Satellite Radio

Yes I know this is the third posting in one day. Count yourself extremely lucky.

I love satellite radio and here are some of the reasons why.

Commerical free music Imagine whatever type of music you like or are in the mood for and being able to listen to it with little interference from a DJ and no interference because of commercials. Just music.

Variety Imagine a channel dedicated to just about everything. Classical music? Check. Reggae? Check. Music from 1940's only? Check. Former NPR great Bob Edwards? Check. Comedy? XM has 3 comedy channels. Country? Do you mean newer country, older country or really old country and western, as they have all of them. Movie Soundtracks? A whole channel for you. Traffic and Weather? They have individual channels for all of the major cities in the US. They also have channels that play unsigned bands, R&B, Rap, New Age, Jazz, and EVERY Major League Baseball Game. The variety is staggering.

Signal Strength Have you ever taken a long road trip somewhere and go through an area with no radio stations or only stations playing music you dont like? Last fall, I drove from Atlanta to Gatlinburg listening to the same station (static free) all of the way there.

Special Shows A few weeks ago I was able to listen to Bonaroo live. Bonaroo is a large music festival in the middle of Tennessee that lasts 3 or 4 days. People camp out and listen to the music all day long. XM broadcast live some of the bigger names playing there and then some of the small stages throughout the day. South by Southwest in Austin was on a few months back. This week they have Live 8 and Sunday they are broadcasting live and commercial free from Willie Nelson's annual July 4th BBQ.



I find it hard to listen to normal, terrestrial radio anymore.

New News

Next Tuesday, I will have blood drawn as will two potential donors. Tests will be done to crossmatch and see who (if either) is the best match.

The Times are a Changin

Just a short little rant. When I was growing up, Arby's was famous for their "Western Roast Beef" Sandwiches. I am not sure the difference between western and eastern roast beef but ok. They even had a cowboy hat on their sign. Now that cowboy hat has morphed into a potholder. I dont get it. Bring back the hat!

Also, Kentucky Fried Chicken changed their name to KFC because they thought it would have more appeal and be hipper. Now they are playing Lynard Skynard's "Sweet Home Alabama" in the background of their commercials. What does "SHA" have to do with fried chicken? Somebody please tell me. I am not complaining about listening to Skynard. I love Skynard but I just dont see the connection. The only Skynard song I could think of that mentions chickens was "The Ballad of Curtis Lowe" but that chicken is actually a rooster getting ready to crow.

Bang your head

Last night the wifey and I decided to go to "Metalsome Monday". So we went to Virginia Highlands to the 10 High Club located in the basement of the Dark Horse Tavern.

Imagine if you will, Karaoke with a live band so that you can live out your rock and roll fantasies. The band's list of 200 songs leans heavily towards big hair bands of the 80's with some punk and grunge thrown in (and.. how did the Go-Gos get on this list?). The band is very good. The singers are like watching Karaoke... some are good (like the chic that looked like Pat Benetar and sang "Heartbreaker") and some are really, really bad (like the girl that was on
her honeymoon and serenaded her new hubby with some Bon Jovi).

Part of the fun is seeing who shows up. In the past, Butch Walker formerly of the Marvelous 3 has shown up and a couple of months ago Mike Mills from REM was present. Members of Velvet Revolver and Skid Row have also made appearances when in town. Last night we had
the pleasure of seeing and hearing Alan Atkins, the original singer of Judas Priest sing Quiet Riot's metal anthem "Bang Your Head."

I knew better than to sing last night. Besides they make DVD's of your performance to sell so you can live out the glory days over and over....

Picture Book

When the family and I were in Charleston for a week, I blogged that we were thinking of doing a picture book. We used Snapfish to upload all of the pictures and then put them in order with captions and stuff. I did this Monday night. Today the books were delivered. I have to say that I am impressed. Hardcover book with around 20 pages of pictures we took. It looks great! Got a couple extras printed, too. One is for mom and dad (part of a Father's Day present) and the other is part of a belated birthday present for my sister.

