This week has been a Granddad week for me. It started on Sunday when i went to my first dance recital. I raised three boys and one girl and that one girl is the mother of Emma. Emma turned 3 in February and has been taking both tap and ballet lessons. Sunday was her first recital. I must say overall it was very good and Emma did great … Here is the picture they used in the introduction of the students.

Later that night we babysat Emma and Lucas for several hours as their parents went to a photo shoot for their business Rego Photography. Monday my son and Logan the son of my third son Peter came and we played cards from 2:45 to 4:45.

Finally, last night we went to my oldest grandson Oliver’s Spring Band Concert. Oliver is 12 and is in 6th grade. The concert was very good.

The result of all of the above is that we missed Senior Tuesday and its 15% off this week. But we still made a trip to the Audoubon NJ Goodwill this morning, The vinyl today was the same ones I left last week after my pretty good haul and the books were the same too. I did find some that I must have passed over last week.

Today’s Goodwill Book Mini-Haul – Four Mystery Series Temptations

“I” is for Innocent – Sue Grafton

While I have never read a Kinsey Milhone book, I acknowledge the groundbreaking nature of her work. Wuthout her work I may never have read books from the likes of Laura Lippman, Carol O’Connell, Kathy Reichs or even Karin Slaughter!

And that’s why I have been collecting the Kinsey Milhone series. With the addition of “I” is for Innocent I ever have 11 of the series books!

The Eighth Sister – Robert Dugoni

Robert Dugoni is another of those authors whose books I should be reading but haven’t. Dugoni has two main series the Tracy Crosswhite series and the David Sloane series. The Eighth Sister appears to be a standalone featuring former CIA case worker Charles Jenkins.

Hundred-Dollar Baby – Robert B Parker

I read my first Spenser novel back in 1987. It was The Judas Goat Spenser #5. I also read Taming a Sea-Horse in 1987 it was Spenser #13. Subsequently I have never read another Spenser book even though I enjoyed the books ans characters!

Hundred Dollar Baby is Spenser #34! It was released in 2006 four years prior of his sudden death in 2010. The last Spenser novel written by Robert B Parker and his assistant was SixKill published in 2011. From 2012 t0 2022 Ace Atkins wrote 10 Spenser books. In 2023 Mike Lupica began writing the books and has since added 4 books to the series. The latest released in 2026 is Framed (Spenser #54)! Anyway I hope maybe Hundred Dollar Baby can get me back into the series!

A Cold Day for Murder – Dana Stabenow

One of the author’s who may have benefited from the success of Sue Grafton was Dana Stabenow. A Cold Day for Murder is the first book in the now 23 book series featuring Kater Shugak. This is another series that I should have read but didn’t I blieve I have a copy of this book but where it is I know Not! Anyway the copy i bought was released in 2023 so it has the feel of a new book! So maybe I can trick myself into reading it!

But considering that Kate is a native Alaskan ex-DA investigator who lives on a 160 -acre homestead in a generic nationa park in Alaska with her half-wolf, half-husky dog named Mutt; I should love this series!!

Links For Futher Exploration of the Four Mystery Series Temptations Authors

Thursday Update:

I am now finishing this post on Thursday after working this morning at Target! I din’t finish it last night becasue Zoe my sceond oldest grandchild only 6 months younger than Oliver had HER Spring Band concert. She plays saxophone and had a short solo in the third song! She was also named The Rising Star of the 6th grade band by the Music Teacher. Go Zoe! The best thingabout last night’s concert though is that the school is in the same block as our house so it was a short trip home!

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Table of Contents

The 30 Day Fitbit Charge 5 Challenge. What is it?

Quite simply, I’ll be wearing the Fitbit Charge 5 for the next 30 days to see if it can help get me back on the road — and eventually running again. But first, a little context on how I got here…

After running high school cross country, I was an on-again, off-again runner for many years. I remember running around Athens, Georgia when we lived there from 1975–1979, along with a couple of 5Ks here and there.

I didn’t run much — if at all — during most of the 1980s. Can you say four kids and a pretty demanding full-time job? Add in part-time work at both a convenience store and Waldenbooks, and running pretty much disappeared.

The Running Reboot

I may have dabbled a bit in the late ’80s, but the real reboot came in the 1990s when my son started running cross country. Before long, I was back out on the track, struggling to run a mile again.

