Among the dozen or so podcasts that rotate into my iPod is the infrequently updated companion podcast to Darcy James Argue's Secret Society blog. One piece that I've been skipping around in favor of back issues of This American Life is a track from a CD recently reviewed by Argue: Jody Redhage's all summer in a day. If I understand correctly, the track is Paula Matthusen's "of minutiae and memory" which Argue calls "an elegiac-sounding Norwegian prayer set amidst fluttering bursts of clicking electronics, bowed tremolos, and harmonics."

After really listening to it for the first time this morning, the juxtaposition of the gently drifting melody with the electronic effects reminded of some of the music my brother Ted has written. And then, as if reading my mind, the iPod shuffled and served up Ted's "Digital Construction #1". Scalp tingling at this bit of serendipity (also from the music itself), I stood in the backyard, ignoring the dogs for a good 10 minutes while verifying the appropriateness of my mental comparison. After that, came Bruce Springsteen's "Thunder Road", which, as good as it is, didn't exactly fit the mood.

In addition to the excerpts from some of the other tracks on Redhage's new cd and Ted's entire oeuvre to-date, I highly recommend the music of the Secret Society, self-described as "steampunk big band jazz", which, well, you'll see what I mean.

Posted by ksmoker at 9:32 AM | Permalink | Comments (0)

Hillary linked to it a while ago (the phrase became the tagline of her blog for a while). Then, earlier today, I was reminded of the January 4, 2006 NYT article and the accompanying recipe (thanks, Maria!).

Let me tell you, literally less than 10 minutes of prep time (would have been closer to five if I could have found the nutmeg a little quicker) and an hour later, creamy mac & cheese goodness.

Posted by ksmoker at 9:26 PM | Permalink | Comments (1)

Unfortunately, '42' is not given serious consideration. (via kottke)

Posted by ksmoker at 10:18 PM | Permalink | Comments (0)

We know he likes chicken, but here is his reaction to pork:

Kari: Here's dinner!

Ben: What is it?

K: Pork chops, potatoes, and broccoli!

B: Yay!! ... Um, excuse me, what is pork chips?

K: Pork chops, a kind of meat, like chicken.

B: Like chicken?? What is it?

K: It's from a pig.

B: A pig?!

K: ...

B: Awwww, I like pigs...

Posted by ksmoker at 7:02 PM | Permalink | Comments (0)

One of the top questions that a Rochester resident will receive from non-Rochestarians is some variation of “Why would you ever want to live there?” This curiosity is to be expected what with the snow, the decline of our local industry (Kodak, Xerox, and Bausch and Lomb), the snow, and our inferiority complex w/r/t downstate and our more well-known neighbor to the west. Also, there is the snow.

One of the most frequent responses—aside from the clichéd blather about change of seasons—is the high quality and concentration of cultural institutions in Rochester. This is no idle claim and it is perhaps a indication of the plenitude of our cultural resources that Kari and I have only just recently gotten around to attending any of the offerings of the Hochstein School of Music & Dance.

Yesterday, Hochstein hosted their winter carnival, Musical Feast, an event designed to introduce children to music and was no doubt also aimed at acquainting parents to the Hochstein curriculum. After a brief introductory concert by the Youth Orchestra, we took Ben through the instrument petting zoo, where kids get the chance to play the instruments themselves (under very close supervision).

Ben enjoyed the percussion room of course, but his attentions were otherwise split between the strings and the brass instruments, particularly the violin and trombone (the trombone slide was more fun than the trumpet valves). He couldn't have cared less for the woodwind instruments, though. Any dreams of raising the next John Coltrane took a serious hit with Ben's total lack of interest in the saxophone.

We left with a handful of brochures and thoughts of enrolling Ben in a Suzuki Program. Hochstein really puts together an impressive package. The opening program by the Youth Orchestra was enchanting, with some serious talent represented. It's pretty intimidating, though. Ben seems interested in learning an instrument, but his attention span is still that of, well, of a five-year-old.

Posted by ksmoker at 10:17 PM | Permalink | Comments (2)