I looked at some of the other free photo sites (Ofoto, etc.) and they provide the same thing but Snapfish had some options I liked better and cost a little less. I think all 3 books with shipping (I opted for 2 day shipping) came out to around $60. Not bad.

Now we have hard copies of all of those digital photos already arranged in an album. Cant beat it.

Another Delay

Another Delay to what I was hoping to discuss last week and then tomorrow. Aaargh! I am building this up way to much and most of you probably wont care about it when it happens. Oh well. Hopefully I can post about it the middle of July and discuss why this is getting delayed yet again.

In other news... I am helping put together a fundraiser for the National Kidney Foundation of Georgia on July 14 here in the Atlanta area. A friend of mine is donating a venue, another friend hooked me up with Kevn Kinney formerly of Drivin and Cryin and he was kind enough to agree to play, another friend is helping with the sound system, and another is helping with some publicity. Man I am pumped. I have been a DNC/Kevn Kinney fan for a long time. In the early 90's I helped organize a show at the University I graduated from and even got to intro the band in front of around 8500 people.

Congrats

Atlantan Josh Arieh won his second WSOP bracelet late last night in the $2000 Pot-Limit Omaha game last night. A lot of people dont like Josh (not as many as despise Phil Hellmuth) but I kinda like his aggressive, cocky style. Last year at the WSOP at the main event, ESPN did him really wrong by editing some comments together that helped create some conflict around him. If you watch the replays, notice how on one comment as he starts speaking he is shuffling chips at a table, they cut the camera to something else and come back with a shot of him to finish up whatever it is that they have him saying through the magic of tv editing. In the last shot, notice that he is nowhere near a table or near chips. Yet they way they have his comments, they want you to believe it was all said at one time.

Anyway, a big congrats to Josh for his win.

2nd Blog of the Day

And this one is about my kidneys. In the next week or two (not sure of the exact date yet), Me and two potential donors will have blood drawn within the same 24 hour period of time. Tests will be done to crossmatch between me and each potential donor to see if either is a match (or which one is the best match). This is the next big hurdle to getting a transplant. I'll let you know what happens.

Amatuer Hour on TV

If you happened to have seen someone this morning on an Atlanta tv station that looked like me talking on a cell phone, it was indeed yours truly. The place that I go to for haircuts had called and asked if I wanted to help them out. A morning tv show was going to be doing liveshots from there this a.m. and if I came I could get a free haircut. I needed a haircut and agreed.

I have blogged about how I love this place. It is a men only spa/salon/barbershop. It is barely more than the national discount hair cutting chains that are located in every other strip mall in America. For $25 you get a good haircut, a beverage, they wash your hair, massage your shoulders and neck, and wrap a hot towel around your face. They also have massages, manicures, straight edge razor shaves, and shoe shines available.

So they were open early today to have this free advertising as Father's Day gift ideas. They had hired a "PR Expert" to speak on their behalf and help drum up sales I guess. It would have went much better if they had used the owner instead of this idiot "Expert." One of the two longest live shots the roving reporter guy approches the "expert" who is sitting in a barber chair. She stupidly didnt know that they were at that very moment live on the air. He asked her what a woman was doing at a man's salon and she said that she was primping for his "stupid show" and had been waiting on him for an hour and a half to talk to her. He tried to laugh it off and asked if she knew that they were on live TV? She replied she didnt. Again he tried to assist her out by asking what kind of services they offer here as opposed to a neighborhood barbershop and she replied that wasnt the way the reporter was supposed to ask the question. They sent it back to the anchors in the studio who were laughing at this expert idiot. They gave her another chance later on but the damage was already done. The place received a few phone calls from viewers who said that they wouldnt come after that performance.

I hate it for them. To help them out, I'll post a link to their website later this evening. I really love this place and highly recommend it.

