Tag Archives: The BCPF

Roundtable or: Friends and Food

12 Saturday Aug 2017

Posted by in Food, Life as We Know It

≈ Leave a comment

Tags

, , , , , , , , , , ,

Salutations™!!

Usually, there’s a convoluted movie review on Saturday, but I didn’t have a movie of the week on The Less Desirables this week. That doesn’t mean you shouldn’t still go to a/perture cinema, the Official Movie Sponsor of The Less Desirables, and see a film. You most certainly should. But, today it’s something different.

Last night, The Beer Dads and our Very Good Friends, SRV+VernQuack all converged on the patio of Spring House Restaurant, Kitchen and Bar and enjoyed a night of Doctor Brownstone’s Sweet Summer Luv Luv Festival. It was not only great times with friends but it was 12 courses of food and plenty of libations to boot. 20170812_102917

From scallops to veggie ceviche to cod to duck to rabbit to chicken. There was a bit of everything on our plates last night. And, while we didn’t all agree on which dishes were our favorites or even what we may have liked or disliked, we all agreed we had the swellest of times. That’s a word, I just made it up.

It was the first time we had all been together in a hot minute. When you have a pilot in the group, or the head of two organizations that have them both traveling, or someone moving or flood repairs, it’s hard to get everyone together. But, I’m thankful that last night was one of those rare moments that, hopefully, will become less and less rare.

So, to The BCPF, Beer Dad Jon, his “Pilot,” Beer Dad Paul, his “Pilot,” SRV and her real-life pilot, thank you all for a great time. Chef Tim Grandinetti, or Doctor Brownstone, thank you for an amazing evening of wondermous food from chefs all over North America. You made our night even more special!

Until tomorrow, same blog channel…
Scorp out!

—
“Spring House Chef/Partner Timothy Grandinetti will host the annual outdoor grill-fest that celebrates the culinary talents of both local and nationally-renowned Chefs. Each evening during Sweet Summer Luv Luv, guests will enjoy multi-course tasting menus and “hot-off-the-grill” specialties that are planned, prepared and served by an all-star cadre of visiting Chefs.” – Doctor Brownstone’s Sweet Summer Luv Luv Festival

Dis Go Dat Way or: Another Mother Further (Eugeology Entry 31)

10 Thursday Aug 2017

Posted by in Music Review

≈ Leave a comment

Tags

, , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , ,

Salutations™!!

The last time I liked two in a row from Eugene, the streak was broken. I did like the last two, one surprised me. The other I didn’t know what to expect. Eug and Jon are both still behind but I’m trudging along. Here’s this week’s entry:

Mother's_Finest-Another_Mother_Further

©Epic Records

 

#31 – Another Mother Further by Mother’s Finest.

I had heard of this band and do have one of their albums on vinyl, but not this one. I wish I did have it, though. The first thing I hear when this starts up is “Custard Pie” “Mickey’s Monkey,” a song that first appeared 14 years prior to this version from Smokey Robinson and the Miracles and sounds very different, as well. So, there’s the question. Who was copying who? I know Led Zeppelin gets a lot of flack for “stealing” songs but in their defense, “Custard Pie” doesn’t really sound like Smokey’s version of “Mickey’s Monkey.” But, MF’s version of “Mickey” does have the same bones as the original but sounds a lot like the Zep tune in tone and form. The Zep tune came out two years prior. I have listened to both back to back and there’s certainly some copying going on. But, I like both so who cares, right?

This album has everything. It has hard rock. It has funk. It has soul. It has disco. It has slow jamming R&B. In some ways, it reminds me of a harder rocking Sly and the Family Stone and I love me some Sly. If you’re not familiar with Mother’s Finest, first, shame on you, and shame on me, because I did know about them, just not that they were this good. Anywhat! They are a rock band (some even call it “metal” although we don’t use that term much on this list) comprised entirely of African American musicians. They were worried they’d not get their hard rock cred because of their ethnicity so they didn’t put pictures on their albums. This was the 1970s and I can see their conundrum. But, I don’t care if you’re burnt umber, polka-dots and plaid, good rock is good rock. This is great rock. And, with the other elements they bring, that makes it even better. Ask The BCPF what happens when some 1970s or 1980s slow jams come on the radio. I get my soul on and I’m not afraid to admit it.

