"Stuck In Lodi Again"

Yesterday was a busy day. I got up and tutored for an hour, then came back to the apartment and tried to straighten things out a bit for the crew to come over to watch Neon Genesis Evangelion. I also spent a good amount of time playing guitar--learned the CCR song "Lodi" yesterday, which is just a lot of fun to play. Natalie (one of the members of the Friday Crew) mentioned that she's enjoyed watching me improve over the past couple of months. And she's right--there is a marked improvement in my abilities over the past two and half months. I'm much better at changing chords, my strumming has improved at least tenfold, and my singing is starting to get stronger (it's hard, as Clif has mentioned to me before, to sing and play at the same time. Either you screw up with the playing, or you don't sing as strong as you otherwise would. I'm finally starting to get good enough with the guitar that I don't have to concentrate on where my hands are or my strumming and chord changing as much. I can actually focus a little on singing as well).

After all that, I went out and heard my uncle play. My cousin and a few of his friends (including his new S.O. interest, a young lady named Leslie) came out for a bit. Funny thing is, they were dressed to go clubbing, which really sorta stands out in a country (or, as I prefer to think of it, shit-kicker) bar. Guys in cowboy hats, mullets, and a pretty poor teeth-to-head ratio don't really mix with guys in fancy shirts, girls in strapless tops, and the fancy mixed drinks they tend to order. Culture clash at its finest, really.

Of interesting note is that my cousin, who is still in the middle of his divorce, must be freakin' blind, or at least use a very different vocabulary than I. When he says a girl is "homely," to use the term he originally used to describe this girl Leslie, I was assuming something around my definition of it--someone who, while not ugly, is not drop-dead gorgeous. Someone probably rather simple and plain in appearance.

Apparently my cousin either doesn't know what the word means, or must have really high standards when it comes to a girl's looks, because this young woman was exceptionally attractive. I think he needs his eyes checked, I really do.

Anyway, the folks will be in town in a few hours to take Scott out for dinner and shopping for his birthday. Apparently I get to get fed as well, which is always nice--I'm never against a free meal.

~chuck

Song of the Moment: Beck, "E-Pro"