Happy New Year

Everyone please be safe in celebration. Wishing you all a successful and happy 2009. And, Happy Birthday today, Cheryl!

NEW YEAR'S DAY UPDATE

We went to see Michael Grimm's early show at Green Valley Ranch and then just came home. Watched the midnight fireworks on TV and then just went to bed. My niece April got in from Michigan yesterday morning, to surprise Aunt Cheryl. Cheryl goes back to Walnut Creek this Sunday, and April will be here 'til Jan 10th. She'll be at the Santa Fe gig Monday night.

Our 2008 blog traffic tallies up at 36,629 page views by 14,282 individual visitors, and our December 2008 visitor traffic is up 85% over December 2007 (1,586 / 850).

The blog continues to grow. Please pay it forward. Each one reach at least two, and urge them to reciprocate.

ODYSSEY THIS WEEKEND AT MONTE CARLO

Excellent band. Try to get by and check 'em out. We'll probably go tomorrow night.

SATURDAY UPDATE: ODYSSEY LAST NIGHT

I think they must have expanded the Brew Pub at The Monte Carlo, I don't remember it being so big. The stage is all the way down at the end of the room, which puts the band pretty far away from the crowd. They have a computerized stage light grid, but pretty much used it in "disco dancing mode" last night -- swirling robo-strobe fresnels in cadence, no spots aimed on the individuals, and the overall illumination is not that good. Tough photo environment. Odyssey is a fine band, though, well worth a trip to hang (warning: parking at MC totally sux).

Interesting sound setup: no monitors, everyone was wearing earpieces. Surely they don't have them custom-fitted for everyone in every act that comes in there. Howard told me he had a difficult time hearing episodically. No amps either; everything is direct-patched to the Front of House.