I started training seriously, and from there running became a regular part of my life. For many years — well into my late 60s — I was running about four miles twice a week, with six to eight miles on weekends.

From the Garmin Forerunner to the Fitbit Charge 5 — and Back Again

When I first started running again, I used a plain old watch and measured my routes with the car. Then, in 2003, Garmin introduced the Forerunner 101, one of the first GPS watches aimed at runners.

Here’s what it looked like.

(Yes, it was big and bulky — and heart rate was measured with a chest strap.)

From about November 2015, when Target provided Fitbits to employees, until March 2023, I used various Fitbits to track my workouts and running. I upgraded early on to a Charge HR and used that for several years.

Somewhere along the way, my daughter handed down her Fitbit Versa, which I also used for a few years. When the Charge 5 came out in 2021, I switched back to the Charge line.

Babysitting, Balance, and Reality at 74

In March 2023, my son-in-law handed me his Garmin Epix Gen 2, which is a terrific smartwatch — especially for accurate GPS distance.

The problem wasn’t the watch. Since September 2023, when we started babysitting Emma full-time (until this past April), my running took a serious nose-dive. Add in the reality that I’m now 74, and that probably didn’t help either.

Why I’m Back to the Fitbit Charge 5 (For Now)

Even while babysitting, I kept up a short workout most mornings. But days where I really moved the needle from Recovery to Productive were few and far between.

So, in an effort to ease my way back toward running shape, I decided to return to the Fitbit Charge 5.

Yes, I know Fitbit tends to estimate higher calories burned than Garmin. But I got tired of finishing what felt like a solid workout, only to have the Garmin label it Recovery. And when I did push harder, it often told me I needed 72 hours of recovery — which felt a bit discouraging.

Last night, I used the Charge 5 while working out on my walking pad, which can go over 4 mph. Until last year, I’d never used a treadmill in my life.

I always joke that treadmills are hard for me because when I run, I run and the ground doesn’t. As a 74-year-old with balance issues, I hold onto the bar. I know that’s not ideal form — but it beats falling.

I also discovered that when I use the treadmill with the Garmin, it only tracks steps and distance if my arms are swinging.

A week or so ago, I tried walking slowly and swinging my arms, and the Garmin worked fine. But last night, wearing the Fitbit, I decided: forget steps and distance — I’m holding on and upping the speed. My real goal was to elevate my heart rate and burn calories.

To my surprise, when I finished, Fitbit recorded steps, distance, and calories burned anyway.

Note

After reading the following article TREADMILLS & SENIORS: THE RULES OF ENGAGEMENT I decided that I will go back to what I was doing when I first started reusing the treadmill. I will start at low speeds that I can handle comfortably without holding on. As I get more comfortable I will increase my speed to where I am jogging comfortably without holding on. Wish Me Luck!

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The Actual Goal: Health, Not Numbers

This morning, I did my usual workout — resistance bands, light weights, and calisthenics. The result? More calories burned in the same amount of time.

Sure, it may partly come down to how Fitbit calculates calories, but honestly, I don’t care. I feel motivated, ready to do it again, and maybe even push a little more.

Back when I used Fitbit regularly, I knew that if I hit 3,000 calories burned in a day, I’d lose weight. My hope is to get back to that level again.

So here we go. For the next 30 days, I’ll be using the Fitbit Charge 5 exclusively to see if it can help me rebuild fitness — and lose some weight. Maybe by spring, I’ll be outside again and back to running.

I’m not exactly sure how I’ll keep you posted — probably a few check-in posts here and there — but I’ll figure something out.

One final note: back in November, I started using a CPAP to address my sleep apnea. Over the last 90 days, my apnea events have dropped significantly, and I feel better during the day.

Hopefully, better sleep and renewed movement together can move the needle toward better overall health.

Links for Further Explorations

Mayo Clinic – Sleep Apnea Diagnosis and Treatment

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The Nerdy Details as I Try to Start Running Again!

Ok so over the last two weeks I have semii-started to run again. I say semi because I have only run three times since July 26th.  Oh, and I had a stress test on August 5th. The first two runs were actually run/walks. On both of those runs I basically ran a little and then walked a little.