A good read

Saved by desire to help
Road to kidney transplant rerouted to save donor

By PAUL KAPLAN
The Atlanta Journal-Constitution
Published on: 06/11/05

Cindy Gough is a 48-year-old mother of three in Roswell, with 20 years as a flight attendant for Delta Air Lines. Her kidneys are shot and she needs a transplant.

Pat Cusack is a 54-year old divorcé in Marietta, a low-key deep thinker from New York who manages projects for IBM. He's crazy about kids but never had any of his own.

PHIL SKINNER / AJC (ENLARGE)
PHIL SKINNER / Staff Cindy Gough needs a kidney and Pat Cusack was set to help; testing revealed a heart defect that required emergency surgery.
EMAIL THIS PRINT THIS MOST POPULAR

Pat read about Cindy's problem a few years ago in The Georgia Bulletin, the newspaper of the Catholic Archdiocese of Atlanta, and he decided to be tested as an organ donor. The tests showed he was a match for Cindy — and that all four arteries to his heart were blocked. He had emergency open-heart surgery.

So, the woman who needs help to stay alive helped save a life. And the man who tried to save a life, did so, but it was his own.

Both of them were bitterly disappointed.

Cindy's best chance for a kidney had slipped away, and Pat felt terrible about the emotional roller-coaster she'd been put on.

Pat bounced back quickly. He is fit and trim, and that helped. By the first anniversary of his heart surgery, he was back to running 15 miles a week — and Cindy was on kidney dialysis to stay alive.

Pat wrote a letter in March 2004 to Cindy's surgeon, Dr. John Whelchel, the director of organ transplant services at Piedmont Hospital. It said he wanted to try again as a donor.

Whelchel was conflicted. He wanted to help Cindy, but he didn't want to hurt Pat, whose recent heart surgery was a red flag. "Your letter presents an interesting ethical dilemma and I am not sure there is a correct answer," Whelchel wrote back. He said he wanted to bring the matter before the hospital's ethics committee.

It never got that far. Last May, just before he received Whelchel's letter, Pat was training for the Peachtree Road Race. For the first time ever, he couldn't make it up Heartbreak Hill, near Piedmont Hospital.

He went for a checkup, and three of the four new arteries attached to his heart were clogged. That meant more open-heart surgery. He made it through again, but he was finished as an organ donor.

Pat's condition is genetic. No matter how many miles he runs or how healthfully he eats, his arteries will clog. And after two surgeries, his body has run out of arteries to harvest for his heart.

So now Cindy and Pat are both in trouble. Luckily, they have each other.

"She probably looks at the kids each night and wonders if she's going to be around to see them complete high school, go to college, get married."

That's Pat explaining why he was ready to give a kidney to a stranger. He makes it sound like a simple decision, although of course it wasn't.

"He's so selfless," Cindy said. "He's like an angel."

Pat is slight and fair-skinned and he speaks in a monotone of gentleness.

The IBM guy inside him sees complex problems in simple terms: Cindy has a dedicated husband and three children who need her; he's had nobody since his divorce seven years ago. How could he not do the transplant?

"I really don't have anything else," Pat said.

At first, when Pat was set to donate his kidney, Cindy felt an overwhelming sense of appreciation. Now she's just worried about him. "He's in a dire situation, and there's nothing I can do, really. It's frustrating."

Pat is on a personal mission to help Cindy get a kidney. "I would feel totally completed," he said. Cindy, meanwhile, is keeping an eye out for the right woman for Pat. "He'd make a great husband," she said with a sly smile.

Cindy is strong — she was a tennis player before her kidneys gave out — but she's no match for the dialysis machine, which she's hooked up to three times a week.

Dialysis is a lifesaver, but it's a lifestyle killer for Cindy. It makes her nauseated and exhausted, and it gives her headaches.

She slogs through, day after day, by telling herself she's going to get a kidney and her life back.

"I feel like I'm getting closer," she said.

It won't be easy. The archdiocese article and the fliers posted at Delta have drawn a lot of potential donors — more than 100 were tested, according to Cheryl Manley, Piedmont's clinical transplant coordinator — but Cindy is a hard one to match.

