Whatever it is, I hope you’re able to take some time off to relax, to refresh, to recharge yourself.
I’m going to try my best to be offline for a long while. So, in the holiday spirit, I wanted to share a few things with you very quickly.
First and foremost. Wolfgang’s Vault. I’ve been using the Vault for some years now, yet I don’t remember writing about it.The free streaming live music alone makes the site worthwhile; I’ve chosen to be a paid-up WVIP, and for a (shy? not really) retiring hippie like me, the vault is Fort Knox. There’s gold in them thar hills. Take today for example:
Visiting the site, I was greeted by new live videos of The Allmans/Whipping Post, The Band/King Harvest, Ten Years After/Love Like a Man, along with some fresh Zappa. How can you top that?
And all this, a few days after I’d received this book in the post, along with a bonus USB stick carrying some fabulous Airplane tracks. They’re going to be listened to on the way to Calcutta.
To me Wolfgang’s Vault is an extreme nonrival good. My enjoyment of the Vault is not diminished one jot or tittle by the act of my sharing news of its existence. Incidentally, the iPhone app is pretty good as well.
From music to books. I was at Waterstones yesterday, idly looking around, hoping to stock up on some analog reading matter for the journey. And I met Stephen Benatar, who’d set up a table and was selling his books there, largely self-published. What a nice man. We had a chat for a while, I landed up buying four of his books (the only ones he’d got on sale that day), and I like everything I’ve read so far. An interesting talent. I look forward to discovering more of his work.
From books to food. Have you read Alimentum? Fascinating journal, describes itself as “the literature of food”. Read two issues so far, very good.
And finally to an old friend, one I haven’t seen for a while. I will have to correct that.
Hugh MacLeod. Hugh’s usually in good form, often in fine form. Here’s his latest, on the high-end microaudience:
It’s not just tidings of great joy that Hugh writes/draws about, he has this uncanny ability to touch you where you’re still able to feel something. So if you haven’t discovered Hugh yet, now’s the time.
But in the meantime.
Tidings of great joy to all of you.
Hey, thanks JP! Hope you are well….
Safe travels, relax, recharge. New tunes will be waiting in your post when you return! @Hugh, big fan and follower too! /sandee
JP – have a good one in Cal…yes for me its Cal . not Kol not Kolkata or whatever else they choose to call it ! And I did see your post on FB and tracked down the tweets. The connectivity & the narrowing of the traditional 6 degrees etc. is great but equally its scary that two people at different ends of the world, who have never ever met end up knowing a third ! The other day I was at a crowded shopping mall in Sing going up the escalator and just happened to notice a gent on the other side going down. The face looked so so familiar …I racked my brains for 30 seconds and I was sure the gent was a friends father, and the only reason I knew ( or thought I did) was because she had posted some family pics on FB ) . Cam home emailed her to check re it was indeed a possibility given time , place etc. and indeed it was true ! Scary stuff huh ?
Al the very best to you too JP. God’s speed and good luck for 2011. Cheers!