up and down, teasing my neck, my shoulders, both arms; and then I show him the nipple clamps. His face brightens when he sees them and he puts down the crop, but not before smacking me with it hard on the ass. Ha! It doesn't hurt at all. Good for me and my wimpishness!

He rips off the packaging and I shiver when I see those screws.

"Stay on your knees," he says, climbing up on the bed and sitting facing me. He attempts to apply the clamps. Yow! This is pain, too, but I think I can handle it -- when he bit me that hurt a lot worse. But the crystal hearts are heavy -- they won't stay on.

"I don't think your tits are right for these," he complains.

Yeah, well, what I want to know is, whose are?"

Ha ha - if you want to read more, you can order Three Days in New York City by clicking on the Amazon link on the right hand side of this blog or get yourself an autographed copy off the Phaze site here. In case you want, um, instant gratification, you can also order the digital version of this book off of my publisher's site right here.

I was not, however, amused to see the following when I googled my name:

Slick Breast, Horny blonde babe showing all her pink goodness!

or even worse --

OFFICIAL KENNY CHESNEY FAN CLUB
Robin Slick: In Her Own Write: April 2005

Oh my god, how appalling is that! Trust me, I never have been or will be a Kenny Chesney fan let alone be in his fucking fan club! (I'd much rather be a horny blonde babe showing all her pink goodness ha ha ha)

In other news, I obviously use blogspot as my "server" here...and too funny, when you go to www.blogger.com, which is the dashboard for this blog, they always have a little list on the right hand side "Blogs We've Noticed Lately"...and oh god, they actually list Neil Gaiman today. C'mon guys, gimme a break. You're just noticing his blog? He gets probably 100,000 hits a day already...you're gonna crash his server and make all of his daily readers cry.

But okay, I admit it: My goal is to some day be on that "Blogs We've Noticed" list.

(Though not for being a member of the official Kenny Chesney fan club I hope)

I'm sure I have more news -- I do have more news -- but both kiddies are out of the house early today and I've fallen behind on my writing, so I really need to go upstairs with my pen and journal and get the hell off line!

Later...
xo

Odds and Sods for Tuesday, March 7

A couple more photos of my daughter, Julie, playing bass on City of Tiny Lights with Adrian Belew at the Knitting Factory in NY Sunday night...alas you cannot see son Eric on the drums...but here he is in a pretty bad shot where I totally cut off Paul's head and show Julie and Julia from behind...sorry...hey, I'm a writer, not a photographer!



Two things I just heard on the news I that made me giggle...sort of...

Yanni, that new age musical wonder (snort), was arrested for verbally abusing and then hitting his girlfriend; (I'm not laughing that he did this or making light of the crime itself, mind you, I'm laughing that it's "Yanni")

Madonna's daughter just saw the video clip where she kissed Britney Spears at the MTV Awards...or was it the Grammys...all crap, I get them confused...and asked her mother "Are you gay?" And Madonna replied "I am the mommy pop star and she is the baby pop star and I am kissing her to pass my energy on to her".

Yes, I just heard this on CNN so it must be true.

I will now puke up my breakfast.

My photos and blurb here about Adrian Belew made it on to DGM Live this morning -- and it turns out I was linked by a very cool guy. Wait until Eric wakes up and reads his creds and his blogposts...I just had a most enjoyable time doing that very thing.

Eric is still pretty freaked out about meeting Adrian. I mean, Adrian has only played with Eric's idols - Bill Bruford, Terry Bozzio, and Danny Carey. So can you imagine what this feels like for a drummer barely nineteen years old?