She has cysts on her kidneys, like her mother had, and her mother's mother. After she had twins seven years ago, Cindy's blood pressure spiked and her kidneys deteriorated. She had a very high level of antibodies in her system, which the body produces to fight a foreign object, like a baby. Too many antibodies lowers her odds of finding a suitable donor.

"It's not impossible," Manley said, "but it's like looking for a needle in a haystack."

There have been several near misses, including one in March when she got a frantic 4 a.m. phone call about a cadaver kidney that looked good.

It was on a plane to Atlanta. She threw some things into a bag and raced to the hospital.

It wasn't a match.

One person who tested last year was a match, but backed out. That's not uncommon.

Until recently, kidney transplant surgery was a major ordeal for the donor. The incision often went from the middle of the back to the middle of the stomach. In many cases, the donor's recovery was longer and harder than the recipient's.

Today, the surgery on the donor is often done laparoscopically, which is much less invasive. The recovery takes about a week, instead of six weeks or more under the old procedure.

About 90,000 Americans are awaiting an organ transplant, and two-thirds of them need a kidney, like Cindy.

But she's got her family and Pat and several local churches and Delta in her corner, and that helps her stay positive, which is important.

"Once you have that new kidney in you, they say you feel reborn," Cindy said. "I can't wait."

Pat is on medication, trying to fight off his body's predisposition to clog his arteries.

After they became friends, Pat and Cindy found out they shared some history. Pat's been a member of St. Jude Catholic Church in Sandy Springs for 20 years, and Cindy grew up in that church. She and Jim were married there.

Their faith is important to both of them, especially now, and seems to give them strength. "I don't believe I won't get a kidney," Cindy said. "God will answer my prayers."

Mouths of Babes

I forgot to share this little gem. While doing the family vacation thing in Charleston, my wife asked my 3 year old nice if she had any boyfriends. She replied that she had at least three. We jokingly asked if she was going to get married soon and she said that you do that when you get older. We asked how old she thought she would be when she got married. She thought for a while and answered, " I think maybe by the time I am five." Not sure if she is registered yet or not...

Not Again

Remember a couple of months ago I bragged about getting off of some of my medicines, particularly a shot I was getting once a week? Well my blood counts have dropped a little (which could explain somethings) and now I have to get my lovely once a week shot again, at least for now. Not sure how long this will be. My arm is sore from the shot today. Running some tests to figure out why this happened.

Also, many of you may remember me discussing my friend with Lupus. She is like a second mother to me. Monday her doctor told her that she has even less time to live than she had been previously told. We've talked a couple of times this week. It is hard to find the right words for me to say and she doesnt want to go into the specifics of a timeline with me. Man I hate this.

Back from Vacation

Spent a week with the family just outside of Charleston, SC. It was me and wifey, my parents, and my sister, her husband, and my niece. No blood was shed, no fists were thrown, and all in all it was a good trip. The only real complaint was that someone kept dropping the AC down to 68. I get chilled easily (because of my kidneys) and my mother is cold-natured so we were not happy.

We had a 3 bedroom 3 bath condo on the beach. Of course it rained like every day. I think we ate seafood at least once a day. My brother-in-law said he had reached his limit on seafood. Wifey and I were just getting started. We did the aquarium (not that good), a harbour tour, a horse drawn carriage tour, and lots of walking. Wifey and I went out to Angel Oak one day on our own. It is the oldest living thing east of the Mississippi. They say it is around 1600 years old. Pretty impressive.

Mom wanted to do a family trip with some of her inheritance from my grandmother's death last year. So that is the main reason we went.

Wifey and I ate at some of the restaurants we found when we were there a few years ago for a wedding and one that she found when she was there for business. Mmmmm.

Saw a bunch of dolphins playing a couple of different times. Wanted to go deep sea fishing but the weather was too rough. Also wanted to go see a minor league baseball game (I love minor league games) but I think they were all rained out.

