Promised Review of Robert Plant Concert at Ruth Eckerd Hall

First, I have to mention the opening act, Bettye LaVette.  Great bluesy singer that to me was somewhere in-between Gladys Knight and Tina Turner.  Probably closer to Tina.  Her band was great also.  Two or three hours of her music would have been well-worth the money.  Her music and her versions of other's songs were all well done.  Perfect choice to set the mood.
As to Robert Plant and his Band of Joy, it was a thrill and a joy to witness.  They started off with 'Down to the Sea' from his Fate of Nations album.  Sounded great.  They also played quite a few songs from the Band of Joy album (which I will buy when it comes out).  He played quite a few Zep songs, such as Misty Mountain Hop; Houses of the Holy; Rock and Roll; Over the Hills and Far Away; and my two favorites of the night, Tangerine and Thank You. 
One thing in particular that really impressed me was that Plant stepped back and played harmonica or sang back-up while other band members took the spotlight on at least four or five songs. 
Don't miss this concert if it comes your way.  I'm sure this isn't Plant's last tour, but it was well worth the money.  His voice is still wonderful and his band is awesome.

End of another vacation.

Only two days of bliss left.
Spent too much time alone on this one.  The walls start closing in.  Might be a suitable atmosphere when writing about a guy trapped underground, though.

Not much more to say.  Back to work!

Update for 'The Drifter' and some rambling on.

81 pages and nearly 20000 words into my sci-fi/PA story called 'The Drifter!' I didn't get as much done this vacation as I hoped I would, but our main character, Mace Christopher is trapped inside an underground city/bunker complex long after a nuclear war, and hideous mutants have found a way inside! Mace Christopher, hired killer, ex-soldier, ex-husband, plunges into depths beyond his capability of dealing with. Hopefully I'm not exagerating when I tell you that it has a breakneck pace and that frankly I'm having a blast writing this one. I put this book off to write Dead Tide, Barren Earth and Dead Tide Rising---The time has come! I have had positive feedback from two readers and it has me stoked. ( I won't identify them in case they'd rather preserve their dignity)Lets take a ride, and forget using the brake for turns---I'll just let off the gas a little.



There is a second, related novel called After Action Report and it is about the same size as this one is presently. I've debated blending the two stories, but it might be better to bookend them like Stephen King's 'Desperation' and 'The Regulators.'


Thanks for putting up with my rambling! The rest of the weekend will be spent celebrating my wife's birthday. Hope you all enjoy the weekend also!

Okay, a few days have gone by, and now I'm on vacation.

So pleased to say that.  The downside is the days go by too fast.  Three are gone already.  I have written 2000 words of The Drifter since then.  Not exactly the level of productivity I hope for, but it was Father's Day weekend.  The story seems to be shaping up quite well.  May have to send a sample to a certain loyal fan, to be sure it is.
I'll post something story related in the next day or two.

Watched a friend's son graduate high school tonight.

Pretty large graduating class.  Far more female honor students than male.  Are women smarter (or just more focussed) than men?  Is it that maturity thing?
Sure was a lot of young people about to embark into this insane world we live in.
Wonder how many of them even have a clue what they'd like to do with their future?  Are they cattle matching down the chute to the abbattoir or newly-minted adults about to make calculated, rational decisions?
By my twentieth re-union I think eight of my classmates were dead.  This particular class, 2010, had already lost two of theirs.
Here's to my friend's son, a fine young man named Keenan.  May you live and love well and make the most of life.  Dreams are within reach.  It is just a question of how bad you want it.
Another friend's son graduates tomorrow.  Stefan, I wish the same for you!
Time for this old man to hit the sack.

What? Another post so soon?

I must be turning over a new rock or something.  I could attribute positive actions such as this (posting on my blog) as merely a good day, but why?  I'll take it for whatever it is.  The good news is that I am writing and I hope to write a lot more on my vacation in a couple weeks. 

Might even post some more of the story soon if enough people are interested.  And yes, there will be more from the world of slime molds and the dog turd fungus!

Steve  

So, for those who are interested, how about a little teaser from my upcoming novel, 'The Drifter?'

This excerpt is from 'The Drifter' or 'Test Group Six,' not sure of the title yet.  If you prefer one title over the other, please feel free to comment.   Sorry, I yanked this, but the teaser is back now...  I'll see about some more later.  ;)


I can hear the advertisement coming through the open doors behind me.


“Lucid Stillness, key to space travel and possible panacea for disease and death by old age. Join a test group near you. Colony ships to the Bacchus System planets are taking volunteers now! Escape to the colonies and live the adventure of your life. All made possible by Terratech Corporation and Swansong Petrochemicals!”

Too late for me.

Or is it?

From the balcony on the fifth floor of the Hotel Las Nubes De Sal, I watch the sun go down in a big, blood red ball. Another magnificent Madeira Beach sunset over the Gulf of Mexico. With the sound of surf rolling in, I take a last long drag on the cigarette, then toss the butt toward the garbage can a few feet away. I insert the last slug into the .357’s cylinder and then flick it closed.

The cellular impant phone in my left ear gives a discrete beep and I answer, “Mace here.”

The voice is guttural, but calm, with no trace of the rage boiling within the man. "You know Mace, I don't really care how you do it, I just want you to do to it."

"You don’t care how I kill Wertz, or his goddamned enforcer?"

"Both. I'm trying to be civilized here. I'm becoming more sensitive, you might say."

“It’s all that book-reading you do, Boss. Next thing you know, we’ll be opening a flower shop like that guy, Capone’s enemy. What was his name…Some Irish guy, I just can’t remember now.”

“Doesn’t matter Mace, that was two hundred years ago. Just take care of business for me, ok?”

“You got it Capo!” I say.

The man laughs over a thousand miles away, then hangs up the phone on his end.