Rosencrantz & Guildenstern, Ltd.

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• Weird Al!!! (@ The Majestic Theatre w/ 9 others) http://4sq.com/5bgUw1 #
• Having a traditional post-concert dinner at IHOP. (@ IHOP) http://4sq.com/8gNzgS #
• Weird Al at The Majestic – Cell Phone encore.wmv http://youtu.be/4bPZWHSh4ng #
• Hooray for fingerprinting! (Although I seriously hate people touching me that I don't know.) (@ Education Service Center, Region 20) #
• Second try for Scott Pilgrim… (@ Barnes and Noble) http://4sq.com/5T4LrM #
• I am full of fail RE: Scott Pilgrim… I could get it @borders, but will not for principle's sake. #
• Getting ready to see Inception. #
• Movies like Inception are why I still go to the theater. #

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I’ve heard for a long time that “Weird Al” Yankovic and his live band are great in concert, but I finally got a chance to see them for myself at The Majestic in San Antonio on July 18. My wife, Jen, is a big fan of Weird Al, and she jumped at the opportunity to see him live. Ironically, we just missed him when we moved to Lubbock three years ago, and we’ve just now moved to San Antonio. Overall I was not disappointed in the show. Although the band was small, (just four guys with Al), they not only showed themselves to be excellent musicians, but also great performers; in many ways, this is more my type of musical theatre than some people talking to each other in stilted, unnatural language and then breaking into song at inopportune times.

To allow for the changes in costumes between songs (and there were many), a three projector screens showed various Al-related clips; many were from “Al TV,” with fake interviews featuring Eminem, Madonna, Celine Dion, and others.  These breaks between the music just added to the whole show, and many times the video on the screens was used to lead into live songs.  For example, the opening to the “Fat” music video was played before Al came out in the fat suit to do the song.

One of my favorite moments of the show was the encore.  The keybordist came out in a robe and played Bach’s Toccata and Fugue in D Minor, followed by a chorus line of Storm Troopers and a Boba Fett.  Naturally, we expected Al to go into one of his Star Wars-related songs, but instead he did a song about cell phones (which we had previously heard in a mock interview with Snoop Dogg).  Then he did both “The Saga Begins” (to the tune of “American Pie” by Don McLean) and “Yoda” (“Lola” by the Kinks).

My only issue with this concert had nothing to do with the band.  I haven’t been to many concerts with actual seating, so I don’t know if this is normal, but throughout the concert no one stood up, except for a period at the end.  As a matter of fact, when Jen and I, plus a couple of big Al fans next to us, didn’t sit down in between “The Saga Begins” and “Yoda,” a woman from the behind us actually yelled, “Sit down!”  Now, I spent most of this concert sitting down precisely because I didn’t want to block the view of those behind me, given that no one else was standing, but I felt that this was unnatural concert behavior. Jen also felt the same way.  So, I have a quick note for people in San Antonio and elsewhere that go to concerts with seating: sitting down in a concert should be a choice you make, and if you can’t see, stand up or move.  If you can’t move, stand up.  Music concerts like this are not meant to be “sit back and listen” affairs.  I kinda felt bad for Al and his band, because if you just looked at the audience, it didn’t look like the show was going that well even though it was awesome.

Regardless of that, Jen and I had a great time, and we definitely want to see “Weird Al” Yankovic and his band again.  By the way, here’s a quick video I took of the “Cell Phone” encore, which was taken on my cell phone.  Remember, “Everyone has a cell phone…”

• Woke up early and am now waiting: gas company ('all day' appointment is not an appointment) and internet (1 to 5 is closer to appointment). #
• Amazingly enough, Time Warner is here early to install THE INTERNETS. Hopefully it won't take too long… #

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• I'm listening to The Choir's new album, Burning Like the Midnight Sun. It is really good. #