Will let you know how the photo books are when we get them printed.





In other news, the WSOP just started this weekend. Unfortunately it will not be shown on TV until starting in August. I will just have to keep up with the reports on the internet to see how it is going. The big event isnt for a few weeks. I have read accounts of people waiting 4+ hours in line to register for events. Some events are "selling out" which is hard to fathom.

The big announcement I was hoping to make this week has been postponed at least another week. It is probably not anything that most of you are thinking but keep your fingers crossed anyway.

Misc

Leaving Saturday for a family vacation so I wont be posting for about a week. I am sure that when I get back I will have some great posts about my little niece doing something cute (because that is what she does).

Was looking through Frommer's Budget Travel Magazine (one of my favorites) today. They have an article on some of the photo websites (Snapfish, Ofoto, etc). The sites will publish a hard covered book with your photos and captions for like $20 to $30. Each site is a little different but check it out if you are into that kind of thing. I'll probably do one when we get back and let you know how it goes.

Their could be a post here in about 2 weeks of some important news. Not going to jinx it but just stay tuned.

Also, some friends and I were talking the other day about the failure to find Osama. One friend reported that Osama is on dialysis and asked me some questions, seeing as I was the resident expert on dialysis. We googled it and found reports of Osama being on Peritonial Dialysis as I am. Every month I have a big truck come to my house to deliver several boxes (about 35 or so) of my dialysis supplies for the next month. Why cant they find the delivery source for Osama? I dont think a truck goes out to his cave once a month but he has to get the supplies from somewhere...

ZZZZZzzzzzz

We bought a new mattress over the weekend. It was delivered yesterday. It sleeps VERY good. It is thicker than our last mattress so it is higher up than our dogs are use to. My dog thinks it is very comfortable as he stretches out to his full extent. I think he would prefer it to be a King instead of a Queen... Wifey's dog is smaller and has problems jumping all the way to the top but I think she will have it mastered in a few days. I jokingly told wifey that I would buy her a ladder if she needs it to get in bed.

When I was growing up I had a twin size bed. I had it when I graduated college and moved out of the house. I remember when I finally got a bigger bed. I was about to purchase one when my parents got one that had been in storage that my paternal grandfather built. They cleaned it up and purchased me a mattress for my birthday maybe 6 years. We still have it in the guest bedroom and people brag about it when they stay at our house.

I used to travel a lot for a job I used to have and was able to easily sleep on a bed in a hotel that wasnt my own. Now it isnt that easy of a thing for me to do. I have gotten used to having my wife by my side and at least one dog at our feet (with the other dog being a monster under the bed). I miss them whenever I am not here or they arent here (especially wifey). I didnt sleep well in DC at all.

I used to be a stomach sleeper. Sometimes on my side but usually on my stomach. I havent been able to sleep on my stomach since October because of the port that was in my neck/chest. Now on PD I can only sleep on my right side or my back in order for the machine to properly drain and fill. Unfortunately this also means I cant cuddle when I sleep. I used to be the biggest cuddler (and still am when not hooked up to the PD machine).

DC Trip

Last week I was in DC for the launching of the National Kidney Foundation's "People Like Us" initiative. They had over 100 people from around the country with kidney disease, on dialysis (hemo or PD), or have had a transplant (or 2 or 3). They are trying to raise the political awareness of kidney patients inhopes of changing certain policies and laws.

I love DC. I love the restaurants. I love the monuments and all of the history there. I always have tons of fun in DC and look forward to going back.

I ran into a bunch of people I know from here that were there for various reasons. I was surprised at how many people I ran into.

One day while taking a cab from Capitol Hill to where the conference was at, I noticed that my driver was auditioning for the Nextel cup. He was doing 75-80+ mph through the streets of DC. I am serious about this.