I want my son's life. By the way, his tour with Project Object is just about set give or take a couple weeks in May so here's where he'll be starting April 12:

Project/Object - The Music Of Frank Zappa Apr-May 06 Special Guest: IKE WILLIS

April
12 Philadelphia, PA World Café W/SCHOOL OF ROCK ALLSTARS!!
13 Sayreville, NJ Starland Ballroom w/ MAHAVISHNU PROJECT!
14 Albany, NY Valentine's
15 Burlington, VT Higher Ground
16 Northampton, MA Iron Horse Music Hall
17 Providence, RI The Century
18 Boston, MA Harpers Ferry
19 New Haven, CT Toad's
20 OFF
21 Cleveland, OH Beachland Ballroom
22 Chicago Martyrs
23 St. Louis, MO Cicero's
24 Detroit, MI Magic Bag
25 Cincinnati Poison Room
26 Milwaukee, WI Shank Hall
27 Louisville, KY Headliners
28 Asheville, NC Stella Blue
29 Atlanta, GA 5 Spot

May
7 New York, NY BB King's Blues

Like I said, I am going to hit as many as these cities as I can...really looking forward to it. Eric isn't listed as their new drummer on their actual front web page yet but if you click on "news" on the left hand side and and scroll down to their post of February 4, 2006, you'll be able to read all about him.

So the moment you've all been waiting for -- my capsule review of Neil Gaiman's MirrorMask. Actually, I'm lazy and admittedly no movie critic so I'll just copy my remark in the comments section to Susan Henderson:

"I know I'm prejudiced, but I had the best time watching MirrorMask today. Since fantasy isn't my usual genre I have nothing to compare it with so I absolutely adored it and thought it was incredibly creative - both the writing and the film itself."

So that's my thumbs up for what it's worth. I see it's coming to Comcast pay per view March 31 in case you don't get around to scoring the DVD.

Speaking of Susan by the way, click on the link and read her compelling blogpost today. Also, I see that Sue scooped me on our writer pal Bob Thurber who has some pretty exciting news -- actually, now you have to go to Sue's page to read all about it as well as an excerpt from Bob's incredible award winning story.

Finally, you MUST watch this, courtesy of my new favorite website,

Okay, I think that's enough excitement for today. Back upstairs to work on the novel.

Later..
xo

Yep, I was crazy enough to go to New York last night to see Julie and Eric Slick play one song with Adrian Belew

Adrian Belew with Julie Slick on bass and Julia Ranier on guitar and hidden as usual where you can't see him on the drums, Eric Slick


Aha! There's Eric, along with Julie and Julia and that's Foster on the keyboards

Some more...



So last night was amazing! I'm still on a high from it.

I still don't believe how the whole thing panned out.

Last blog post, I was a bundle of nervous energy, wondering if I should take the two hour trek to New York on a Sunday night to see my son play one song with Adrian Belew at the Knitting Factory. My daughter was also invited to play, but she works as a server at a restaurant on Sundays and is very conscientious and wouldn't call in sick.

I knew it was going to be a surprise to Eric that he was playing -- though as it turns out, he was having the best day ever being Adrian's roadie and hanging out with him and impressing him so much that when Eric brought Adrian over to say hello, Adrian told us that he'd love to have Eric come down to Nashville and maybe do some future project with him. Gary of course had to grab me by the elbow so I didn't swoon but I managed not to be my usual dorky self -- probably because I was so whipped by the end of the evening.

But I digress...

So I figured eventually Eric was going to get the news he was playing and he was going to call me and then I would most likely have to drag Gary out of his Sunday coma and make him drive me to New York to see our son. By this time, I'd given up on Julie because it was now late afternoon and she never phoned me.

But Eric never called, and when I tried to call him, it was obvious he was hanging with the cool kids and didn't want to talk with his mom, so I figured, okay, he must not want me to come up to New York...he's just playing on one song, blah blah blah. So I get comfortable in my p.j.s, and woo hoo, I have Neil Gaiman's MirrorMask on DVD which I am really looking forward to watching, when I hear my cell phone (which has the lovely ring of the actual Bob Dylan version of Along the Watchtower. Ah, I love technology. The sound of the telephone ringing used to make me cringe..well, the phone still makes me cringe, but at least I'm in love with my ring tone).

It was now 4:00 p.m. and I'm like Oh my god, you're kidding me. Because it wasn't Eric, it was Julie, who was calling me from the restaurant, telling me she'd be home in twenty minutes, and could I please ask Daddy for her if he'd drive her to New York because as it turned out, she wanted to play with Adrian Belew after all in a big way.

