Music Monday 25 :: Phil Perry

Phil Perry has been around for some time. Heck, my grandmother knows and loves Phil Perry. According to wikipedia, he sang w/The Montclairs in the 70s. Now, everyone loves a 70s soul group, right? And I love Phil Perry. I know that it's cliche, but he does have that silky soul voice; and falsetto too.

My fav Phil Perry songs are "Love Don't Love Nobody" and "If Only You Knew". They're both from the "Pure Pleasure" cd (1994). And yes, they are both remakes, but Perry puts his spin on the songs and adds another level of emotion. "Love Don't Love Nobody" was originally done by The Spinners. Perry goes on for more than seven minutes on his rendition and I don't get tired of hearing him say how much of a fool he was; he sings so passionately and seems to leave himself wide open. It's an awesome arrangement.

Love Dont Love Nobody - Phil Perry

Just as Perry put his stamp on "Love Don't Love Nobody", he does nearly the same his cover of Patti LaBelle's "If Only You Knew". It's his falsetto that takes it over the top, but it's not over the top. But you have to hear it for yourself.

If Only You Knew - Phil Perry

Let me know what you think.

Presentation Advice - Audience :: GPS :: Monkey

I was going through some old notebooks and I noticed my scribble that said Audience GPS. So I thought that maybe it was a website. Not quite.

Apparently when I was attending PodCamp Pittsburgh last year, someone must have mentioned this. Only when I went to look it up today, the complete phrase is: Audience, GPS, Monkey.

Love that. I could tell you all about it, but I will only say it's perfect advice for those who often give PowerPoint presentations.

The link will take you to social media veteran Chris Brogan's website where he has a six minute video explaining the concept.

I think you'll like it.

New Window for my Jeep

I love my Jeep Wrangler and that's part of the story here. How far will I go to please my Jeep? Read on.

The driver side window in my Jeep was beginning to show signs of wear and tear, but cosmetics don't bother me much. A Jeep w/character is what I call it. What finally got me to get some new windows, or as they're called in the world of all things Jeep - skins (just the plastic and not the frame) was that the window would no longer zip up. Yes, the zipper was stripped in multiple places (the passenger side window zipper is busted too). Miraculously, rain has not seeped in via the unzipped portions. But I did not want to test my luck and so I broke down and got the new skins. 2 for $219.

But there's a trick to dealing w/the plastic windows on Jeeps ... they need to be pliable. WTF. I know this, but I live in Ohio and I don't have a garage. So I'm waiting for a sun shiny day to pop along when I can change out the windows. Keep in mind, when I bought the windows the guys says "you should be able to put them on yourself, just be patient". WTF. When you get that type of advice after a big purchase, watch out.

Patience did eventually work, but not before I nearly broke down and cried. Here's what happened:

It was supposed to be 74 degrees on Saturday ... I had been reading the weather all morning on the radio and I was confident that this was the day to put in my new skins. But time got away from me and before I knew it, it was 4 p.m. I had dinner plans for 6 p.m. but I can do this, right? Apparently not. By 5 o'clock, I was searching for a shoe horn. Yep, that's the tool of choice for this job. You see, the skins were not very pliable, read: soft enough, to get around the corners of the wire frame so I needed something to pull it over the top and not rip the fabric.

Long story longer ... I went to dinner w/out the window on the driver's side. Not a big deal, but it was getting cooler and I knew that I'd have to make it through dinner quicker to get back to my task because of course, there was rain in the forecast. I got home a little after 8 and headed straight for the bathroom and the next tool of choice, a hair dryer. Need this to make that window pliable since Mother Nature did not work in my favor.

I bought the window in the house and I wrestled w/that frame for about 20 minutes. Patience. Patience. The shoe horn was of no help since it was plastic and began to bend. I finally ended up using a screwdriver. I was a bit fearful that I would puncture the plastic and be back at square one w/a busted window. But the screwdriver worked like a charm as I used it to guide the pliable plastic window over the frame. The screwdriver seemed to be saying "why didn't you ask me for help sooner?" Silly me, but I love my Jeep and I can see clearly now - at least out of the driver's side window...

Music Monday 24 :: Paolo Nutini

Paolo Nutini's debut cd "These Streets" came out in 2006. It was a sensation. "New Shoes" did very well. I like that track. Just a cool and upbeat song. He's got that smooth voice. He's easy on the eyes too. That's the bonus.

Well, you'll be happy to know that Nutini's got a new project "Sunny Side Up".

Anyway, here's a vid of Nutini performing "New Shoes". Very cool.

Music Monday 23 :: Yoko Ono & Peaches

"Kiss Kiss Kiss" is a very cool song. I absolutely love the tempo - upbeat. But that's electronica for ya. The song is rather simple. With the chorus mostly being repeated for the duration of the song. And the song isn't that long, 3:14.