So, “Mickey’s Monkey” isn’t the only cover on this album. They do a kick-arse version of Elvis’ “Burning Love,” too. I like this version better; it rocks just right. And, these aren’t even my favorite songs on the album. My absolute favorite is “Thank You for the Love.” That’s just an awesome tune. But, I also really dig “Baby Love,” “Hard Rock Lover” and I especially dig “Dis Go Dis Way, Dis Go Dat Way.” I love the riffs and disco feel. Groovalicious!

I prefer the vocal stylings of Joyce “Baby Jean” Kennedy over Glenn Murdock but both are fantastic and their harmonies intertwine perfectly. Gary “Moses Mo” Moore’s riffs on the guitar are tasteful, clever and he shows he can hang with his contemporaries. Mike Keck’s keyboards are what fill all the cracks and his clav work is so 1970s but so juicy. I think the clavinet can be annoying when used willy-nilly and Keck uses his powers for good on this album. Drummer Barry “B.B. Queen” Borden has some serious chops. Listen to “Hard Rock Lover” and see what I’m saying. But, he can also pull back and add a simple back beat that completely brings out the soul in the music, rocking or not. The bass stylings of Jerry “Wyzard” Seay are not only perfectly laid down, but that tone is amazing. So lush and rich but still cuts through. My biggest complaint with most recordings is when the producer, as well as the band/performer, allow the bass to become background noise. That is certainly not the case here. I love listening to his playing.

Speaking of producers, Tom Werman had a lot to do with some fantastic albums from the 70s and 80s ranging from Cheap Trick (including In Color, Heaven Tonight and Dream Police my three faves by them) to Molly Hatchet and Blue Öyster Cult to Twisted Sister, Kix, Stryper and Poison and more. He’s got some big guns in there. Crisp, clean and easy to hear all that is going on. That’s exactly the case here, as well. And, coming in just under 35 minutes the album is jam packed yet easy to get through.

So, to answer the unasked question: yes, this time, there were three in a row that I liked from Eugene. Thanks so much for introducing this to me, Eug and I await your review and Jon’s as well. This is going on my “want list” for both Underdog Records and Discogs.

Until tomorrow, happy funky listening…
Scorp out!

—
“You give me good feelings. You give me good feelings. You give me good feelings. Ooh, I want to thank you for the love. Thank you for the heartaches. Thank you for the tears I’ve cried. Thank you for all those lies.” – “Thank You for the Love” (Mother’s Finest)

A Manageable Obsession or: Inking It

04 Friday Aug 2017

Posted by in Life as We Know It

≈ Leave a comment

Tags

, , , , , , ,

Salutations™!!

So, this evening, The BCPF will get her second tattoo. It will also be only six months since she got her first. I think she’s gotten the “bug.” I’m not going to tell you what it will be but I certainly love the idea. It should turn out to be quite fabulous. She’s excited and I like when she’s excited.

We’ll be returning to our tattoo artist of choice, I’ll even say, The Official Tattoo Artist of The Less Desirables’ The BCPF. I know that’s a stretch, but hey, I tried. Anywhat! She’ll be getting the new art at Earth’s Edge Tattoo & Piercing in WSNC. Byron and Kelley Weeks have been guests on The Less Desirables and The Beer Dads. I’d call them friends. I like to support my friends. Byron did the awesome Great Blue Herron that she sports on her left leg. 935361_10151580917885027_1093566513_n

Byron takes his time to get exactly what you want, draws up some mock/rough ideas and then goes over edits with you. It’s important that you allow the artist’s creativity to be included. Byron talked about how doing tats can be boring when they’re doing stuff that is “stock.” Let them put their stamp on it. I think if they don’t have some creative input, they are no longer tattoo “artists” but tattoo “givers.” Who would want to be that? Not me. Then again, I can’t draw much of anything, but if I could, I’d be adamant about having creative input. It would be like co-writing a song with someone and they not allowing me to be creative with my parts. At that point, I’m not a co-writer as much as a facilitator. That’s not me.

Anywhat! I’ll post pics of the new art in the next few days. Perhaps Monday? But, again, may I recommend Earth’s Edge Tattoo & Piercing for your permanent skin art or adornments? You can find them at 1800 Silas Creek Pkwy here in WSNC. Check out their website and/or Facebook Page.

Until tomorrow, ink up!
Scorp out!

—
“Best Prick in Town!” – Byron Weeks

Act of the Apostle or: Which One is Sebastian?

02 Wednesday Aug 2017

Posted by in Life as We Know It

≈ Leave a comment

Tags

, , , , , , , , , , , , ,

Salutations™!!

My apologies again for yesterday’s short post. We had a heck of a “weekend plus.” I was exhausted. But, I’m here to tell you why. On Monday, our Engagementversary, we drove to Raliegh to see a band that The BCPF would consider “a fave.” They rarely tour and this was special, so how could we pass on it?

