This Yellow Taxi Cab In Which I Ride

I am at Uncommon Grounds in Saratoga listening to my iTunes on shuffle. I'm trying desperately to remove the god awful lyrics and music from my brain that have been stuck on repeat for the last few hours. It's shortly after the Saratoga Lip Dub wrapped up filming. I got to be a small part of it along with a great group of Caffe Lena folks. I'm a big fan of lip dubs. If you are unfamiliar with what a lip dub is, Wikipedia is your friend. So is Youtube. I have actually had the idea of doing a lip dub in Saratoga for some time, but since I don't have the funds or the pull with any organization that has the funds, I have not been spreading my idea. A group with the funds and the pull and the backing of the Common Council went ahead planned out an elaborate lip dub on Broadway in Saratoga and invited many Broadway business and Caffe Lena to be a part of it. I got involved when I was asked by a Caffe Lena performer if I would like to show up and be a part of it. He didn...

I have not been blogging for quite a while. Mostly because my blog has been somewhat broken. Actually, it was my website that was broken and it wasn't posting the blog on the homepage the way it had previously. I attempted a bunch of different "fixes" and eventually decided to use a java script widget as a replacement for the php that had been there. I'm sure little of that makes sense unless you are a computer programmer of some sort. I'm feeling quite "blahhh" right now. I'm stuck at home being on-call for work and on-call has been rather full-of-calls tonight. My allergies have been acting up... it's that time of year. I took Benadryl Monday night on top of my normal allergy meds and then felt like a zombie for the past two days. When you are on extra, zombie-inducing allergy medications, it's hard to focus and write songs. It's even harder to focus and write songs when you are trying really hard but failing at not itching your eyes ou...

There seems to be something wrong with the blog transferring to the homepage of my site. I'm not really sure why. This is just a test post to see if things will correct themselves with a fresh posting.

I have been a lousy blogger. It's been like a month since my last posting. Although, it's my blog... so, technically, I can blog whenever I want and no one can tell me I'm being lousy. So... there. It's getting late on a Wednesday -- a work night. However, tomorrow is my Friday since I took the real Friday off this week. I'm getting a four-day weekend out of the deal and I'm pretty darn excited about it. I took a mini vacation from work about a month ago, but ever since I've been back, I've been slammed with crisis after crisis. Things have finally begun to normalize and I actually caught up on stuff that I was way behind in. So, I earned a long weekend! I like taking Fridays off because Thursday is Open Mic Night at Lena's and at the Circus Cafe. Without having to work on Friday, I feel more free to enjoy myself. No restraints on needing to be in bed by a somewhat decent hour. Woo! Friday, I'm planning on grabbing some camping supplies (a really...

When I was a wee lad... when I was a little kid, there were times when my dad would take me places (grocery store, ice cream place, his work, etc) -- typical type places where a dad would take his kid -- and on such occasions, we would run into people-that-my-dad-knows. Being a courteous person, my dad would introduce me to such people. Sometimes, my dad would say, "Hey-hey, (person's name). How are you? This is my son (James)*" And my dad would turn to me and say "(James), this is (person's name)." My dad would then explain to me how this person is someone-that-he-knows. Most of the time, some light conversation would ensue while I drifted off into some dream-like/euphoric state of mind. However, there were times when my dad added that this person whom he just introduced to his son "is a Ball-Buster." A "Ball-Buster?" At some point, my dad had explained to me what a "Ball-Buster" was. It's someone who "busts balls....

My eyes are all eff'd up. I have been staring at my computer screen for the last three and a half hours. I had attempted to take a break a little while ago, but it was pouring outside and, besides, I was so close to finishing what I was working on... that was about an hour ago. As usual, I'm hanging out in Uncommon Grounds. When I got here 2:30, it was muggy and sunny out. I was going to have lunch, busk for a bit, and then return to the cafe for a cold drink and typing. After first walking to the Sauve Faire (to look at hats), I decided it was too hot for busking and opted to get my cold drink right away. While eating lunch, a bagel sandwich (these things always taste so fucking fresh -- it's amazing! I need an Uncommon Grounds in my kitchen...), I ripped some mp3s on to my computer and transferred them to my iPod. I'm in the process of doing this with a good portion of my CDs, trying to get a good mix on the iPod. I do a little at a time because it's a daunting ta...

Okay. It's a dog. Good. Now, I can go back to being upset at other people instead of myself. It all started when I opened my windows about a month and a half ago. It was warmish out in March for a few days and I opened some of the windows in my house to let some cool/fresh air in. I closed them shortly after that and then opened them again and closed them again and... you get the picture. Now that it's been consistently warm out, the windows have remained in some state of open-ness for a good week and a half. When you open your windows in the spring time, two things come into your home. The first thing is spring-time air. Sometimes, it's air that is still on the chilly side, but you let it in because you want some fresh air to replace what has been sitting in your house since last Fall. Sometimes, it's because it really is too warm in your house to survive, even with the heat off, that you require some cooler spring-time air to bring the temperature down to something yo...