On the July 26th run I covered 2.1 miles in 32:27. That calculates to a 15:30 min/mile pace. However, during the run I ran for 14:45 minutes and walked for 17:41 minutes.

Likewise on my July 28th run I walked and ran but did a little better. I covered 2.68 miles in 39:36 for a 14:46 min/mile pace. However, during this run I actually ran more than I walked. I ran for 21:29 minutes and walked for 18:04 minutes.

Finally, on my August 11 run I did better still. On that run I covered 2.16 miles in 32′:53 for a pace somewhat slower than the preceding runs. The final pace was !5:13 min/mile. The good thing though about this run was that I ran (ok,jogged)  for 28:43 minutes while only walking for 4:07 minutes. I ran he whole first mile. Then I walked a quarter mile and almost ran the second mi le. Unfortunately I calculated how far I needed to run to get that last mile and came up a little short!

I’m planning on running again tomorrow morning and I’ll bore you with the details after the run! My goal may be to run for 30 minutes with no walking! Wish me luck!

The Soundtrack  August 11 Run – The B Christopher Band

The soundtrack for the majority of the run was the latest release from The B Christopher Band – 106 Miles to Chicago. The last time an album from the B Christopher Band was used as a soundtrack for a run was back in 2019. when I was a soon to be 68-year -old. The run was a 4.16 mile run at an average pace of 10:28 min/mile. You can read about it here.  Oh, how I long for those days!

About 106 Miles to Chicago

Anyway back to these days. Well I knew that there were a lot  of old songs on this album like n”Hey,Bartender “{, “She caught the Katy”, Sweet Home Chicago” and “Gimme Some Lovin’.”  But the reference to the Blues Brothers in the album’s title flew right over my head!  Anyway here’s the quote that provided the title to this album that is a tribute to the Blues Brothers!

Elwood:  It’s a hundred and six miles to Chicago, we’ve got a full tank of gas, half a pack of cigarettes, it’s dark, and we’re wearing sunglasses. Jake: Hit it.

B Christopher is a fantastic guitarist and his band in this album is pretty dam good. It includes: Eddie Testa on lead vocals, Anton Fig on drums, Nick Douglas on bass and backing vocals. Bruce Katz on keys Andy Snizter on tenor and baritone sax, Ryan Keberle on trombone, Tony Kadleck on trumpet,Sharlotte Gibson provides backing vocals, and Studebaker John adds harmonica.

Additionally, Original Blues Brothers member Tom “Bones” Malone plays baritone sax on ‘Gimme Some Lovin’”,

The only bad thing about the album  is it only contains seven songs. And it is only 26 minutes and change long!  Anyway it is definitely and album that should be checked out!

Links for the Further Exploration of the Music of The B Christopher Band

Artist’s Website
Facebook
YouTube
Amazon

Here’s the opening track from 2106 miles to Chicago  “Hey, Bartender”

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Elizabeth’s Wedding

On July 10th I got to do a Dad thing, at my daughter Elizabeth’s wedding.

It was a beautiful day and wedding held at Terrain at Styers  in Glen Mills, Pa. The venue was perfect for my daughter! And I can’t say enough about the staff from top to bottom.

In the pictures above, clockwise from the upper left. New son-in -law Marcus and Elizabeth without grandchildren Zoe and her little brother Logan and big cousin Oliver. Zoe and Oliver were born six months apart in 2014. Oliver in March and Zoe in September!!

Next Elizabeth’s entrance with an honored Dad!
Oliver rocking out with the ladies and finally the father daughter dance.

I must admit that my good ear was plugged that day and as a result I had trouble hearing anything including this song. During the dance I asked what we were dancing to and she said something from Iron & Wine. I said I know the name but never listened to his music.

The next day I said something about the dance to my wife and she told me Elizabeth and I had danced to “Forever Young”. I replied “Bob Dylan’s song? She said “Yes”.  I am kinda glad I didn’t hear it because it’s my favorite song from Dylan’s Planet Waves album and hearing it may have made me kinda misty eyed.

No Posts? I was Busy Reading

But let’s get back to not posting! My last post was about my proposed June reads. Here’s a picture of my proposed reads…..

So how have I done so far? I have read four of the nine books shown. I’m addition, I have read two books by authors shown just not the books shown.