The band is Belle & Sebastian. They’re from Scotland; Glasgow. We heard some of their stuff whilst we were over there gettin’ hitched. I didn’t know what I thought about them when I first heard them a few years back when The BCPF put them on a mixtape for me. The more I listened over time the more and more I got to like them. They’re tongue-in-cheek, clever and very good musicians. 20170802_141746

To me, they have a very retro feel. Definitely an “indie” sound. It’s also a very full sound. That’s not too difficult to pull off when there are seven members actually in the band. Their singers, primarily Stuart Murdoch, have unique voices that I won’t say are great, but they are, well, unique… as I just said. The members are all around my age which is pretty cool. I can relate to life, if not the Scottish aspect, even though I do get some of that, too.

So, The BCPF and I stayed at the Hyatt Place North Raleigh-Midtown and ate dinner at a decent chain restaurant that was on the same property as the hotel before Ubering over to the North Carolina Museum of Art, where the show was being held. We had purchased general admission tix which would have gotten us closer to the stage but would have also required us to stand and I’m just not about that. Luckily, the lovely and awesome wife of Superfan Damien of The Less Desirables works at the NCMA and was able to get us an upgrade to reserved seating. And she really came through. 20170731_213822

The concert’s venue was outside. Not quite the size of one of the “sheds” (Amphitheaters) but still a pretty good venue with plenty of grass seating and bench seats with assigned numbers. We ended up with awesome seats due to our gracious upgrade. We were 8 rows past the general admission folk (row H) and smack-dab in the middle of the row. So we were eye-to-eye with Stuart throughout the show. I think these were better than the GA tix because 1) we had actual seats, 2) we didn’t have to fight anyone for a spot, 3) we didn’t have to get there early, 4) we were looking straight ahead and not “up” like most of them were. Plus, we had the benefit of being out in front of the speakers, not between them. We won the awesome lottery for sure.

Opening the show was Andrew Bird who was the violinist for Squirrel Nut Zippers and is quite the talent. I really enjoyed his stuff, but I have to admit it started to get old after about half way through. I don’t know that it was anything he was doing wrong or I was just ready to see Belle & Sebastian. I think it was the latter. He did good, though.

B&S at one time had 9 people on the stage at the same time, playing instruments or singing. They even had a young trumpet player named Alex that played on about five or six songs. He wasn’t part of the band. He was from Raleigh and hadn’t played with them before. I think I heard Stuart say he hadn’t played with anyone before. He was pretty good, though. I have to admit that I didn’t recognize most of the songs but I’m not the fan that The BCPF is. They did play several of my faves by them, though, including “Sukie in the Graveyard,” “I’m a Cuckoo,” “I Didn’t See It Coming” and “The Blues Are Still Blue.” The latter was the last encore that they did by request from someone they described as “someone with a bullhorn of a voice.”

It was a great show and I’m so glad we got to see them and we thank Mrs. Superfan Damien for the upgrade. We owe you guys some beer. Thanks to The BCPF for introducing me to Belle & Sebastian and wanting to go see them. I think it’s my favorite of “your music.” If you’re not familiar with the band, Dear Reader, you should give them a shot and you should keep an open mind because they’re certainly an acquired taste. But, you’ll see the talent, I’m sure. Enjoy!

Oh, and I didn’t do beer today because I don’t know what it will be. Danielle is surprising us. But, you should still go to City Beverage and say The Less Desirables sent you!

Until tomorrow, same blog channel…
Scorp out!

—
“Sukie was the kid, she liked to hang out in the graveyard. She did brass rubbings, she learned you never had to press hard. When she finished hanging out she was all alone. She decided that she better check in at home. There was an awful row between her mum and dad. They said she hadn’t done this, she hadn’t done that. If she wanted to remain inside the family home, she’d have to tow the line, she’d have to give it a go. It didn’t suit Sukie so she took her things and left.” – “Sukie in the Graveyard” (Belle & Sebastian)

The Proposal or: Magical Moments

31 Monday Jul 2017

Posted by in Honeymoon, Life as We Know It, Travel

≈ 1 Comment

Tags

, , , ,

Salutations™!!

Yeah, I tell this almost every year and yeah, it gets mushy and yeah, probably to you, Dear Reader, it gets old. The truth is, however, I never tire of telling it and if you don’t like my mushy stuff, this would be a good time to check out. If you don’t mind or are reading it for the first time, then read on! A bit of warning, though, it will be long.

