This shot is my favorite photo of all the pics I have taken in Epcot. It features the China Pavilion's main building, with both it, and the full moon reflecting in the pond the surrounds it.
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I'll never understand how this band isn't bigger than they are. This right here is REAL music. It is an actual, living, breathing, RnB band. I also love that they are from right here in Minneapolis. This song right here is from their new album "Music @ the Speed of Life". Go check it out. Lots of good music you're not listening to if you don't.
This song by Jamey Johnson makes me melt every time I hear it. It doesn't matter what is going on around me, or what I am doing, everything stops when this song comes on. Unfortunately, I haven't enjoyed any of his other songs yet, but this one is something I can never listen too enough.
Andrew McMahon has got to be the most unheralded songwriter in the history of music. Back in 2002 I stumbled across an album titled "Leaving Through The Window" by a band named 'Something Corporate'. I fell in love with the album. I later bought Something Corporates album "North". Again, I loved the album. Andrew McMahon was the singer/songwriter for Something Corporate and his piano/punk/rock was something I just fell in love with. After the band finished up touring for their North album they decided to take a break. They were not planning on killing the band, they just wanted to get away and rediscover what made them become Something Corporate in the first place.
Andrew put together a side project called Jack's Mannequin. On the day Jack's Mannequin finished recording their debut album 'Everything in Transit' in 2005, Andrew was diagnosed with Leukemia. He is now in remission, and in 2008 Jack's Mannequin released The Glass Passenger. I've absolutely loved these two albums as much as the two Something Corporate albums.
This past Saturday, Feb 20th, I got the chance to see Jack's Mannequin in concert at First Ave. and it was one hell of a show. I was on Youtube today and came across some videos from that First Ave. show. As I was reading through some of the comments I saw some talk about a song called Konstantine and how people scream for it to be played at every Jack's Mannequin concert and Andrew doesn't like hearing that. I had no idea what they were talking about.
Tonight I was online and I decided to look up Konstantine. I found out its a song from the Something Corporate days that wasn't on either of their two albums released here in America, but was on an album released in Japan. I then found a video of the song. I took a listen.
Fuck me.
This song makes me melt. Listening to it is like being in heaven for 9 minutes.
Here it is. Something Corporate - Konstantine
And as a bonus, here is a live performance of it.
From the wiki for this song (yes, the song has its own wiki):
"Konstantine" is a song by alternative rock band Something Corporate. The song is the third track of their album Songs for Silent Movies, which was only released in Japan.
The song is about lead singer Andrew McMahon's relationship with his ex-girlfriend Krystal and their breakup.
Although the band has stopped touring, fans of McMahon's new band, Jack's Mannequin, still request the song to be played while the band is touring. McMahon refuses to play the song and has said in a recent interview, "If I ever play it, I’ll have to play it forever, every night. If it weren’t such a big deal for me to play Konstantine, then I probably would play it. But the truth is, as soon as I bring that song out one time, I will never be able to walk through a venue, no matter what band I’m playing with or no matter where I’m at, and not have people chant and cheer for it.”
There was a beautiful full moon on the night I shot this photo of Expedition Everest at Walt Disney World's Animal Kingdom theme park. I lucked out in that a jet had just flown past and it's contrail was still visible in this shot.
Today, the NHL reached out and canceled games that had been scheduled through Nov. 30th. This is just a complete joke that these two sides can not figure this out considering they both have agreed that the split should move to a 50/50 split. Right now the players get 57% of the pie. If both sides agree on that 50% split, what's the hold-up? Well, the owners want to want to cut the players salaries down to size so that the salaries will fit into that nice 50/50 split right now. Yeah, never mind that these same owners are the ones that signed the contracts to pay out that much money. Why honor their own signatures, right? The "promise" that the players will get any of the money cut this year paid back out the remaining years of their contracts (wink, wink, nudge, nudge). Well then what happens next year when paying the players this money back, the players pie gets up over 50% again? Do the owners throw another tantrum and stomp their feet and hold their breath?
On the other side you have the players, who in their last offers to the league said they wanted to get the players share down to that 50% split, but neither one of their official offers got down that far while giving them sizable raises each year. That sound you just heard was my head slamming against the desk a few times. How on earth can you say you agree with that 50/50 split and turn in two different offers stating that they both get down to 50%, when in fact neither of them do?
These sides are SO close to figuring this out, why can't they see how easy this is? Owners, honor the deals YOU signed. Players, how about accepting slightly smaller raises each year through the deal? If they simply cut 1.5$ off the current 57% salary cap each season, they will get to their beloved 50/50 split in four seasons. With the leagues revenue growing as fast as it had been up until this ridiculous lockout, they players salaries will still be going up even with the lower percentage of revenue going to them. If they sign a seven-year deal, the last three seasons will be played with both sides splitting the revenues 50/50.
Now, someone go knock some sense into these two spoiled babies, show them how simple this is to figure out, and for the love of all things frozen, can we have some NHL hockey?!?
