Morphine - Cure for Pain

In 1992, Morphine released their second independent record Cure for Pain. It is their biggest selling record as well as their most critically acclaimed. If you haven't heard of Morphine, they were the college radio darlings of the 1990's. The thing that made them so different was that they had no guitar. They managed to create a huge sound from a saxophone, a two-string slide bass guitar and Mark Sandman's amazing voice. Their third record Yes, also on Rykodisk, is equally amazing, so feel free to pick that up as well. Unfortunately, Mark Sandman collapsed on stage in 1999 and died of a heart attack.

Rafting on the Klickitat

On Sunday, May 25th we drove about an hour or so from Portland through the Gorge and across the Columbia River to White Salmon, Washington to go rafting. Barbara's sister Dede set up the trip for us and her husband Jeff and her daughter Tana.

Zoller's Outdoor Odysseys is a family owned guide outfit that runs tours down the White Salmon River, the Klickitat River and several other rivers in Washington, Oregon and Idaho. The guides are all super nice and very professional. The trip begins at around 9:00 a.m. when you change into your wet suits and board the bus that takes you out to the River. If you are looking for a little more adventure, you can do the White Salmon River where they launch you into class IV or higher water right behind the shop. We had opted for the tamer rout on the Klickitat River.
After about a half hour drive we got to our launch point. There we got a short lecture on safety and what to do if you fall out of the boat, which not only could be dangerous but also very cold as the water was about 40 degrees. The trip down the river took about five hours, but it seemed to go by pretty fast. We got out of the boat and hiked around a couple of times in spots that were a little more dangerous, but otherwise you are in the boat the entire time. Between the wet suit, the fleece and the splash jacket they give you, you stay pretty warm. The only bad part was your hands and feet get pretty cold as you hands are exposed and your feet are in a puddle of cold water the entire time.

Where you sit is an important decision. If you are up front, you will get the best view, but you have to paddle a little harder and you get a lot wetter as every wave hits you first. If you sit in the back you are dryer but the water can pool at your feet and keep you a little cold. Either way the paddling is not very strenuous, most of the time you are just floating and enjoying the view. And the view is why you go, it is beautiful. The rock formations and the cliff sides are amazing. The Wonder Falls waterfall is also a highlight of the trip. There are also a few fish hatcheries along the way that the guide will stop and show you.

Once you get back (around 2:30 p.m.), you change out of your wet suit and you get a nice home cooked lunch and the opportunity to check out the pictures of your trip to see if you want to buy them. The guided tour and lunch is $90 per person and the pictures are $35. On the way home we drove along the Washington side of the Gorge where we saw a lot of wind surfers and took the Bridge of the Gods back over to the Oregon side which offers great views of the Gorge.

Zoller's Outdoor Odysseys
1248 Hwy 141
White Salmon, WA 98672
800-366-2004
www.zooraft.com

AC/DC - Highway to Hell

Sorry, but I have to give the nod to Bon Scott. The new incarnation of AC/DC is great and it keeps an amazing band going in a way that adding Sammy Hagar did not for Van Halen, but Bon was the original and Highway to Hell rocks harder than Back in Black (which you should also own).

I first heard this record in 1979, my cousin Alan had a copy in Scotland before it was released in the US. When I got home it was an instant hit with all my 14-year-old heavy metal loving friends. My feeling now is that AC/DC is not a heavy metal band, but more of a hard rocking roadhouse band - they never were into all the leather, etc.

Kingsbarns

Kingbarns was voted the best new course by all the golf magazines when it opened in 2000. The course was built on the same land as the original nine hole course that was the Kingsbarns links. That course closed in 1939 when the area was mined and fortified to protect against a German landing in WWII. The new 18 run along the coast between St. Andrews and the Crail links, about nine miles from the center of St. Andrews. It is a very challenging course and has a couple of world class holes. Unfortunately it is pretty expensive for Americans to play at around $320 a round. The clubhouse is small, but very nice and you can eat there as long as you are playing.

Kingsbarns is also a great little village where my Dad grew up. The farmhouse that he lived in is now a B&B, but some of the places are still the same. The local pub is still around, but it in now called The Barns at Kingsbarns. It has been expanded to serve lunch and dinner; last time we ate there the food was good. The church is still there, but a minister comes out from St. Andrews to conduct the service. My grandparents and great grandparents on my dad's side are buried in the cemetery outside the church.

If you stop in Kingsbarns for a pint after you play, you should consider walking around the village or driving down to the coast to see the beach.