The BCPF and I got up on July 31, 2011, and were driven to Charlotte to get on a plane. It was our first plane trip together and it was the first time that we were going to go to my favorite destination in the world, Walt Disney World. It was to be the first time that I had been there in six years and we were going to celebrate the fact that I, after many years since my last collegiate foray, had finished my degree. My gift to myself was this trip and I was taking my best girl with me.

Whilst I know it is a fashion faux-pas, when I travel to WDW, I wear a fanny pack. I like having my stuff with me and I don’t want it falling out while I’m being jostled about on rides. This day was a bit different, though. Yes, I had the fanny pack but it was the contents of the pack that was different. I put it on the x-ray belt and hoped that the scanning officer didn’t alert anyone to the pack’s contents. It passed inspection, we moved on, got on the plane, and headed to the “most Magical place on earth.”

We got on the shuttle and were whisked away to Wilderness Lodge, our “home away from home.” After getting in the room, the first thing I like to do when I get to WDW is to go to Magic Kingdom and have lunch in the form of a hot dog at Casey’s Corner on Main Street USA. Being as Wilderness Lodge is on Bay Lake, the same body of water that surrounds Magic Kingdom, we took a boat over and made it through security with no alerts to my fanny pack’s contents. We had to wait as it was before 11 am and Casey’s Corner wasn’t yet open. We had our dog and conversed about the Ibis that populate the courtyard.

We then moved to Swiss Family Robinson’s Treehouse and had no wait. We walked through that with no resistance, no people rushing or pushing past us. We moved on the Jungle Cruise and unless you’re the first person, first thing in the morning, there’s no way to miss a crowded line here. But, it was minimal. We got on the ride and were given prime seats (toward the front of the boat in the middle so you see everything with little craning of the neck). I held her hand and we enjoyed the boat ride through Asia and Africa and under Switzer Falls (named after someone named “Falls”). From there it was Pirates of the Carribean. The line was minimal and we were seated at the front of the boat. 216852_10150326463895490_8196672_n

One thing to note is that it was July 31 and we were in Central Florida. But, it was only in the mid-80s. Not too hot at all, which was surprising, but definitely welcome. We walked our way around to Haunted Mansion and had virtually no line. Since The BCPF and I are history folks, we had to do the Hall of Presidents, especially since we’re both fans of Obama and his presentation had just been added to the script. All of this, you have to realize, was seventh heaven to me. I was getting to be a tour guide of the place I love with the woman I love.

It’s a rite of passage for anyone going to Magic Kingdom, or WDW at all, to have to ride It’s a Small World. Yes, that song is annoying as all get out, but you have to ride it. Again, short line (which never happens) and we were put in the front row. By this time it was almost 3 pm and it was time to make our move to Epcot, as we had rezzies for dinner at Tutto Italia Ristorante at 5:40 pm and sometimes that trip can be time-consuming. But, getting to the Monorail was no problem, getting on the Monorail was no problem and the trip to Epcot was easy-peasy-George-and-Weezy!

We wandered through the gates and since The BCPF had no bag, no purse, no anything, I sent her through the “No Bags” line as I got my fanny pack checked (plus I didn’t need her to know its contents and didn’t want to take a chance). The first ride you encounter from the Monorail is Spaceship Earth. No wait and no halting in the middle of the ride, which anyone who’s ridden that ride can attest, that is rare. We moved on to the World Showcase since that’s where the Italy Pavilion is and you choose the left path or right path. Italy is in the left middle but certainly in the middle so we took the left path. That brought us to Mexico Pavilion first and we rode the boat ride, Gran Fiesta Tour Starring The Three Caballeros and were given the front row of the ride, with no other riders on the boat with us.

Next was Norway and the Maelstrom boat ride (RIP, it’s now Frozen Ever After – BOO!!!!!!!) and yes, minimal line and, again, front row. Next, China and their Circle-Vision 360 film, Reflections of China. That took a little bit of time and it was about 5:15 pm. I knew we had no time to do anything else, so we decided we’d be early for our rezzie. We traveled two countries in about five minutes (we were booking it) and got to the restaurant to find that our reservation was 5:25, not 5:40. We were five whole minutes early, whew! The meal was pretty good. We finished and it was about 6:30.