Yesterday I saw a post by Sheryl Crow touting a musician named Gary Clark Jr. I had never heard of him, but I proceeded to go check him out. And holy crap, this is one of the best albums I have heard in a LONG time. I have been listening to it non-stop since I purchased it yesterday. The album is called Blak and Blu. This is a song called Bright Lights. This song has a heavy Jimi Hendrix feel to it. Enjoy. And go buy the album.
Prince performed on the Jimmy Kimmel show, and his performance of Dance Electric was cut off by the end of the show. This video has the entire performance. Dance Electric is a song Prince gave to Andre Cymone way back in 1985 and is, in my opinion, one of the funkiest songs he has ever written. Prince has been performing the song on his current tour.
While I was at Disneyland and set up to take photos of their Summer Magic Fireworks show, a kid up in front of my bought an illuminated Mickey Mouse balloon. Photo opportunities like that make me happy.
During Epcot's Food and Wine festival, an employee wades through the cranberry pool tending to the crop of cranberries. This photo also features Epcot's Spaceship Earth, and the water fountain.
This is one of my photos of the Illuminations show at Walt Disney World's Epcot center. I took this one while standing on the patio of the restaurant in the Japan pavilion.
During an afternoon parade down Main St. USA at Walt Disney Worlds Magic Kingdom theme park, I was able to snap this photo of Mary Poppins as her float cruised down the street. Cinderella's Castle is seen in the back ground.
Back in December of 2006, I decided that I should get some country music into my collection. Don't ask why I decided that, or where the decision came from. I wasn't, and still aren't, a fan of that country "twang". I wasn't really sure how to go about discovering what or who I should listen to to find something I would like. At one point I was looking at the country chart on Billboard, seeing if anything stood out, or if anything struck me as something I should try. And there on those pages I saw a artist named Keith Urban, and a song called Stupid Boy. Again, I'm not sure why that particular song jumped out at me, but it did. So I went about looking for a way to listen to that song. Found it on that new website called Youtube, and hello, this was country music? I remember thinking why wasn't this on Adult contemporary stations, or Pop stations? Anyway, the slow gentle beginning of the song, that beautiful acoustic guitar. The way the song slowly started to build. The pain in Keith's voice as he sang. That first guitar solo. And then... TWO MINUTES of guitar solo to end the song. Two minutes that mimic the beginning of the song. A guitar solo that starts out slow and passionate, and slowly, ever so slowly, builds before it is something you can't sit still to, and yet it still hold all the passion that it had in the beginning of it. Wow! This song is still one of my all-time favorites, regardless of what format.
Growing up, way back in 1982, our house had one radio. It wasn't like today where everyone has their own media device and can listen to whatever they want whenever they want. We had ONE radio. My parents kept the radio on Adult contemporary stations, oldies, sports games, stuff like that. We also listened to a lit of albums (yes, the actual vinyl), 45's, 8-track tapes, and cassette tapes. There was a lot of Beatles, Elvis, Wings, and Barry Mannilow playing on our radio. And I enjoyed it all. Then, for Christmas in 1982, my parents got me my own alarm clock/radio. YES! I was 14-years old at the time, just a lil kid. That night I went into my bedroom, and plugged in that clock/radio, made sure to set the time (this was een back before the digital numbers, it had those flip-numbers that flipped from one number to the next like a rolodex). After getting the time set, I turned on the radio, and I went straight for the old WLOL pop station we had in Minneapolis at the time. I was SUCH a rebel. Pop music. There was a commercial, or the DJ was talking, I can't be sure of that anymore. The one thing I CAN be sure of is the very first song that played after I turned that radio on was Prince's song 1999. I had never heard the song before. I had never even heard of Prince before (I had heard his "I Wanna Be Your Lover" song, but didn't know it was him back at that time). Oh. My. God. My jaw dropped open. I was beside myself. The synths. The guitar. That fucking amazing drum track. That song changed my world. By the time Prince's next album, Purple Rain, came out, I had already purchased all of his previous albums. I had already worn out one 1999 cassette from playing it too much. I was addicted to Prince. That one song, that first listen to 1999 did it for me. Thirty years later, I still am.
They have these metallic palm trees around Space Mountain at Walt Disney World in Florida. These trees are a bit odd to look at during the day, but at night, they provide some beautiful photography.
I was at Disney's Hollywood Studios at Walt Disney World, and watching their night time show called Fantasmic. It is not a very easy show to photograph as there are lights changing color, intensity, and position constantly through the show. This particular photo was not the result of proper planning, but the result of the lights playing tricks on me. The float carrying Snow White and Prince Charming was finally approaching where I could take some photos of these two, and right as I had them lined up in my lens and was pressing the shutter button, the spotlight that was focused on these two went out. My first reaction was to utter some non-Disney quality words. My second reaction when I saw what I had captured was pure joy. It is a wonderfully unique shot, getting the shadow of two very recognizable Disney characters.