I came home from work today with the intention of mowing my lawn... I was sidetracked when as soon as I walked in the back door, the front doorbell rang. I answered the door (despite my having-to-go-to-the-bathroom) because I didn't think there was going to be anyone there. I didn't see anyone on the street when I pulled in my driveway and the doorbell that I own operates on frequencies and has been known to randomly go off without anyone around to push the button. To my dismay there were two dick-ish looking men standing there with shark-esque smiles on their faces. The taller of the two was wearing a full-on, ill-fitting suit. My mind instantly went to "these are guys are going to try to sell me something... probably a gas provider." "I don't have time right now," was my introduction. The shorter guy with fierce eyes (I wasn't listening to what he said. Instead, I simply noted his pushy salesman-ness and general jerk-face-ery for laughs later on. I...

I'm confused. A "bachelor" is a single man. Correct? Yet, a "bachelor party" is for the dude that is getting married. Simply put: WTF? I just snagged this from merriam-webster.com: Definition of BACHELOR 1: a young knight who follows the banner of another 2: a person who has received what is usually the lowest degree conferred by a 4-year college, university, or professional school ; also : the degree itself 3a : an unmarried man b : a male animal (as a fur seal) without a mate during breeding time There is no definition for "bachelor party." (And that's probably a good thing.) Webster's 3a definition soothed my confusion. However, from now on I'm going to tell people that I am an animal without a mate at breeding time. It's Sunday around 7:00pm and I'm chilling outside on a soft cushioned bench/swing. It's a perfect temperature, though, I imagine it will start to get cold soon when the sun starts t go down. It has been a prett...

Today has been the type of day in which taking multiple deep breaths does not seem to result in anything other than hyperventilation. I wrote this song lyric a few months ago and haven't been able to do anything with it, but it pretty much reiterates what I just wrote: It's been another one of those long days the kind that break you take your breath away I've been sprawled out on my bed since work trying to decide if I'm hungry enough to bother making food, thirsty (?) enough to go get a beer, desiring enough to watch hockey at a bar, or in need of socializing with drunks enough to get food/beer/hockey at Partner's Pub. I may just type out this blog, hit submit, and just roll over and go to sleep. I could get into the specifics of my work day, but that won't really make me feel any better about it. The bottom line is that I have gone a couple of years at my current position without having a conflict of interest between my job duties and bureaucracy. That ended v...

Eleven o'clock. Friday. I'm still in bed, but I'll be getting up shortly. I'm starving and I've rested enough. Big night coming up! It's the Garage to Glory Finals. Truth be told, I'm nervous/anxious/etc. Actually, I'm not sure if it's an anxious feeling or an excited feeling... maybe it's both with some nervousness added in. Tonight is going to be wild... the event itself is going to be full of much more than just songs. There is a host who will be chatting with people on stage. There is a person doing interviews after performances. A TV crew. Multiple cameras. It's going to be wild. Part of my nervousness is coming from all of the production. I've been telling myself that I just have to focus on me and doing what I do, which is playing my songs. If I can convince my body to stop freaking out about everything else, I'll have no problem. I've played for big crowds before. And I've played in new/unfamiliar places. I've play...

Catchy title, eh? It all makes sense in my mind... I can't sleep. It's only just about my bed time, but I'm logging on now to blog because we all know that I'm going to end up here eventually anyway. (Insomnia) I have trouble sleeping in general. I have extra trouble sleeping when my mind is running in circles about one particular thing or another. I have extra, extra trouble sleeping when I'm excited about being voted into the Finals of a songwriter contest that I entered. Not to mention it's rather stormy out at the moment. (Storminess) It's the first thunderstorm of the season (not exactly sure which season since -- technically -- it's spring, but today was so warm it felt like summer) and the wind is whipping and wind chimes are... chimming (leave it to my neighbors to have wind chimes out already). During the last storm (a winter storm) that we had, many tree limbs fell and littered my yard. One particularly large limb fell in my front yard and acro...

It's late ... early ... dark out on Sunday night. I just got threw watching a movie called Monsters . I had seen a preview for it months ago and then read reviews that it was poorly made. The premise of the film is that there are alien beings tromping around in an area in northern Mexico near the United States border. According to the poor reviews, all of the scenes that actually had the aliens in them were shown in the preview and there were only pieces of the aliens shown. In other words, everything is happening off screen. This was pretty much true of the movie. The aliens were often "off screen," but this didn't take away from the movie at all. It was quite similar to Cloverfield , which I absolutely loved because it focused on the characters and their plight rather than the monster. Similarly, Monsters wasn't at all about the, er... monsters. The aliens were in the background throughout the film and really just provided a reason for the two main characters t...

Do you ever wonder what happens to the people who disappear from the face of the planet? Not the missing person, FBI is involved, people. The people who you text and talk to on the phone and hang out with on some regular basis, who suddenly stop texting, talking to, and hanging out with you. I have quite a few people in mind, who -- over the past year or so -- came in to my life for one reason or another, communicated with me regularly for a period of time, and then disappeared... I like to think that they are all in some purgatory-esque land together where they spend all of their time talking about me... Girl A: "Whoa... wait a sec. Where am I?" Girl B: "Hi there. You must be a former of acquaintance, friend, lover, etc. of James Frederick. Welcome to 'James Who? Land.'" Girl A: "How did I get here?" Girl B: "Simple. You either stopped returning James' calls or stopped responding when he texted you. There is even one girl here who pretend...

