Here, there and everywhere

Scattered thoughts from a scattered mind...

LAST WEEK: More adventures with food

I think it was last week anyway. After checking out a band called the Feeders with my drummer friend from the east bay, we stopped for some Chinese food at a real Chinese restaurant nearby. No Americanized dishes at this place. How Chinese was it? Take a look at the leftovers I had for lunch the next day:

Those are pig livers in ginger and onion sauce. My friend pointed them out on the menu and jokingly said, "you should try that!" Being that a) I had quite a lot to drink that night, and b) I'm always up for trying unusual foods at least once, I went for it. They weren't bad! My previous experience with liver was when I was a young child, and as they crumbled in my mouth, they grossed me out so I never went back. But I think that was beef liver. These pig livers could actually be chewed, and mostly just took on the flavor of the ginger and green onions in the sauce. Get too close and it smells a tinge like pet food, but other than that, they get my seal of approval. As in, I'd eat them again.


EARLY THIS WEEK: Thinkin' 'bout Peter Green & Aerosmith one morning

When I walk to work, I fire up the iRiver and sometimes listen to something specific, other times go for shuffle play. Sometimes I shuffle till I land on something I'm in the mood for and then listen to just that artist till I get to work. Earlier this week, I specifically went for Peter Green era Fleetwood Mac, specifically the album Then Play On. I had forgotten about the song "Rattlesnake Shake," and when it came on, I got a good chuckle. It's THE single guy's song. I've been back in singledom for the past few months, and I didn't ever think that single guys needed an anthem until this week. "Rattlesnake Shake" is that anthem:

Now, I know this guy
His name is Mick
Now, he don't care when he ain't got no chick
He do the shake
The rattlesnake shake
Yes, he do the shake
And jerks away the blues

There were these kids in school I knew who used to make fun of people they didn't like (or just tease each other for fun) by saying they jerked off, as if it was the kind of thing that made you un-male. This was before puberty started to kick in for us. Once that whole scene started, the jerk-off taunts disappeared really quickly. Nobody ever said anything about it either.

Here's Peter Green, all scraggly looking, leading Fleetwood Mac through "Rattlesnake Shake" circa 1970:


Aerosmith latched onto this one too, and it served as a building block for the sound they created. It fits their sleazy image perfectly. Here they are in '77, all drugged up, jammin' on the shake. It's only a so-so performance, might require some reefer, but hey, it's history:



NEXT WEEK: "The McCartney Years" DVD

I'm excited about it. That's all. I don't get excited about DVDs, but this one, yes.


NOW:

Thursday's appointment in Berkeley was a start towards clarity, I'll need at least one more, but till then... gotta get some singin' in over at the Mint. Karaoke is my addiction now. My poor guitars are suffering from abandonment. When will they be picked up again?