The wicked hand of the evil queen hands an apple out. Will you take it? This artwork is part of the decor in the Villains section of the World of Disney store in Downtown Disney's Marketplace.
While in the Villains section of the World of Disney store at Downtown Disney's Marketplace, I snapped this close-up photo of the Evil Queen from Snow White. This is a mural of the Evil Queen's face made entirely out of different colored stones.
This is the official video for Keith Urban's song Once in a Lifetime. This was the 2nd Keith Urban song I had ever heard (the first one being Stupid Boy), and it turned me into a huge fan of his music. In fact, after Prince, Keith is the artist I listen to more than anybody else. How is that for a list of favorites? Prince, Keith Urban, Foo Fighters, Raphael Saadiq, and Sting round out my top 5.
Prince - Holy River(Live at Rosie ODonell)by Doloresdu92
This has been my all time favorite song ever since Prince released it back in 1996 on his Emancipation album. It's not easy finding his videos, but finding this live performance of The Holy River is a good find in my book. Enjoy.
I have wanted to shoot a fall photograph of the Carlson Towers for a very long time. I finally had the opportunity to do so recently. I was very excited when I pulled into the parking lot and saw all of the color in the trees in the parking lot. Then I walked behind the buildings to where this beautiful shot was waiting for me. And lo and behold, almost all of the trees had already dumped it's leaves. It's still a beautiful shot, but I was dreaming of something more.
This is another photograph I took of the dead pirates that are in one of the entrance ways to the World of Disney store in Walt Disney Worlds Downtown Disney Marketplace.
The Original 7ven is the 7 original members of the bad 'The Time', famous for their songs Jungle Love, and The Bird. They reunited last year and put together a FANTASTIC album called Condisate that sounds just like The Time with a bit of current sound thrown in. How could they not produce a fantastic album? Jimmy Jam and Terry Lewis have written more hits than you can shake a stick at. Jesse Johnson is a fantastic song writer and an unparalleled drummer. Morris Day is the king of cool. And Monte Moir and Jellybean Johnson are also guys who have written hits and are fantastic musicians. They could not release the album under their old The Time moniker as Prince owns it and wouldn't give it up. Sucks, but, things go on. Anyway, they took the name The Original 7ven, and like I said, they released a truly fantastic album that went unheard as radio doesn't play anything from artists like these guys. So, listen to this little ditty called The Original Party Girl, and go get that album!
A fantastic video narrated by Joe Rogan and created by David Manukyan. This has a TON of wonderful points, and the more people take these up, the better this world will be.
Kid Rock and Sean Penn got together and made a movie short fighting the way this country is getting divided by the current state of our politics. Watch it, it's a great piece.
In Walt Disney World's Downtown Disney, they have a Ghirardelli Chocolate shop in their Marketplace area. This photo is a closeup of the sign on top of the store.
Do you know who you are voting for? Do you know what each candidate actually stands for? I found a simple website that asks you to answer a few questions on some issues, and it will then tell you who you side with. Go for it, find out for yourself who you should really vote for.
This is the new single from Aerosmith's new album. The album is called Music From Another Dimension and the song is called What Could Have Been Love. I absolutely love this track, and it is one of Aerosmith's ballads that just kicks some serious ass.
This is a photo I took of the Genie from the movie Aladdin while in the Downtown Disney Marketplace. I'm pretty sure I take this same photo every time I am down there, and I still hope to get a better one.
I made a trip across the border to Wisconsin yesterday and took a few photos of the fall colors. This one was photographed at Willow River State Park in Hudson, Wisconsin.
They have these metallic palm trees around Space Mountain at Walt Disney World in Florida. These trees are a bit odd to look at during the day, but at night, they provide some beautiful photography.
I was at Disney's Hollywood Studios at Walt Disney World, and watching their night time show called Fantasmic. It is not a very easy show to photograph as there are lights changing color, intensity, and position constantly through the show. This particular photo was not the result of proper planning, but the result of the lights playing tricks on me. The float carrying Snow White and Prince Charming was finally approaching where I could take some photos of these two, and right as I had them lined up in my lens and was pressing the shutter button, the spotlight that was focused on these two went out. My first reaction was to utter some non-Disney quality words. My second reaction when I saw what I had captured was pure joy. It is a wonderfully unique shot, getting the shadow of two very recognizable Disney characters.
This is another photograph I took of the dead pirates that are in one of the entrance ways to the World of Disney store in Walt Disney Worlds Downtown Disney Marketplace.
Taking a hike along the Mississippi river in Minneapolis during the fall can lead to some very beautiful sights.
Inside the World of Disney store in the Downtown Disney Marketplace, they have a good section of dead pirates all protecting their treasure.
Here is another of my portrait photos taken with a toddler on a beautiful fall day in Minnesota.
In Walt Disney World's Downtown Disney, they have a Ghirardelli Chocolate shop in their Marketplace area. This photo is a closeup of the sign on top of the store.