Which ones did I read? You’ll just have to wait until the next post to find out!

For now let’s listen to Bob Dylan’s version of “Forever Young”…..

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So I think over the last few months I think I’ve slipped a little as far as my diet and exercise regimes are concerned. I think part of the reason is I believe the pollen season has been a little longer than usual. I only noticed a drop in the pollen levels within the last week. As I am writing this I just checked the pollen levels for the week. Today is moderate but low for the rest of the week yeah!

A New Workout Design Starts With Dance-Cardio

Anyway, this morning I changed up my routine. Rather than due Dance-Cardio with weights and bands and other exercise equipment I decided start with 13 minutes of dance-cardio.

Then Some Kundalini and Abs

I followed with a routine that starts with three basic Kundalini spinal warm-ups. Then I did three or four exercises targeting abs and legs. The soundtrack for this routine is a song using the Sikh Mul Mantra. Sung by Snatam Kaur. The Mul Mantra

The Mul Mantra, the words first spoken by the spiritual master Guru Nanak after enlightenment, literally translates as the “Root Mantra,” or the mantra from which all other mantras in the Kundalini Yoga tradition are built. It contains the core, essential truth of creation, and its vibration is so powerful that it can change your fate and help you rewrite your destiny. Read More

Hatha Yoga and Native American Flute Follow

The song is just a hair over 7 minutes long. Next I transitioned into a short yoga routine. The soundtrack was from Flutist Ann Licater. I used the song “Angels from Within” from the album Invitation From Within

Meditation with the World’s Most Relaxing Song Ends the Workout

The exercise set concluded with an 8 minute meditation. The music for the meditation was Weightless Part 1 from Marconi Union. It…. According to a marketing study conducted by Dr. David Lewis-Hodgson, the most relaxing song in the world is Weightless, by ambient band Marconi Union. The song was produced by the band in collaboration with the British Academy of Sound Therapy.Nov 15, 2016 Read More is considered by some to be the most relaxing song in the world

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Yesterday  was a A+ day of exercising. I started the day off with a cardio-dance routine. I added some resistance band,kettle Bell, light weights and some calisthenics. The workout was. 22 minutes long and I burned.209 calories. About a half hour later I ran. The soundtrack was Black from the Kerry Kearney Band   Oh I believe my pre-run cool down included a 22 minute meditation!  Later in the day I did another shorter meditation. Finally, last night I did any full 28-minute nightly yoga routine.

The Run

Back to the run. I decided on a short 3.1 mile run. When I started I felt a little off just not getting into the flow of the run quite right. So much so that I contemplated stopping if I didn’t start to feel better.

While I never felt super throughout the rest of the run I did finish it and even had a little kick at the end Here are the details.

Total Miles:3.15 Total Time:31:21 Pace:9:55
Splits. Mile 1.9:57 Mile 2.9:54 Mile 3: 10:00
0.16: 9:25
Avg BPM:136 Peak BPM 157 Cals Burned:379

Throughout day I did two more 20 minute meditations.And I ended the day with my full 28-minute Yoga routine!

The Soundtrack  – Black – Kerry Kearney Band

The Soundtrack for the run was Black form the Kerry Kearney Band. I knew from the moment I heard the slide guitar on the opening track “Pretty Baby” I knew I was going to like this album. Of course then Kenny changed it up and the second song was an acoustic slide guitar number, But the raging guitar came back in third track”Creole Woman” On this track the piano of  David Bennett Cohen  stood out  And the good vibes I got from this album continued for the rest of the album. On this track the piano of  David Bennett Cohen  stood out

The only problem I had with this album was it was too short – only 27 minutes..

About the Kerry Kearney Band

I have never listened to the blues guitar of Kerry Kearney and I came away very impressed. It appears that the blues fans on Long Island and New York have also been impressed over the years. From his website…

Kerry was voted “Best Guitarist of 1999” by the LI Voice and “Bluesman of the Year 2004” by the LI Blues Society. He is also the recipient of the prestigious Long Island Sound Award (L.I.S.A.) from the LI Music Hall of Fame and most recently, in 2013, he and his band mates were each inducted into the New York Blues Hall of Fame.

