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The Reunion
Back in my final years of high school, I had gotten together with a few young musicians and we tried the whole 'band' thing. And it worked. But, due to one guy becoming a born again Christian, another getting this new thing called a ‘girlfriend’, and my early dabbling in radio put that baby to bed. Well, not really. In college I joined another band called Piece By Peace which was interesting….but it’s all hazy. I spent more time partying than anything else. But when I sang, I felt free. Things were cool once up on stage. But once again, the partying. I would have made the Allman Brothers back stage antics look like a tea party with some of the friends I made in that time. At any rate, I took another dive about 5 years ago with some friends from work. Bobby Blower was the bassist, (He says his name is pronounced Blauer like flower; which makes me also think, well why doesn’t he say is first name as Bowb?) Bob Blinebury on Guitar (who is very good btw), Tom McGarrity on Triangle, and of course me on Drums. They were the worst jam sessions ever. But, I still loved them. They were so much fun. Our band was called Joker’s Wild and to make a long story short, we split up a few years back. So I had gotten a phone call from Blinebury about getting the band back together. Well, we were a trio. Hours of talking and beer drinking led to nothing but a 33 minute set with constant returns to the laundry room for refreshments. All in all, a great time in Palmyra with the chills on the way back. I love those guys.
The Feast Of The Seven Polish Fishes
Saturday was a day of last minute touch ups on my script for the final part of the top 100. For some unknown reason to me and my internet provider, my script became corrupted. In essence I had to rewrite the whole thing again. Eh…good thing I kept notes. My good friend Pole had the 35th annual Feast Of The Seven Polish Fishes. Once I arrived, I fell in love. Not with Trina, but the lump crab deviled eggs. They were fabulous. Here is what was on the menu the rest of the night:


Appetizers
Crawfish dip - mmmm
Clams casino – Was never a big fan but the crowd went wild.
Crabmeat deviled eggs – So good I cried.
Kielbasa – Didn’t partake
Sweet bay scallop chowder – To die for.

Main courses
Shrimp and crab bake – I heard they were good
Crab cakes -- AWESOME
Seafood lasagna – Looked great
Oyster and Cajun sausage casserole – Didn’t see it to be honest.
Turducken – Looked great but I didn’t eat it.
Scallops Florentine – Didn’t see it.
Chili – Didn’t see it.
Chicken bites in roasted red pepper sauce – Saw it but passed.