What I’ve failed to mention up to this point is that my entire adult life I’ve gone to WDW and have seen people on boats on the World Showcase Lagoon watching Illuminations: Reflections of Earth fireworks show. Again, this was my celebratory trip and I wanted to do that, so I booked it. But, that happens at 8 pm each night. We had time to kill and I wanted to see “O Canada!” a Circle-Vision 360 film that had recently been upgraded and since it was one of my favorite attractions, I had to see how it had changed. It was good and I was pleased. We had timed it right and had no wait to get in, other than hearing the spiel from the cast member that should be heard. After the film and some wandering about, we went to the Yacht Club, just outside of Epcot to get on our boat!

We get there and the boat house is closed!! What the heck!? It was 7:45 and it was closed. I had many plans that needed to happen and this is not what I needed to happen. The BCPF tried to calm me down. “We can do it another day,” she said. No. No, we couldn’t. There was a number to call for questions and literally as I was about to hit send on my cell, a door pops open from the back of the Yacht Club and (yes this could be in my mind and not what really happened) a line of five boat captains came marching out in single file, each pulling a rolling cooler and singing or chanting something Disney-like. It was surreal.

A fellow that looked and sounded a lot like Uncle Fester from Addams Family came over to us and the other groups that had gathered for their own boat rides and asked: “who’s from North Carolina?” I raised my hand and acknowledged it was us. He introduced himself as “Captain Ron” which I thought was funny. We were having to watch the weather as a storm was rolling around the area. We couldn’t take the boat ride if the storm came through. Luckily, it didn’t and we could get on the boats.

Cap’n Ron drove the boat around Crescent Lake telling us its history and the history of the resorts around it, and then the theme parks that are located on its shores. He paused in a few spots to let us “take it in,” although I knew what he was doing. We worked our way back to the Yacht Club, Beach Club and Boardwalk Inn area and moved our way through the channel into the World Showcase Lagoon. Checking with Control Central we were able to move farther into the lagoon to view the awesome fireworks display.

I sat on the pontoon boat’s seat normally and The BCPF leaned in on me, her feet up in the seat. The fireworks started. I sneakily took the item I’d been hiding from my fanny pack and adjusted it to prepare for the coup de grace that was about to happen. The BCPF said she’d like to sit on the opposite bench. Okay. I had to maneuver the item for her to not see it. After about 2 minutes, Cap’n Ron said that we’d see better from the side we started from. Okay. Maneuver number two. We assumed the positions again. The BCPF leaned back and said, “you know, today has been perfect.” I nodded with a “yep.”

And it had been perfect. A nearly flawless flight. A quick and easy shuttle ride followed by a quick and easy check-in at the resort. The boat ride to Magic Kingdom. The hot dog lunch with the Ibis. The short lines. Every ride with the option gave us front row. The dinner. This boat ride and the fireworks to end all fireworks. As the glittery display came to an end and the announcements started, I said, “you know, today has been perfect. There’s only one thing I can think of that would make it more perfect.” I rose took the item in my hand, dropped to one knee, and exposed the contents of the item I had been hiding for nine months. I asked her, “Will you marry me?” She stared at me blankly and asked, “yeah? Are you serious?”

2011-08-01_22-42-30_75I looked down at the box and the faintly sparkling stones sitting within it and said, “I got a ring…?” She finally said, “yes!” Whew, I thought I was going to fall over. I thought I had all this figured out. I thought there was no way she’d say no. I thought I was going to have a heart attack. She said yes. Yes. YES! Cap’n Ron announced what had happened. We were

Cap’n Ron announced what had happened. We had been tethered to four other boats in the lagoon and the one right next to us was full of seven women and they wanted to know what she said. I stood and at the top of my lungs yelled, “SHE SAID YES!!!!” People were looking over the rails of that same bridge where I had stood several times and watched the people in these boats observe the fireworks. We were congratulated a lot. We were taken back to Hollywood Studios because it was easier to get to the buses to get back to our resort. Along the way, I told her the few people that actually knew this was coming and the people who didn’t. Some really surprised her. She didn’t get to see the ring, which she calls her “precious” in a very un-Gollem-like voice, until we got on the bus.

Once back at the resort we went to the mercantile to grab some beverages and asked about something to commemorate the engagement. We got badges and wore them around the park the entire week we were there. People congratulated us constantly and cast members of WDW would yell congrats to us from across the promenade if that’s where they saw the badge. I don’t think we paid for any desserts during that week (we realized we needed to keep those badges on the entire time). It was the perfect trip.

It was the perfect trip. The entire week, with the exception of one day, the weather was near perfect. We had fun. We ate well. We loved each other and we loved, and still love, our time together, no matter where we are. We have many anniversaries that we celebrate, which is probably overkilling it, but we’re disgustingly cute and don’t care to show it. This, to me, is the second most important after the wedding anniversary.