Although Kerry is new to me he toured nationally with the likes of the Allman Brothers Band and Dickey Betts, and has performed with such contemporaries as Sonny Landreth and Robert Randolf. Kerry and his band have shared the stage with the great BB King at the NYCB Westbury Theater and at the Paramount Theater in Huntington, NY, as well as Robert Cray with the Blind Boys of Alabama and The Blues Brothers starring Dan Aykroyd and Jim Belushi.

I must admit that the title of Kerry’s 2001 release Welcome to the Psychedelta was one of the first things that caught my eyes on the first visit to Spotify to check out his music. Kerry “Psychedelta”, is his own brand containing an upbeat mix of American Blues & Roots, created from writing and performing on the circuit for over 40 years. And it’s just to my liking. Here’s the  Kerry Kearney Band lineup:

Kerry Kearney (guitars, vocals)
Mario Staiano (drums)
Gerry Sorrentino (bass)

Featured Guest Members:
David Bennett Cohen (keyboards)
Nydia Liberty Mata (percussion)

What?? Smokehouse Serenade is on Spotify??

Okay  so color me stupid!  Kerry’s new album Smokehouse Serenade is number 46 on the Roots Music Report bBlues Chart. It was that album that sent me to Spotify to look for the Kerry Kearney Band. That’s where I found Black and the band’s other releases. What I didn’t find was Smokehouse Serenade. Here’s where the stupid comes in. What U didn’t do was search for the album title. If I did I would have found it. It was listed under Kerry Kearney only, no Band! Oh well, now I have something to look forward to!!! Hey, I have the soundtrack for tomorrow’s run anyway!

Links for the Further Exploration of the Music of The Kerry Kearney  Band

Artist’s Website

Facebook

Reverberation

Youtube

Here’s one of my favorite tracks from Black, “ Goin’ to the Mardi Gras”

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Yesterday was Day 3 of the Drive for 5 challenge and  it was a good day. The day started with a short morning dance-cardio with Kettle Bell and Resistance bands added. That was followed by a 3.16 mile run.

Wednesdays are usually a non-running day but I couldn’t decide whether I would run in the early morning or early afternoon and finally didn’t run either time. Yesterday I decided I had to go early and the important part was I did!

The Run

I  added a few exercises to my morning routine on Tuesday which left my legs hurting. You know the good hurting.not the bad! Anyway when I started my run I did’t feel very good . So I told myself time didn’t matter the important thing was just that you were running.

After a 10:08 first mile I started to feel better. The next two miles went by in 10:03 min/mile and 10:02 min/mile pace respectively. And I had a good kick over the last 0.16 mile. My final average pace was 10:00 min/mile. A pace that please this old man!

Here are the details

Total Distance 3.16 miles Total Time:31:40 Avg Pace: 10:00

Avg HR 134 bpm Peak HR 154

Calories Burned: 385

The Soundtrack – Kickin’ It Live  – Tommy Castro

The soundtrack for the run was blues artist Tommy Castro’s latest release Kickin’It Live. Both Tommy and his guitar sounded great in the album. It will move into my blues music rotation over the next several weeks. Tommy deserves his own page on this siteSo I better get to making those pages!!

I really enjoyed Killin’It Live. Throughout the run I was able to come back to the music and Tommy’s guitar and great rhythm section kept me going. Here’s what Living Blues’ Henry Carrigan, Jr. wrote about the album

Killin’ It Live captures Tommy Castro And The Painkillers at their very best. Turn up the volume and play this album loud! This album delivers sizzling, gritty blues and rock. You can feel the band’s energy blowing through the speakers…and every song kills it. There’s a party going on. Make It Back To Memphis is a backbone slipper, propelling us out of our seats. Shimmering, downright funky vibes. Every song lives up to the high-flying promise of the opener. Funk-fueled blues rockers drenched with Castro’s soul-shaking, stinging, pure and crisp lead runs, which pierce the heart, driving home it’s power and staccato beauty. Shimmering and swampy…bright and funky…slow-burning and low-down…fluid, jet-fueled solos. Read More

Links For The Further Exploration of the Music of Tommy Castro and the Painkillers

Artist Website
Facebook
Spotify
Twitter

The day ended with my nightly yoga routine. Last week there very several nights where that was not the case. Boo me!