Desserts
Toblerone and marshmallow fondue (I left at this point for the station)
Pumpkin pie
Frozen peanut butter pie
It was a success for the Pole. Met some cool people as well, including a guy named Anthony that was no joke on his love for jazz, its musicians, and its Philadelphia roots. We hit it off excellently and gained a new listener. See that? I am always networking.
Post Partum Depression
This was it. The third and final part of the 11th annual Top 100 CD’s of the year. The show I wait the most for….almost like a kid waiting for Christmas. The show began with Roger Lee taking a headcount online and it was discovered that this was clearly the most listened to show of 2006. We kicked it off at #30 and the disc from Terje Rypdal and the powerful Vossabryg, then moved into Ray Russell’s Goodbye Svengali. The rest of the night was a blur. Until the final 10. I started feeling my intensity as we got closer….I was on track in rare form with the clock as well. I knew they were listening, and the numbers were pulsating higher. Calls came in from everywhere; South Carolina, Ottawa Canada, The Jersey Pines, San Francisco, New York City, Montreal, Phoenix, and the Jersey shore. I may have forgotten some other calls. At any rate, as the countdown got closer to number one, I started getting tenser. I was getting more excited as I closed in. Even the Polish Feast attendees were listening as I corrected my engagement status with other listeners that obviously couldn’t take a joke. Poor Trina. The final 10 rolled down while I am answering instant messages, answering phones, answering emails and trying to fit a cigarette in the midst of the chaos. In the meantime, I was happy to hear from Ben who kept me somewhat grounded during the buildup to the finish. Then the final 5. Then, 4….then 3….then 2….then 1. The top 100 was over. Pure Reason Revolution was the #1 album of 2006 in voting and rightly so. All that work that began Halloween weekend with the kick off of the internet poll, poor Joe being a referee from 10/31 to 11/23, me being a tyrant and checking frequently to see what was happening in votes every end of the day, adding CD’s forgotten in the original list, answering emails related to (directly and indirectly) the poll, then having to talk with notable outsiders to make sure it ‘seemed’ right. When all was said and done it was like I just gave birth….to a statistician for a record company. I felt deflated. It was done. The top 100 of 06 is finished. Wow. It’s over. Every year I feel this way at the end but this one seemed almost like…..hmm…..like a football team that was firing on all cylinders going into the playoffs. That’s pretty much how it felt….this was the most organized team on paper going into it. But, like so many things in life, it came to an end. I later drove to Big Bob’s and received feedback including seeing Rohario who has recently left his paid post along with several other old schoolers from my company. All I can say is, I beat you Alan. I outlasted you. I won. God works in strange ways eh? Now I just wish I had one of those crab filled deviled eggs.
Just An Earthbound Misfit, I
Sunday I awoke late again, this time halfway through the first quarter of the Eagles game against the ‘Skins. My mom left 3 messages wondering if I was alive. I called back to see us up 21-3. I was happy…well kinda. I knew it was too good to be true. And it was, we won 21-19. Eagles must play better next week to beat the filth of the NFL in the Giants. After the game I rushed back home to get ready for the Australian Pink Floyd show that Salty Serlenga was adamant that I go to. I have seen The Machine before, and tons of bar bands play the music of Pink Floyd. But they said that this was the real deal sound wise. So, Big Bob was our limo driver yet again, and was well equipped. By 6:00, Bob arrived with a van packed full of people. The 2 Dans, Josh, Chris and Salty. We stopped off at Benash liquor store and then Wawa, and made our way to the city of brotherly love. Once we arrived, the queen was a monarch, and the trees were in full bloom. We tailgated for a solid 45 minutes and entered the Tower Theater. I sat with Salty who once again was disappearing every 20 minutes to get a beer, soda, and water. I hardly moved from my seat, only to pee but the set went like this, beginning to end:
FIRST SET
Shine On You Crazy Diamond (parts 1-5) - Incredible and literally sounded like the CD
What Do You Want From Me – It was almost like no one in the crowd knew this song. I was like wooooo!
Time – It’s not that hate Dark Side Of The Moon, but I can turn a radio on and find this at anytime.
On The Turning Away – I couldn’t help but get misty….how profound this song is and done so well.
Dogs – One of the greatest Floyd songs of all time done brilliantly by the Aussies
Take It Back – Another great song from Division Bell that I couldn’t help but reflect.
Eclipse – I went to get a beer at this point.
SECOND SET
Astronomy Dominy – Incredible actually. Not to mention an all time fav….The light show w/lasers was awesome.
Learning To Fly – This is when I noticed how creative the stage show really was. Lot of stuff going on during this.
Great Gig In The Sky – The back up singer almost brought me to orgasm. I mean it. My eyes were teary…
Money – See Time above
Us And Them – See Money above (also went to get a beer and a smoke and saw some friends from highschool)
Pigs (Three Other Ones) – YES! THE PIG WAS OUT!!! AWESOME! I didn’t see it until halfway through the song.
One Of These Days – Bass player kicked ass.
Set Your Controls For The Heart Of The Sun – Blown away they did this one live.
Nobody Home – Touching. Really touching. I so relate to that part of the Wall.
Comfortably Numb – Left for home with the gang.

We made it back into Jersey before you knew it…. My thoughts reflect on the Eagles next game against the dirty, filthy, classless New York Giants. Eagles win 31-16 this coming weekend. I could be wrong, but it’s how I feel at this point. If they in fact win, the Eagles could be scary moving into the playoffs. I decided the couch would be my friend tonight. The lights dimmed, the temperature dropped, and I fell asleep amidst the backdrop of the NFL Network week 14 highlights…all was well at the dead end court. I write this in 18.

This Program Ran 4 Hours And 15 Minutes.