Brighton, England

Located about an hour south of London by train, Brighton was originally called Brighthelmston and dates from before the Domesday Book (1086). In the 18th century it was well know as a health resort, as people thought there was restorative properties in the sea water. It became a popular destination for day-trippers after the arrival of the railway in 1841, and remains so today as Londoners flock down to the beach on sunny days. Brighton experienced rapid population growth reaching a peak of over 160,000 by 1961. There are also population and home price spikes every time a high speed railway is proposed between London and Brighton, which is yet to happen.
The two biggest tourist attractions in Brighton are the pier and the Pavilion. Brighton Pier (originally known as "The Brighton Marine Palace and Pier", or the Palace Pier) was opened in 1899. It features a large funfair, restaurants, arcade halls, and great views of the Brighton coastline. Really it is a seedy tourist trap where everything is too expensive, but it is fun to take a walk out to the end. The Royal Pavilion was formerly a Royal palace, built as the home for the Prince Regent during the early 1800's. It has amazing Indian architecture and Oriental interior design, and is constantly referred to as the Prince's pleasure palace as he entertained all his lady friends there.. Queen Victoria did not like the place much so she sold the building and surrounding grounds to the town in 1849 for £53,000, but she took all the furniture and even the wall paper.

Brighton is a eclectic mix of the old and new. It is also a very progressive place, with a large gay and lesbian community. There are hundreds of artists displaying their work in the quirky shops along the lanes or on walls around town, and musicians playing gigs in the many venues in town on any night of the week. It also seems to be a safe haven for old musicians, with easy access to London and less hassle, you are likely to see Captain Sensible or Nick Cave doing their grocery shopping.
Most importantly, Brighton (and nearby Lewis) are home to my cousins, Michelle and Grant. Michelle is an amazing graphic artist who still plays in bands around town, but had a run in with fame when her band Frazier Chorus was signed to 4AD in 1987 and then released a full length record with Virgin. Her younger and equally talented brother Grant plays in the critically acclaimed band, The Mountain Firework Company, as well as others and can be seen in Berlin and the Edinburgh festival this summer.

The Old Firm

The first Old Firm game was played on May 28, 1888. About 120 years later I attended my first installment at Celtic Park in Glasgow, also called Parkhead or Paradise. The Old Firm are the two Glasgow football teams Celtic and Rangers, they are referred to this way because they have a stranglehold on the Scottish Premier division. The history of the two teams is long and full of great and not so great moments. The teams have long been associated with sectarian differences often leading to violence. Celtic is the traditional Catholic team in Glasgow, sympathising with Irish politics. Rangers is the traditionally Protestant team, associated with British unionism.

These differences can incite strong feelings between the teams and more so their fans. Over the years there have been many attempts to work together to tone down the partisan rhetoric, but there is no love loss here. As you can see in the second picture (if you look closely) there is an entire section of seats open to separate the two teams fans in the stadium. Each row has a police officer posted at each end and many more come out on to the field to attend a corner kick. In fact, if the ball rolls into the visiting fans corner, opposing players will not venture in to get it for fear of being pelted by coins.

The game my cousin, Gregor, and I attended began at noon - they would start at 9:00 a.m. if they could to keep the fans from drinking too much before they get to the game. We had received two box seats from my Nike clients who are a Celtic sponsor . On the way into the game I saw more police than I have ever seen before, making sure the Rangers fans were well separated from the Celtic faithful. Once safely in the box we were treated to a pre-game breakfast. The first half was very exciting, with both teams scoring two goals a piece. At half time we were treated to soup and Scottish pies. The second half saw Celtic go ahead on a penalty kick that ultimately decided the game.

After the game there was a big lunch with steak and potatoes and the drinks began to flow (there was no drinking during the game). We were in the box with several other people, four of whom were the manager and sales staff at Auchterlonie's Golf Shop in St. Andrews, which lead to some great conversation. The game was over at around 2:00 p.m., but we did not have to leave the box until 6:30 p.m., so we stayed around watching the other games on TV and having a few drinks. When we finally got kicked out of the box, we decided to stop in downtown Glasgow before heading back to Edinburgh to see if there were any fans around on a Sunday night. Needless to say the Celtic fans were still out in full effect. We managed to catch the last train back to Edinburgh around midnight and luckily I got to sleep in the next day while Greg had to head off to work. I felt normal again on Wednesday, so all in all a pretty good day (and night) out in Glasgow.