One of the great things about this conference was the interaction with people that have been or are going through some of the things that I am going through. I learned some things about PD that I didnt know by talking to people that have been on PD for several years. A group of us went out to celebrate Cinco de Mayo (also the last night of the conference). One woman had just been diagnosed with kidney disease and not yet on any type of dialysis was full of questions and I hope that we were of some help to her.

I met one family that their son was diagnosed with kidney disease about a year ago. His mom organized a "walk-a-thon" and raised over $40,000 for the kidney foundation or kidney research or something like that. I met a transplant recipient in California that started a prom for transplant recipient teenagers. She has some ties in the entertainment community and is able to get A-list Hollywood stars to show up. Lots of great stories of people like this, people like me.




On a side-note... if you know me you know I adore my neice. She is 3 years old and thinks her Uncle is the coolest guy in the world (even if she doesnt see me that often because of the distance we live apart) and who I am to disagree? She and her mom were down about a month ago. She told me that she and her mom had been in a "big walk" the weekend before coming down to help people like me get well.

friend update

Just got an email from my friend... it is not breast cancer. She is very relieved.

Blogging Delay

I was going to talk about my week in DC last week but I am putting that off for a while as I just dont feel like talking about it right now.

Last year, a friend of mine was diagnosed with Lupus. Lupus is usually not terminal if they catch it in time. Unfortunately it wasnt diagnosed in time. Yesterday my friend's Doctor told her that she doesnt have much time left. This has hit me pretty hard.

Today I received an email from another friend that finds out today if she has breast cancer or not. She is in her late 30's and just got married last fall.

Thanks for being understanding if you are reading this. I'll try to update on the DC trip later.

I'm Getting Old

Sunday, the wife and I went to see the Black Crowes at the Tabernacle in Atlanta. It was pretty loud but not as loud as the Faith No More show with Helmet I saw in the early 90's. We ended up leaving a little early but it was still a good show. Since the Robinson brothers are from Atlanta (as are most of the band) and since it was Mother's Day, Mama Crowe was in the audience. Didnt see Chris's wife though... This got me thinking about all of the concerts I have seen over the years and I have decided to list some of my favorites in no particular order...

Flickerstick at the Roxy in Atlanta This was the third time to see the winners of VH1's show Bands on the Run. It is at least partially responsible for my wife and I marrying. We had dated for about a year but had quit dating. Flickerstick reawakened the feelings I had for wifey and we soon started dating again.

U2 at Legion Field, Birmingham AL 1990ish I love outdoor shows. This was the third show of the Zooropa tour that I had the chance to see. Sat around 12th row center. Opening acts were Big Audio Dynamite and Public Enemy. The irony of PE doing a song in Alabama that talked about racism and had people dressed as Klansmen on the stage, ending with the lynching of a Klansmen helped to make this show. U2 was great, too.

Willie Nelson The first time I saw Willie live was on a lark the day after the above U2 show (somehow I ended up with FREE tickets). I am usually not a big country fan but WOW. I have seen him a couple of times since.

The Wailers, early 90's Bob Marley's old band still tours. I had the chance to hang out with them before this show for several hours and then see them live. I need to see them again.

The Funky Meters, mid 90's Tippitinna's in New Orleans Art Neville's band. The night I saw them, all of the Neville Brothers dropped by to make cameo appearances. The night ended with a big Neville Brothers encore. Tippitinna's (the original one) is a great concert venue.

George Clinton 2003 Atlanta Another outdoor show. The wife and I were backstage with some friends for the entire show. Opening acts were some of my favorites, Drivin N Cryin and North Mississippi Allstars. We ate supper with everybody and got some photos and autographs.

REM 2002 Athens GA at the famed 40 Watt Club. I had just went to a local bar to hang out with some friends when I got a call from a friend in Athens. He asked what I was doing and told me to come to the 40 Watt for a fundraiser for a state legislator friend. I said it was too far. He then said that I would want to see the last band. He wasnt sure of the name they were using but that it was Mike Stipe, Mike Mills and Bill Berry (Peter Buck had missed a plane somewhere). I called the wife (we were dating then) and picked her up and drove to Athens. We stood about 15 feet from the stage. Bill Berry's first show since he had his brain problem.