So there were a few more tracks left on Killin’It Live when I finished my run. I listened to them on my coffee run (in the  car) to Wawa. The final track was Buddy Miles’ song “Them Changes” which has been a personal favorite for a long time! So here are two favorites Tommy Castro and Mike Zito performing the song.

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The Run 3.14 Miles

So today was supposed to be colder with a chance of some snow, so yesterday was the better day to run. Since my knee still felt slightly funky I decided that once again , I would run my standard 3.1 mile course. By the time I reached the first mile mark my leg felt pretty good. I was running at a 10:01 min/mile pace and running easily,. As I continued my run, I tried to keep my pace a little slower than my last couple of runs. To do that I kept a close eye on my heart rate and when it rose to around 145 or so I slowed down a little.

As a result, I finished the run at an overall pace of 10:08 min/mile. That’s only 8 seconds per mile slower than Sunday’s run.
However my average heart rate was 4 beats per minute lower yesterday than Sunday (136 bpm to 140 pm). Additionally, on Sunday my heart rate was in my peak range for 29 minutes of the run with 1 minute in the cardio zone. Yesterday the time in the peak zone was down to 23 minutes with 7 minutes in the cardio zone!! Here are the splits…..

The Nerdy Details

Total Miles 3.12 Total Time 31:37 Pace 10:08
Splits: Mile 1 10:08 min/mile   Mile 2 10:18 min/mile  Mile 3 10:13 min/mile   Mile 0.14 9:01 min/ mile
Avg HR 136 Max HR 146 Calories Burned 391

The Soundtrack – Survivor Blues – Walter Trout

The soundtrack for the run was Survivor Blues the latest release from blues artist Walter Trout. In 2014-2015 Trout was suffering from liver disease. A liver transplant saved Trout’s life. As such he is a survivor and I for one are very happy about that. And after listening to Survivor Blues there’s no question Walter is back!!

About Survivor Blues

Survivor Blues isn’t an album of new songs composed by Walter. It is an album of covers, but not songs that ae typically covered They are rather more obscure tracks. In recording the album Trout made

…. it his mission to harness the power and spirit of the originals, while stamping his inimitable musical personality onto each new take. He offers, “My idea was to do these songs like me, to arrange them for my band and style – not to just copy the originals note-for-note.”

…..Opener “Me, My Guitar And The Blues” tips a hat to cult hero Jimmy Dawkins, whose records Trout devoured while cutting his teeth as a ’60s axeslinger in New Jersey. “Nature’s Disappearing” nods to his celebrated ’80s tenure in John Mayall’s near-mythical Bluesbreakers. In-between, you’ll find cherished favourites from a lifetime’s listening, with songs that caught Trout’s ear at key junctures in his journey, from backing up John Lee Hooker in the ’70s, to bringing the groove to Canned Heat in the ’80s or breaking through as a solo artist in the ’90s.

“Nature’s Disappearing” has always been a favorite  of mine. And it was neat to hear Trout’s guitar play the bridge instead of hearing Sugarcane Harris’ violin!

I mentioned Trout being a survivor and that played a big part in picking the title for the album. Trout says…

We started thinking about these enduring songs and the guys playing on the album,” he reflects. “Mike is in recovery. Johnny almost didn’t make it. Skip has had a triple bypass. And I almost didn’t make it after my liver disease in 2014. So Marie said to me, ‘You’re a group of survivors. You’ve all been through hell and you’ve come back. These songs are survivors. This album needs to be called Survivor Blues’.

The Band

Trout’s band on Survivor Blues includes

Johnny Griparic on bass
Teddy Andreadis piano/harmonic
Michael Leasure on drums

The Bottom Line

Survivor Blues is vintage Walter Trout. He has succeeded in making these songs his own!  The album will be in my music rotation for a long time. Additionally, I am still wondering if his Trout ancestors and mine are related! Maybe we even  share some DNA wouldn’t that be awesome!

Here’s “Me, My Guitar and the Blues” the opening track from Survivor Blues  

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Table of Contents

 Origianlly Posted January 2019 Revised and Updated 2026

A Strange Coincidence Leads to Thoughts of the Steve Miller Band

Ok so this isn’t woo woo weird it does to me seems the odds for this happening seem fairly low! This morning I was listening to a Throw Way Back Playlist that I made sometime last year.. The Steve Miller Band’s song “Quicksilver Girl”  from the band’s second album Sailor is in the playlist.