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I’ve been listening to The Choir for years; in many ways, their music has been more influential on me than any other band. Their Speckled Bird album began my transition away from traditional “Christian rock” which, while often competently and expertly played, lacked any real personality, to music that came more directly from the personal experiences of the members. With Burning Like The Midnight Sun The Choir continues to create deeply personal music with a distinct, original sound. Each of the members is at the top of their game musically, and I especially like hearing more of Dan Michael’s saxophone. Lyrically, The Choir continues to present issues of faith and relationships in a way that is not preachy or candy-coated, but rooted in real life. For fans, this album is a welcome return of The Choir, showing that they haven’t lost anything in the years between albums. For new listeners, this is an accessible album that will give them a good start in looking into the rest of The Choir’s work.

Originally published at Puddleglum Music

• Yay! I have been recommended for a teaching position in the San Antonio area! I still have to interview with the superintendent, though. #
• This is our last night in Lubbock. Hooray. (@ The Park Apartments) http://4sq.com/694R3X #
• We are officially out of Lubbock and in Stonewall; I have my final interview with the superintendent tomorrow at 2. #
• I am officially hired! #

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• I'm at Garcia's Mexican Restaurant (3820 FM 3009 # 136, Schertz). http://4sq.com/chvUte #
• I'm at Panda Express (11220 Huebner Road, San Antonio). http://4sq.com/cMnWkW #
• Panda Express fortune: "Your most memorable dream will come." Translation: Prepare for the Zombie Apocalypse. #
• Good thing about packing: finding things you thought you'd lost or forgotten you had. #
• From the Soup (actually some soap opera): "No more wondering what's for breakfast… It's more like, 'What's for life?'" #

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• The Doctor playing football (soccer) = superbly brilliant. I love episodes where the Doctor has to be "normal" and totally fails at it. #

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• @ryan_connolly agree in reply to ryan_connolly #
• Best line from the Soup (from the show True Beauty) – "I'll accept bottom place, but I won't accept losing!" #
• I just ousted @jtyost2 as the mayor of The Park Apartments on @foursquare! http://4sq.com/694R3X #
• Pictures from a Russian edition of The Hobbit: http://ow.ly/1XEAz (from @geeknights) #
• I just found out that L.S. Underground's _The Grape Prophet_ is available for download at http://lsunderground.bandcamp.com for $9. #
• A CD copy of _The Grape Prophet_ on eBay goes for $50-100 last time I checked, by the way. #
• What do you do when a monument like Stonehenge misbehaves? Blow it up! #

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I’m going to do a proper article (or two) on our quick trip to Roswell and Carlsbad (June 7-8), with pictures and slideshows, but this will do for now (it’s well past sleepy time).

Roswell: UFO Museum is not the only reason (or the best reason): Art Museum much cooler; zoo (peacocks especially) is cool too (though small); wish we could have gone to more museums: historical and contemp. art.

Carlsbad: Caverns are well worth the trip; walk is long (and hard on knees, well on my right knee because I tend to put more weight on it) but a great experience. In town we ate at the No Whiner Diner, which was good. (We both had chicken fried steak). The whole place has a snarky attitude we appreciate.

65 speed limit in place where it should be 70 (why?)

New Mexicans are almost indistinguishable from Texans (apart from only needing one license plate).  We spotted our first authentic New Mexican in Tatum and I couldn’t even tell the difference.

We thought Texas was boring between Sweetwater and Lubbock; eastern New Mexico is generally worse (not even farmhouses or small, almost-dried-up towns every 10-15 miles) with occasional spots of brilliance (ie Carlsbad and the sand dunes on US Hwy 380).

Lubbock to Roswell: Beth Orton (Comfort of Stangers, Central Reseravation, and the Best Bit EP); Ben Folds Five (Whatever and Ever Amen)

Roswell to Carlsbad: The Decemberists (The Crane Wife and The Hazards of Love)

Carlsbad to Hobbs: The Beatles (White Album)

Hobbs to Lubbock: Metallica (Death Magnetic) and Maylene and the Sons of Disaster (II)