To The BCPF, Stephanie, I still love you as I did that day, but the magnitude has grown infinitely exponentially. I fall in love more and more every day. Good. Bad. Indifferent. We always have each other and have a love that I defy anyone else to match. This is our fairy tale and I am not ashamed, afraid, or reluctant to scream it from the mountain tops, roof tops and this danged blog. Happy sixth engagement anniversary my baby. I love you.

Sorry, Dear Reader for the 2200+ word explosion. I did warn you.

Until tomorrow, same blog channel…
Scorp out!

—
“Yes!” – The BCPF

Bee On Your Way or: A Long Goodbye

20 Thursday Jul 2017

Posted by in Life as We Know It, Travel

≈ 1 Comment

Tags

, , , , , , ,

Salutations™!!

For the last five years, I’ve side-gigged as a travel professional. Booked many a trip including four for The BCPF and myself, several for other family members, a right many for friends and a few for clients I didn’t know. It has always been my side hustle because I have been deep into the podcasting world for the last seven years. BOYWT

Booking travel is more than just putting some numbers into the computer, comparing and contrasting prices and picking something to do. There’s a lot more to it than that. It’s hard, arduous work. If it were easy, just anyone could do it, right? At least they think they can.

I got into the travel biz at a weird time. OTAs (online travel agencies like Travelocity, Kayak, Expedia, etc.) had started to really take off and hundreds of more followed. Trying to convince people that they aren’t spending any more money booking with a real-life travel professional is hard. No one believes it and no one sees the realities of it. To keep it short, here, time is money. Your time is valuable to you. If you put a value on your free time, how much would it cost you to look up airline tix, a hotel and a few museum tours for a five-day trip to Paris? Let’s say you value your time as about $40/hour. Unless you’ve been to Paris (and really even if you have), you’re going to spend about five hours just getting started on that. You have to piece together a puzzle. Most people just give up and go to the beach or the mountains and then complain they don’t ever go anywhere because it’s such a “hassle.” But, let’s assume you went on and searched. So, at five hours at $40 an hour, that’s $200 of your time you’ve wasted. Beyond the value of what it cost you, how about the intangible things? You could have used that time to play catch with your kids, cooked a meal, talked with a close friend you’ve missed the last few weeks, binge-watching your favorite Netflix show and so on. That runs up a pretty hefty bill. Chances are it wouldn’t have cost you $100 more to use a professional. That’s our jobs.

Let’s say you value your time as about $40/hour. Unless you’ve been to Paris (and really even if you have), you’re going to spend about five hours just getting started on that. You have to piece together a puzzle. Most people just give up and go to the beach or the mountains and then complain they don’t ever go anywhere because it’s such a “hassle.” But, let’s assume you went on and searched. So, at five hours at $40 an hour, that’s $200 of your time you’ve wasted. Beyond the value of what it cost you, how about the intangible things? You could have used that time to play catch with your kids, cooked a meal, talked with a close friend you’ve missed the last few weeks, binge-watching your favorite Netflix show and so on. That runs up a pretty hefty bill. Chances are it wouldn’t have cost you $100 more to use a professional. That’s our jobs. It’s what many of us do full-time. It takes that to be serious about getting your travel right.

But, to the ones that do it part-time, sometimes it’s harder to get all the stuff right. There are rules, regulations, procedures and so on that get caught up in the minutia that one may never even know of, including full-time TP (travel professionals), much less the part-timers. There are situations I’ve never dealt with, that I wouldn’t have thought to take care of. There’s a bunch of scenarios that could/would be applicable but I’m going to skip that, you know what I mean. Sometimes a mistake ends up costing the clients a good chunk of change. Part-timers are good for letting the vendors do their work and just being the middle man, but it takes more than that to keep the biz going.

As you’ve seen from my posts over the last few months and if you keep track of any of the podcasts that I do, their social media, this blog, etc., you know that time is the one thing (well, short of cash flow) that I’m running significantly low on. What happens is you can’t give your 100% to your travel clients when you haven’t 100% to give. That’s not fair to the clients and it’s not fair to you. You can’t be upset when they’re upset you just cost them some funds, even if it’s not your fault exactly. You’re the agent; the advocate. Luckily, that’s only happened to me about twice. There’s been more missteps but usually not with me. Not in proportion, anyway.