When a Song Follows You Home

Now here where it gets kinda weird. When I came out of the library I turned back on Deep Tracks on Sirius XM Radio. Ai particularly like to listen to Deep Tracks when DJ Earl Bailey is on, his voice of  takes me back to those days of yore on Philadelphia radio station WMMR.Those were the days!

Back When DJs Chose the Music

When the DJ could choose what he or she was going to play!! Of course that got some DJs in trouble when they played songs they weren’t supposed to play. The DJ most famous for that was Steve Leon aka”My Father’s Son” son of Max Leon the owner of WDAS FM. Leon passed away in 2012 and you can read about his exploits here in his obituary.

Ok so now let’s get to the – what are the odds of that happening moment. As I was leaving the library, guess what song came on Deep Tracks. Yeah you guessed it “ Quicksilver Girl”! While it may not be that weird to some I found it amazing that I heard the same 51-year-old song twice within three hours!

Thoughts About the Steve Miller Band

Anyway that got me to thinking about the Steve Miller Band.  I was a big fan through the band’s first seven albums . All seven of them are in vinyl collection. I had the Joker on 8 track tape! Anyway after The Joker became a hit Steve Miller became a radio band for me.

The next Miller album that entered my music library was his 2010 release Bingo! Yes if you do the math that’s 42 years after the release of the band’s first album! Steve followed that really good album with Let Your Hair Down In 2011. That was also a damn fine album.

From My Shelves to This Playlist

Here’s a playlist containing some of my favorite tracks from the Steve Miller albums in my vinyl collection!!

Links to Explore the Steve Miller Band

• Artist’s Website
• Instagram
• Tik Tok
• Spotify
• Amazon

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The Run – Four Miles with a Hill!

So after two very cold days the temperatures today rose into the high 40s. As such, it became the first running day of the week. Since I do t like to run on back to back days and Friday is a Target work day, it’s looked like today would be the only run until the weekend. I therefore decided I would make it a tougher run than my normal 5K run. I decided the run would be four miles and would include a run up the highest hill in the area.

The run ended up being another amazing run. I ran the first mile in 9:28. And while the hill, on the second mile, was a struggle my overall pace coming down the other side of the bill was still under 10 min/ mile. I held a steady pace over the last two miles and finished the run with a fairly strong kick. My overall pace for the run was 9:56! Go me!! Here are the results.

The Nerdy Details

Total Distance: 4.01 miles. Total Time: 39:51 min Pace: 9:56

Avg HR: 142 bpm Max HR: 155 Cals Burned : 521

The Soundtrack – Murder Creek – Murray Kinsley & Wicked Grin

I had never heard of Murray Kinsley & Wicked Grin until I saw their latest release Murder Creek sitting at number 38 on the Roots Music Report Blues Chart this week. But a brief   the album told me it was going to be an album I would like!

Murder Creek is the fourth release from this Electric blues roots rock band. Where have they been? Oh, they’re from Ottawa Canada! Anyway it appears that they have made an impact on the Canadian blues scene. From the band’s website:

Murray Kinsley & Wicked Grin are an Ottawa based original roots blues/rock band. Gritty vocals and guitar and an “in your face” groove that doesn’t quit!
The band received the 2014 Maple Blues Award for Best New Group. Bassist Leigh-Anne Stanton received the 2015 Maple Blues Award for Bassist of the Year. Their last two discs have both been named “Blues Rock Disc of the Year” by the Blues Underground Network in Western Canada.
They have been touring steadily from 2014 – numerous Canadian and U.S. tours and a recent, very successful tour through England and Germany.

The band performs as a quartet, trio or duo depending on the availability of musicians. The quartet, currently performing in Memphis at The International Blues Challenge,  is composed of. Murray Kinsley on guitar and vocals, Leigh-Anne Stanton on bass, Rod Williams on drums and  rice Stanton harp. And they are damn good! So Check out Murder Creek. As for me I have three other releases to check out!

Links for the Further Exploration of Wicked Grin….

Artist’s Website

Facebook

Twitter

Amazon

Here’s the title track from Murder Creek  by Murray Kinsley & Wicked Grin

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