It's written by Yoko Ono and performed by Peaches. But there's more history to it than that. Apparently "Kiss Kiss Kiss" was a track on a project by Ono and her 'mildly' famous hubby, John Lennon. This newer version appears on Ono's 2002 "Yes, I'm a Witch".

I got hip to the track when I was running a college radio station a few years back. I remember hearing it on a student dj's show and I remember liking it as much then as I do now.

This could be a good song to workout to ... it will definitely get the heart rate up. There is, however, a bit disturbing part of the song when a female is screaming 'murder' several times, but if you can get by that ... yeah, you can get by that ... Give it a listen.

Kiss Kiss Kiss - Yoko Ono & Peaches

It's a Mileage Milestone :: Jeep Wrangler Hits 200,000 Miles

I've blogged about my Jeep Wrangler before ... I love my Jeep. I've had it since February of 1997. Bought it at a now closed dealership on the westside of Cleveland.

Well, recently I hit a mileage milestone: 200,000

Of course, I was driving and I determined that, oh, I am going to exceed 200,000 on this road trip. Some of you might not think that that's a big deal, but that is huge. Because it's all mine. I've driven nearly all 200,000 miles. The only other person to really drive my Jeep at all is my sis (love that my sis can drive a stick shift).

It's been fun w/my Jeep too. I remember one time when I first got it and I had taken the top off, but I did not look at the weather forecast. I was on the highway driving from Cleveland to Akron and it started to rain. As in rain, rain. Lucky me there is a rest stop that wasn't too far away. So I pull into the rest stop and start to work on getting the top up (this is when the 'no frills' thing is not a selling point). Anyway, I don't know if I appeared to be struggling or not, but a couple of guys walked over and offered to help. The one guy noted that he used to own a Jeep Wrangler. Just a nice gesture.

Which brings me to my next point about the Jeep Wrangler: there is a Jeep Wrangler wave! As in a greeting. When one Jeep Wrangler driver sees another, we always throw up a wave or a peace sign. That is so cool. I remember when I first moved to Pittsburgh and another Jeep Wrangler spotted me and gave the wave. Just made me feel welcome. Again, it's a nice gesture. It's also funny when the Jeep Wrangler wave takes place and someone is with me. They will say, do you know them? And I have to explain the Jeep Wrangler wave, which is sort of corny, but is really kinda cool.

What's to love about the Jeep Wrangler?

• No frills
• decent gas mileage
• very 'cool' factor when the top is down
• American made

Someone recently asked me if I've ever taken it off-road? The answer is yes. I used to drive on the trails at Salt Fork State Park in Ohio. Love that park (btw, the largest state park in Ohio).

But just as much as I love it, it does have its shortcomings. My Jeep has been broken into several times (via let's cut through the plastic windows). The loss has varied from my Public Enemy "Fear of a Black Planet" cd to an expensive audio recorder. Also, the plastic windows can be a bit complicated at times - like at toll booths.

Well, I think that's plenty on me and my Jeep Wrangler ... at least for now. I'm going to celebrate the mileage milestone by getting some new 'skins' for my windows. that just means I'm replacing the plastic windows - taking off the old skins and getting new ones ; $219 for a pair. Yay me.

Music Monday 22 :: Marvin Gaye's "If I Should Die Tonight"

Here's a bit of a throwback: 1973 Marvin Gaye "If I Should Die Tonight". This is an incredible ballad. Marvin really uses his vocal range on this one.

The song is not as morbid as the title indicates. It's really about a guy who is apparently head over heels in love w/his girl. He says, "If I should die tonight, I won't die broke, cause I've known you". It's a strongly written song. Love it.

It came to my attention a while back when I lived and worked in Cincinnati and my then boyfriend put it on my radar. I have been smitten w/the track since then. It's not one of the mainstream Marvin Gaye tracks ... just don't know how this one escaped the public eye. Actually, I do know how this one got buried: it's keeping company with "Distant Lover", "Come Get to This", as well as the title track ... the classic "Let's Get it On".

Check out the lyrics to "If I Should Die Tonight".

If I Should Die Tonight - Marvin Gaye

Let me know what you think of this one.

My New Coat from Target

I recently went outside of my comfort zone and bought a splashy coat. I got it at Target. So the prices was nice: $44. Though it is now on sale, of course.

So I've been sporting it because this is the season. It's a transitional coat. Not too heavy, not too light; just what a trench coat should be.

I've gotten mega compliments on it; especially from guys. That's a wow seeing as I usually don't get that type of compliment from guys. Do you?

Well, I think it's the color that's the talking point and attention getter - it's a bright yellow. I almost went w/the much more subtle navy blue, but it actually hurt my eyes.

Here's a link to the coat on Target's webbie:

• Merona Double Breasted Jacket - Yellow