I really should be going to sleep (had to get up early for work today and didn't want to get out bed, and was zombie all day), but -- meh -- I'll sleep when I'm dead. I have important things to blog about. I spent this past weekend with my brother, his wife, and their lovely 3-month-old, Liliana. She is the cutest thing EVER. This picture is all the evidence necessary to support such a claim: Okay. Here is another one for good measure. Lily is a pretty unbelievable 3-month-old. She is incredibly active (when she is awake), moving her arms and legs, wiggling around in her parents' arms or in her bassinet. She is making little cooing noises and when she does it, she stops fussing or moving, looks you directly in the eyes, and "talks" to you. She is the most adorable little person I have ever seen. (*Note: there is a part of me -- the logical part -- that tries to tell the other part of me that I'm only saying such things because she is my niece and if she w...

What I really hate about this time of year is the fact that it warms up really nice for a couple of days or a day here and a day there and then goes back to being freezing cold again. The brief warm up does a plethora of strange things to my body including giving it the false sense of knowing that it will continue to get warm ER . Now that it's back to being cold again, I'm freezing. The house is the same temperature it was when it was 50 out a week ago, but I'm freezing. It doesn't make sense. And for that, I hate it. But that is not what this blog is about. This blog is about deciding to make changes to yourself. I'm going to start with my favorite piece of dating advice EVER : Just Be Yourself. Be Yourself is my favorite piece of dating advice because it is the worst piece of dating advice that I can possible think of. True, I have used this phrase at times... but over time, I have realized the pointlessness of it and have begun telling friends who are freaking ...

I'm in Albany at Uncommon Grounds. It is insanely busy. The line has been out the door since I got here about an hour and a half ago. I'm lucky to have a seat that is near an outlet or else I'd be somewhere else. But, I like Uncommon Grounds, even if it is pretty common for it to be busy. I had a chocolate mocha (the don't do white chocolate mochas here?!?!) and a bagel and I am stricken with the coffee jitters... yes, the coffee jitters after just one coffee! Last night I had hung out with a friend who was literally shaking like a leaf and talking non-stop a million miles an hour. As she paced back and forth like a rocket on a leash, she explained that a friend of hers -- who works at a Starbucks -- had given her a triple shot of espresso on top of regular coffee. The sheer amount of caffeine that she in jested is illegal in most states and is the typical dose to energize a sleepy elephant. My friend did not eventually erupt, or spontaneously explode as expected, but t...

9:45 on a Tuesday Night. In Bed. I'm in bed this early for a few reasons. 1) there is currently nothing to do in any other area of the house 2) the only things that I should be doing at this time of night can be done on my lap top, which -- of course -- is portable 3) my bed is the warmest place in the house and I'm cold. I'd really love to be out doing something right now... but it's late-ish and I work in the morning, so I can't really be out and about. I wouldn't mind being out and about, mind you, but there really isn't anyone to be out and about with at this hour and so... it's quite the conundrum, you see. What I want right now is a tropical island (or just a beach or ocean). I want a plane ride and a hotel room. I want warm sand and cool water. I want some waves. I want fire pits and acoustic music. I want a beach party with or' devours (nachos). I want to feel that humid breeze off the ocean late at night. I want to hold her in my arms and ki...

I am lying on my bed in a heap of exhaustion after cleaning out the six plus inches from my driveway. It is still snowing... I'm tired and angry that mother nature is out to destroy me and my personal life. True, I kicked her ass and defied her many a time before. And while I won the battle of my driveway for now, I have resolved myself to give up on my plans for tonight. All this week, I have been looking forward to today. Railbird and Sean Rowe dual CD release show in Albany. Not only was I totally looking forward to this show (Railbird has a pretty engaging sound and Sean Rowe recently reached a huge musician milestone by getting signed by a pretty big label), but I was also meeting up with someone who I had also met up with the week before. Are you happy mother nature? You got me. Now, you owe me big time. How about a little sunshine sooner than expected? I am so tired of winter and so desperately in need of some sunshine that I bought a car air freshener that smells like sun t...

Be Mine. Be. Mine. Two words. Two. Simple. Words. One heavy statement, with only one meaning, but several different implications. Be Mine. When ended with a period is not a question. "Be Mine?" as a question seems innocent and somewhat shy. It can easily be turned down and/or ignored. "Be Mine." on the other hand is direct and commanding. As a command -- it's not something that can be turned down with a simple "no thanks." It's not being asked; it's being told. But what about "be mineee" (note: there are several extra 'e's and no punctuation)? The extra 'e's indicate an urgent need, a plea, if you will. "I need you to be mine." Be Mine = Belong to Me. But what does it mean to belong to someone? Is it different with different people? Is belonging to one person a totally different situation than belonging to someone else? Of course it is. And therein lies the trouble with it. Belonging to one person may requ...