Everything But The Girl - Walking Wounded

I first saw Everything But The Girl at the Royal Albert Hall in 1987. It was a night I'll always remember for several reasons. One, it was the first show I saw in the RAH, which is one of the best places you can ever see anyone. Two, I thought EBTG were amazing. I didn't know their music very well, but my fiend Tommy Oliphant was a big fan and he convinced me to buy the tickets even though I was flat broke. Soon after the show (when I got a little money) I bought all their records. The third and final reason is that I got soaked on the way to the show. A cab hit a huge puddle and splashed half a swimming pool all over me. I was so wet, I stripped down to my jeans and T-shirt during the show and hung all my clothes, including my socks over the balcony to dry out a little while we enjoyed the music.

To me EBTG is like two different bands. The 80's version was more in the 4AD vein - alternative, jazz-pop. 1984's Eden and 1986's Idlewild are the two best records from this era. In the 90's EBTG went electronic and the result is two amazing records Walking Wounded and their last effort in 1999, Temperamental. You won't go wrong with any of these records.

Tiger is out

And just like that Tiger is out of the Accenture Match Play Championship. Bummer. He looked so good yesterday when he dispatched little know Brendan Jones that we were getting the congratulations ad ready, but match play is unpredictable and Tim Clark took him out 4 and 2 today. The good news in all of this is I am still doing well in the office pool. I am currently sitting second and if Ogilvy beats Villegas, I think I have a clear shot at first, with a nice $150 payout. We'll see what the weekend brings.

Sunday is Back

After eight long months Tiger Woods is finally back playing competitve golf. He opens his season tomorrow at the Accenture Match Play Championship and needless to say everyone is eagerly awaiting his return. Well, maybe not everyone...

This spot will be running on ESPN and the Golf Channel starting tomorrow. Hopefully Tiger will be in the hunt this weekend and you will see it a lot.

Talking on the Bus

I don't like to talk to people on the bus. On the way home I always wear my headphones and I don't make eye contact. On the way to work I have not always been so lucky. Earlier in the week I saw my neighbor who normally rides his bike to work, but that day he decided to take the bus. We ended up talking all the way to downtown. The problem is that he is a really nice guy and it would have been great to have him over to the house to get to know him, but I don't like to talk on the bus. I don't like those people I normally make fun of for telling their life stories on the bus, hearing me tell my life story. If you know me and we see each other on the bus you should say hello and then enjoy your ride quietly. If you have to talk, wait until we get off the bus.

Today I met a guy who loves to talk on the bus. This rasta guy is a T-shirt designer. He doesn't like to buy stuff on the Internet, he likes to support local shops. He is also very anxious to hear people's opinion on how we can get more cars off the street. He didn't go to college, but wanted to hear where we all went to college and what we studied. Again a lovely guy that I am sure would have been very interesting to talk to if we weren't on the bus.

In Japan, people get very uncomfortable if you talk to them on public transportation. I think we should all learn form this.

Bob Schneider - Songs Sung and Played at the Same Time

I have only seen Bob Schneider live once and it was a solo show. My brother is a big fan and he got us tickets for the show when we were home for Christmas a few years ago. I really hadn't heard much of his music before, and what I had heard was with his full band. The concert was excellent. Schneider is a great storyteller, and is very funny. His songs are a great mix of dark ballads and hilarious ditties, that sound like he is making them up on the spot. What I can't figure out is how autobiographical the songs are; he's lived a pretty rough life if they are all about things he has really lived through. Songs Sung and Played at the Same Time is the CD he was selling after the show that basicaly had the entire set of songs he had just played on it. It contains 35 songs and I have not been able to find the same line up anywhere on the net, so if you can't find it I would recommend Lonelyland. One of my all time favorite songs is "2002" if anyone has ever had a worse year they should write a song about it.

Fuller's Restaurant

It seems strange that I have never written anything about Fullers as I eat there about once a week. Fullers is a classic dinner that serves breakfast all day and has great lunch fare as well. Some people, me among them, think they have one of the best burgers in Portland. I am not one to branch out that much, but I have tried a few other things. The club sandwich is great, the omelets are huge and very tasting, I love the meatloaf sandwich and the open faced turkey sandwich is great too. My boss Dan Wieden says they have the best razor clams in town. I am not a fan of razor clams, but if you like that sort of thing it does get mentioned a lot in the tour guides. Fullers has great milkshakes, malts and other sweet stuff like different pies every day. There are also some good daily specials, like the econo-meal which is soup, a half sandwich and potato salad for $6.95. The waitresses are all very nice and super attentive, you should give them a big tip, if you can, to make up for all the old people who eat there and don't tip well.

Fuller's Restaurant

136 NW 9th Ave

Portland, OR 97209

(503) 222-5608

The Portland Hat

I will grant you it has been a little cold here lately, probably in the mid-40s. But temperature is irrelevant when it comes to head wear in Portland. It can be in the mid-60s and people will still wear their wool head covering. In fact you can see guys in shorts and T-shirts with a wool hat on. For women you need to have interesting colors or patterns and something hanging off it. For men it can also be colorful, but more likely you are going for the WW II GI issue wool cap with the visor or a Navy issue blue stocking cap to go with the pea coat.