"Oh god, why can't you call Daddy?" (picturing him in bed in the fetal position snoring after most likely watching the Phillies' spring exhibition game on television and basically shutting out the world until Monday morning)

"Mommmmmmmmmm"

"Oh alright, I'll do it. Sure. Feed me to the lions. See if I care."

Just kidding. No one is prouder of his kids than Gary, and since he's a guitarist, I didn't exactly have to twist his arm to see Julie and Eric play with Adrian Belew.

So I threw on clothes, Julie came bursting through the door, changed...Gary pulled up...we hopped in the car...and it was now 5:10.

"What time does the show start, Julie?"

"Doors open at 6:00; show starts at 7:00 p.m."

I watched the clock on the car nervously. If there was no traffic, we could make it by 7:00 barely. If we hit traffic, we'd be doomed.

"Julie, call Eric and tell him we're on the way."

This I did at 5:20. Have I mentioned what a nervous wreck I am? I couldn't keep my eyes off that clock the entire time because I kept imagining us driving all the way to New York and getting there late and finding out that they already performed City of Tiny Lights without Julie.

You have no idea what a nightmare that would have been for me on all counts. Julie, her father....arghhh....very, um, emotional people. (This is, of course, why they are also incredible musicians so while I've come to accept this insanely emotional behavior, I'm still never quite prepared for the ensuing explosions even though they pass quickly)

Oh happy day...I mean night...we hit absolutely no traffic...just a five minute jam at the Holland Tunnel...and it's only 6:45 p.m. But I don't allow myself to stop hyperventilating even though I know that the Knitting Factory is basically walking distance from the tunnel...and naturally, I must have given off those vibes because even though we've been to the Knitting Factory like ninety times, we veered to the left off Beach Street instead of taking the right fork which would have taken us to Broadway, so Gary made some insane cowboy U-turns there and oh my god, 6:59 we pull up at the Knitting Factory and you can't even believe this, there's a parking spot...legal and free...right outside.

We rush inside and the place was packed! Considering it was Oscar night, this was pretty damn impressive, but Adrian Belew has some devoted fans.

As I stood at the bar catching my breath, Julie walked over and laughed and said "Guess what, Paul isn't bringing Eric and me out until the final song."

Whew.

Eric ran over and hugged me and I found out he did know he was playing City of Tiny Lights but had just found out an hour ago, and he already knew I was on the way. But seriously, had I known he was playing Saturday night, I would have definitely made plans to be there Sunday for sure....but then Julie would have been screwed out of a ride to New York and she wouldn't have gotten to play...so strangely enough, the whole thing worked out perfectly.

Anyway, the show. It was INCREDIBLE! What an enjoyable couple of hours, hearing songs which spanned Adrian's entire career - Heroes, which he did with David Bowie; two of my all time favorite King Crimson songs from the eighties - Three of a Perfect Pair and Frame by Frame...and then he said "Many years ago, an alien came down to earth..and he was amazing...he was with us for a short time...and he gave us this...."

And he fucking launched into Purple Haze.

The whole crowd sang along. "Excuse me while I kiss the sky!"

Magic. The night was magic.

And then for the last song, Paul introduced Julie and Eric, and they came out and did City of Tiny Lights with Adrian and brought the house down. You know me, I was crying, so that's why the photos are wobbly again...but I have plenty more so I'll try and see if I can find some better ones when I'm less out of it.

Adrian had jammed with Julie a couple weeks ago but there were so many other musicians there at the time he was a bit overwhelmed and had forgotten Julie and Eric were brother and sister. So after the show, he talked with Gary and me again and said he couldn't believe it -- he congratulated us on having two such talented kids...you know me, tears again...like I said, I'm on a high from which it will probably take all day to come down.

I think this would be a good time to watch MirrorMask. It looks very cool and even cooler, something I normally would never have sought out on my own but ever since I read Gaiman's Smoke and Mirrors in September I've been down several strange paths, the latest of which had me writing my first science fiction piece. Crazy, huh. Though I've already been told "Hey, this isn't science fiction, this is just another thinly disguised Robin Slick sex, drugs, and rock and roll story".

That was me who said that. Ha.

Okay...I'll be back later with a review and any other news Eric feeds me when he wakes up -- which I imagine will be sometime around noon.

Later,
xo