I love it when companies surprise me and have fun with the process of doing business. Joe Coffee's new cd "When the Fabric Don't Fit the Frame" is out now directly from the band and being the loyal fan I am I jumped on it ("Stink of Love" is a terrific and true track).

Here is the confirmation email I received from the online company:

Your CDs have been gently taken from our CD Baby shelves with sterilized contamination-free gloves and placed onto a satin pillow.

A team of 50 employees inspected your CDs and polished them to make sure they were in the best possible condition before mailing.

Our packing specialist from Japan lit a candle and a hush fell over the crowd as he put your CDs into the finest gold-lined box that money can buy.

We all had a wonderful celebration afterwards and the whole party marched down the street to the post office where the entire town ofPortland waved "Bon Voyage!" to your package, on its way to you, in our private CD Baby jet on this day, Friday, March 30th.

I hope you had a wonderful time shopping at CD Baby. We sure did. Your picture is on our wall as "Customer of the Year." We're all exhausted but can't wait for you to come back to CDBABY.COM!!Thank you, thank you, thank you!

Sigh...--Derek Sivers, president, CD Baby
the little store with the best new independent music

Ford's Gym War Hellride

Maybe its because I will always have on toe in Chicago, or maybe because I try to remember to find the smaller things in life that make a place unique, memorable, or interesting . Either way, small Wisconsin details never cease to interest me.

At the pot luck or VFW dinners in Chicago or Indiana you will have the option of water, coffee, or kool-aid. In Wisconsin there is no kool-aid option, but in its place you can have 2% milk. As much as you want! Eating corned beef and cabbage really gives me a taste for milk served by charming old women in American Legion smocks. I jest, but I had two glasses of milk like the ever acclimating person I’m trying to be.


I am starting to sound like Garrison Keiller. (“Stupid blog! Be more funny!”)

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A new member of the gym looks just like Wesley Willis, only a little less hefty. He benches 225 lbs in reps of 2, over 10+ sets. Its very odd and silly, aside from rudely monopolizing the bench for 30 minutes. Some have dubbed him Benchy, which is appropriate. I only hear “Rock on Madison. Rock on Ford’s Gym. Wisconsin – You’re among Friends!” when I see him.

Its a little warmer and the days are longer thanks to the early time change. The salt and sand on the slushy early spring side of the road is making daily cleanings of my bike almost necessary, but I'll never complain about that. Its so nice to be out again. Life is busier than ever these days but with the looming spring on the horizon I am completely relaxed and happy, yet I have found more clear, strong grey hairs in the same area as before. Its no longer a story. When you get that first one its a story. When you get that first clump its worth noting. Now, its on to more interesting things to complain and blog about.

Saturday was a perfect confluence of some Chicago friends on Madison. I met Tom and Jess in Milwaukee to see the Bacon exhibit. Very disturbing and unforgettable. We high tailed it back to Madison for rollerderby where Salma’s Chicago contingent was headed. We had 2 tickets for our group of three which was no worry because you could always buy them there. I don’t know if a bout has sold out before (probably) but this was one was very sold out before it even began. This was troubling -- we passed many groups of people walking away from the venue with heads hung low. The will call line was long so we figured we’d stand in it and work on a plan. We hoped for the “we came from Chicago and already have 2 tickets…can be buy one measly ticket?” approach. We also planned on asking for “professional courtesy” for Chicago’s finest and bravest. Our line inched closer to the will call table over the next 10 minutes when finally a man in full Reservoir Dolls regalia (a sharp black suit) walked out with a ticket in his hand and calmly stated, “Who is a fan of the Reservoir Dolls?” I poked Tom, his hand shot up, and all three of us walked in. Salma and crew were inside, the place was jumping, and I still cannot believe our good luck.

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Found my first grey hair this week. I’m sure it is not the first but it is certainly the first bold, clear one I’ve noticed. Does this mean I can no longer listen to youth crew records?