In addition, it costs money for me to even be able to call myself an agent. It is around $50 a month for me to use an IATA/CLIA (consortium agencies that issue ID numbers to travel agencies) and run a website to book travel. If I book a trip for you today that you don’t take until February, that commission doesn’t kick in until February and could take up to 90 days to be processed. So, a commission of $350 that I may make is a minimum of 7 months away. Conceivably it could be 10 months with the 90-day process. But at the minimum, it would cost me $350 (7x$50) to even be an agent of the umbrella agency. I’d break even, what’s that worth? Take into account, too that I’ll only get 70% of that commission, then I’m in the hole on it.

I even find myself going to hotels’ websites myself to book my own travel. Joining the loyalty programs get me a better overall rate when I book that I can get, even as a travel agent unless there’s some FAM (familiarization) scenario going on. It’s all a headache, really. The beauty is I know how the business works and I know where to look for the better rates and how to work that.

So, with all of that being said, and I apologize for the verbosity, let this blog post stand as notice that I am shutting down Bee On Your Way Travel. I am resigning my membership through the travel agency that I was under the umbrella of and closing shop. To anyone that I have had the pleasure to book a trip with, thank you for trusting me with that. I have let down a couple but for the most part, I’ve done at least a decent job. I love the industry, just not the business. If I ever decide to get back into it, it will be after I have allotted time for it specifically and I will do it all on my own, keeping my own commissions and not splitting it with another agency. I will get my own consortium and go from there. But, again, thanks so much to any that I’ve talked, booked or taken travel with over the last five years. I’m going to miss it, but I think I’ll be better off. I’ll still offer advice but I won’t be able to book any longer.

Until tomorrow, happy travels…
Scorp out!

—
“Every day is a journey, and the journey itself is home.” – Matsuo Basho

Silent Sunday or: The Haul 7/16/17

16 Sunday Jul 2017

Posted by in Records, Silent Sunday

≈ Leave a comment

Tags

, , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , ,

Salutations™!!

It was a treasure trove of K-Tel for me yesterday at Underdog Records! I picked up 18 of the wonderful (okay, maybe they are maybe they aren’t) compilations that I remember from my childhood. Someone unloaded their K-Tel collection (and a few Ronco) and they’re in really great shape. They’ll be awesome once I wash them. I remember seeing the commercials, I had a few, Ma Mère had a few and my aunts had a few. I hear Jonathan put out more of them after I left. I’ll have to return to see what’s there. Perhaps I can convince him to hold them back until I’ve gone through them? Probably not. Oh well… here’s the haul:

Kiss_Unmasked_Album_Cover

©Casablanca/Universal Music Group

 

That was a pretty nice haul and I can’t emphasize how excited I am about the K-Tel albums. Silly, perhaps, but I love that stuff. Check out Underdog Records for joys you never knew you’d experience. That sounds cheesy but The BCPF and I love listening to the records, we love collecting them. And, if you get into it, make sure you archive your stuff on Discogs. Use Discogs just to catalog your CDs, too.

Until tomorrow, happy listening…
Scorp out!

—
“Welcome to your life. There’s no turning back. Even while we sleep we will find you acting on your best behavior. Turn your back on mother nature. Everybody wants to rule the world.” – “Everybody Wants to Rule the World” (Orzabal, Stanley, Hughes)

Finishing Up or: Short Weeks

07 Friday Jul 2017

Posted by in Life as We Know It

≈ Leave a comment

Tags

, , ,

Salutations™!!giphy

I’ve realized that short weeks don’t necessarily equate to fast weeks. Even just piddling around the house goes slow when you’re waiting on your bestest gal to get home and you guys can just spend time together. We had Monday and some of Tuesday together, something we don’t always get and then we both worked Wednesday and Thursday and she worked today. I “worked” as I did some website maintenance and plugin cleanup and I learned a few songs for an upcoming gig, but working from home isn’t always what it’s cracked up to be. Then again, doing that same work at the studio wouldn’t be either.

Next week, however, I have a full week. I have some equipment to work through, five or so podcasts to record, musical gigs and meetings. All that plus this is just Friday. Who knows what else will come up before the week even starts? Not me. We’ll see, though. But, the point of today’s post is this… I’m done for the week. It’s Friday, it’s a short week, I’m done. I’m signing off for the day. The post for tomorrow is already scheduled and I’ll be with my lady. I say, let’s call it a week, right? Right. See you later, Dear Reader.

Until tomorrow, have a great weekend…
Scorp out!