John Mayer The first time I saw Mayer was at a Borders Books in the coffee shop. There was maybe 20 people there, most were trying to find a quiet place to study. Have seen him numerous times since then.

Rolling Stones, Legion Field, AL 1989 Another FREE ticket and I was there mainly to see Living Color open up for them but seeing the Stones live made them one of my favorite bands. Definitely one of the best shows I have ever seen.

Lenny Kravitz, Auburn AL 1990 ish Yet another FREE ticket. I was there to see the Cult. I was a huge Cult fan, until I saw them live (nothing like a singer too drunk to remember his own words to make you lose interest). Kravitz was the opening act and was incredible. Been hooked since.

Al Green Atlanta 2004 The wife and I enjoyed Rev Al sooooo much. Surprise Guest Isaac Hayes was good to see too.

Pink Floyd 1994 The last show to be played at Grant Field in Atlanta. Floyd is music, sound effects, lights, and movies. Sensory overload.

Lynnard Skynnard 1993 Fox Theatre Atlanta I won tickets off of the radio for front row center. Didnt like my date for the evening. They had Charlie Daniels, Travis Tritt, Zakk Wylde (formerly played with Ozzy), Brett Michaels (former front man of Poison now doing a solo country thing) and a bunch of other folks doing acoustic covers of their favorite Skynnard songs before the show started. The show was shown live on Pay Per View.

Jimmy Buffet I have seen Buffet more times than I can remember. His shows are some of the greatest times as are the parking lots pre-show. I even saw him in 1998 at the Gov's inaguration of Don Siegelman in Alabama. He sang "Stars Fell On Alabama"

Tuba Fats Funeral 2004 New Orleans Not what most people would call a concert but if you have ever seen a funeral procession in New Orleans you might be tempted to reconsider. Tuba played with tons of people (Dirty Dozen Brass Band, etc) and his procession had hundreds upon hundreds of people marching down Bourbon Street and playing instruments and singing and dancing. The procession was probably about 90 minutes long.

This list is getting long so let me just list a few together: Bob Dylan, Bonnie Raiit, Tom Petty, B B King, Buddy Guy, Dr. John and Mothers Finest.

Will probably post later today a more kidney oriented blog. And yes I know I didnt give you any links to the above bands but you can use Google to find them. Check out Pollstar to find out when they are playing in your neck of the woods.

Random Ramblings

Near our house is a park with a little pond. This time of year we have to be careful driving by the pond on our way back from the store as there are lots of baby ducks and goslings being paraded about. Some of the goslings look a little different like maybe Mother Goose was doing things beside reading nursery rhymes... like maybe she met a turkey... Anyway, lots of honks and quacks to warn you that they are crossing the road. Honk! Honk! Quack!Quack!Quack!


I think I am addicted to blogs. Not just writing them but also reading them. There are a few celebrities I read their blogs like one of my favorite musicians David Ryan Harris has a blog that he infrequently updates as do poker superstars, Josh Arieh (and native Atlantan) and Daniel Negreanu. I read their sites a lot as well as a couple of friends. Whenever I have some time to kill, I will click on the "next blog" button on the top right of this screen and go searching through the blog universe. I have to warn you to be careful doing this as some are not family friendly, but overall it is intersting.


We have screened 5 possible donors so far and none are compatible. 4 more to go. Of those 4, 2 I have never met and one I have only met 4 or 5 times. I am overwhelmed by their selflessness and generosity.

I love to cook, as does my wife. Last night we colaberated on a BBQ pork. Wifey did the Boston Butt, I did the dry rub and sauce. I have to say, it was one of my better sauces. She is trying to get me enter a national recipe contest with a low sodium gumbo I came up with when I was on my renal diet. Nice prizes. I guess I will try to get my recipe ready to enter this week.