—
“Bye Felicia” – Craig from Friday

Dads or: A Good Day

19 Monday Jun 2017

Posted by in Life as We Know It

≈ Leave a comment

Tags

, , , , , , ,

Salutations™!!2015-11-27 10.17.33

So, yesterday was Father’s Day. I had a great one. Started with brunch with my baby, The BCPF, at the brand new Sweet Potatoes restaurant. Then we went to grab 3B. Went to my folks’ place to see my own Pops and then we came back home, set up our event tent, put a fan outside, our Bluetooth-enabled speaker, some Top 40 Countdown for this week in 1986 on SiriusXM, drank a little brew and just had a fantastic time with my family. We had about 5 hours out there. 3B hung out with us, talked with us.

Combined that with the awesome Saturday I had with my girl and it was an amazing weekend. Underdog Records, Mary’s Gourmet Diner, Old Nick Williams Spirits, Willows… it was just too cool. Thank you to The BCPF and 3B for making my Father’s Day so great. Happy Dad’s Day to Ma Père and all the dads that are my friends, colleagues, readers, listeners, and followers. You are so very important to me, mean the world to me. Yeah, I know I use the picture a lot, but it’s a good one with my dad.

Until tomorrow, same blog channel…
Scorp out!

—
“Anyone can be a father, but it takes someone special to be a dad, and that’s why I call you dad, [sic] because you are so special to me. You taught me the game and you taught me how to play it right.” – Wade Boggs

Logging It In or: Sharing the Collection

12 Monday Jun 2017

Posted by in Life as We Know It, Records

≈ Leave a comment

Tags

, , , ,

Salutations™!!Discogs_logo.svg

I have been talking a lot about vinyl and the joys of collecting that The BCPF and I have been into. We really, really are into that and we’ve amassed a lot of $1 albums. We have a lot of the others, too, but it’s easy to get the $1 ones. Our collection has grown. Thank you Underdog Records!

But, I’ll admit that I am constantly paranoid that something will happen, some disaster or other badness and I’ll lose what I have. Not only with vinyl, but the films, DVD/Blu-Ray, CDs and The BCPF’s book collection. I have dealt with some cataloging software in the past and still have access, I believe, to the DVD/Blu-Ray/CD stuff that I put in a few years back. But, when it comes to vinyl, I have to say that I love Discogs.

Discogs is another site/service that I taut on the Sunday blogs. And, let me be clear, I am not paid or endorsed in anyway from Discogs. This is not an advertisement, just me telling my joys and love for a service that is more than just a cataloging platform. It’s, in a way, a social network and marketplace, as well. It’s easy to use and for the most part you’ll always find what you have on there. Or, what you want.

What I mean by that is, there’s a marketplace where you can buy or sell the records you want or are looking to unload. It’s no eBay or Craig’s List, but it’s easy to do. It’s easy to do if you’re able to let stuff go. I’m not able to, so I don’t know how much selling I could do on there. I’d buy, though.

Back to the disaster thing. If that disaster happens, I can easily show insurance or whomever what was in my collection, Discogs dives you an approximate value for your collection (minimum, median and maximum values based on its own market numbers) to help the appraisers in their work.

Another feature that Discogs has is it’s randomizing capabilities. If you have 20 records, that’s one thing. You have 100 records or more, then you have a lot to go through. If you’re OCD like The BCPF and me and have to have everything in alphabetical order, then the random grab method is moot. You can hit random on the app and it will randomly pick an album. Don’t like that? Hit it again. It’s just a cool feature. Oh, and it’s on app on your smart phone and on your interwebs, as well. There are advantages of each.

The last part I want to talk about Discogs’ features is the friends list. Right now, I only have two people on my friends list. Each of them, or anyone who allows me to know their user name, I can see their collection. I’ll say that one of them is Clay Howard. I have bartered a trade of started a conversation about purchasing some of his collection (he has multiples of some titles) because I can go on and see what he has. Same with him on my end. That’s where the social aspect comes in.

So, yeah, again, I’m not paid by Discogs to talk about them, I just love the service and get a lot of mileage from it. Especially when The BCPF and I are in buying mode and we can’t figure out which ones we have, especially in a serial collection like Chicago’s discography. It’s just good, clean fun. It also does CDs, but I don’t want to mix my mediums on that list. If you’re a collector of either vinyl or CDs, Discogs is my recommendation for archiving, sharing and enjoying them.

Until tomorrow, happy spinning…
Scorp out!

—
“The discogs.com domain name was registered on 30 August 2000, and Discogs itself was launched in November 2000 by programmer, DJ, and music fan Kevin Lewandowski originally as a database of electronic music.” – Wikipedia page for Discogs