Finally after almost 10 years I have updated my website. Now I can update my calander, add pics easier and have a blog that I can promote. Thanks to Jon Cooley, seen here with Wes Race on the left.
This is just a start to what I hope is Boyack 3.0! My voice continues to improve and with the help of a great rhythm section that includes Drew Allain and Kevin Schermerhorn I hope to be playing out more...well, hope isn't the word....I WILL be playing out more.
Tonight Ed Schulz announced that he is moving from his weeknight MSNBC 8pm slot to Saturdays and Sundays. Of course he says he volunteered to move but we all know that's not true. Nobody in their right mind in that business gives up a prime time slot to go to where the beginners sharpen their craft.
So I bet you are guessing it's because his viewership is down.......they are leaving in droves? Nope, his ratings are solid. As a matter of fact he is the 2nd highest rated show on a network that is gaining ground on CNN and it's Right Wing rival Fox News. It seems and I have noticed as well that a guy who fights for American workers and the middle class has no place in the Left Wing haven that we call MSNBC. That seems weird, right? That seems f@#ked up, really, and I am not surprised. The middle class has been so dismantled and destroyed that it's power isn't even relevant to Democrat leaders and it's media. And it hasn't even hit rock bottom yet.
I'm afraid that Democrats in Congress and President Obama are leaving us behind as well. Let's face it, the GOP has NEVER been on the side of the American worker. History proves that and the new budget proposed by Paul Ryan reenforces it. And now we don't even have the Democratic party, a party that we helped build.
The fight for the Middle Class is been put to bed to bring in an elitist and wonkish Liberal attitude that is filled with commentators who have never picked up a shovel or walked a picket line. Fresh out of college Harvard grads who have no idea who John L. Lewis is or how men died making the workplace safer. It sickens me. Who are these Democrats?
So in the end, the labor force in the great US of A is still on it's own. Maybe someday we will get to the point that things will get so bad that a Labor Party will emerge. And please, don't start with the Communist garbage. The pro-Union men I grew up with hated Communism and everything it stood for. In the end it is about getting a fair wage for a days work. Getting back job security and a pension for your dedication and hard work. Being able to spend time with your family and the VALUE of family. Do yourself a favor and read books and speeches by Union organizers 120 years ago. It was all about the family unit that they were defending. Sadly, we may need to fight the same war.....again. I see it in our future.
Where I grew up is coal country and has been for well over 100 years. If you grew up there chances are you had a relative who worked in the mines. For me, it was my uncles, cousins and father. I never worked in them but did venture in a mine a couple of times.
When I was 14 my father was a foreman at a mine in Clear Creek, Utah. This is at a high elevation where the snow can reach the rooftops during the winter months. At this time the mine was idle on the weekends, so each foreman would take a shift going through the mine periodically which is the law. You see, when a mine is shut down to reopen it takes a lot of paperwork and inspections. So it is much easier and cheaper to idle the mine and have a guy "sit watch" on Saturday and Sunday.
My father asked me if I wanted to go with him one Saturday and of course I said yes. I had never been in underground before. These mines go for miles under 2,000-3,000 feet of mountain. The snow pack is always melting and the the drain off goes into the mines. A series of pumps will pump most of the water out but not all of it. Looking back I can always see why my father was battling sinus infections. The cold and wet can mess with you down there. So before we went in he gave me a run down on what to expect and what NOT to do. Many were things you really would not think about, like when you are talking to someone and your lamp is on (a "lamp" is the light that miners wear on their hardhats to see in the darkness of the mine) you shouldn't look directly at them because the brightness of the light will hurt their eyes. One warning I have never forgot and I'll tell you why. In my old man's words;
"When you see a puddle avoid it. First off, the water down here is just above freezing. It hurts like hell. Second, you don't know how deep they can be, maybe an inch, maybe six feet. The last thing you want is to fall in. You could freeze."
It was cool being down there and seeing where my dad went to work every day. I got to learn about ventilation, I saw a lot of heavy machinery and I learned to admire the hard work and tuff conditions those miners including my uncles and father had to endure.
Then it happened..........
At one point I stumbled a little and stepped right onto a puddle about 3 feet in diameter. It was inocent looking. Just a plain old looking puddle. But it was deep. As I stepped onto it I went in and ended up waist deep. Yep. Waist deep into the coldest water and mud one could ever experience. I just stood there in shock. It was so cold I thought my manhood had escaped up into my chest. I was also pissed because I looked like an idiot in front of my dad who I had spent all my life trying to make proud of me.
With a chuckle he helped me get out and I was about 20 pounds heavier because the mud, which looked like brown cottage cheese was clinging to me from my waist down. I had and HAVE never been that cold. So we went out side and into the bath house where I took off my clothes and had a nice warm shower.
To THIS DAY, I never step into a puddle.
...............and I can safely say that this guy will never do it again either.
UPDATE: The video has been copyrighted and is no longer available.......go make your $100.
I started really singing about 2-3 years ago. I forgot the exact date. I know it was the first closing of Rick and Tracy Yost's club, Pearl. I decided at the spur of the moment (yeah, I do that) to just start the song "The Love I Want" as I got up on stage with my bandmates Kevin Schermerhorn and Drew Allain. I did it solo and pretty much nailed it shocking a few folks in the process. I had tried singing before but was put down by the guys I was in a band with at the time. That experience put me in a hole vocally that took me 20 years to get out of. But I'm glad I finally did. Over time the added confidence has helped me build up a catalog of over 25 songs.
So.....why does the week before my monthly gig at the Goat always seem to be filled with dread and anxiety? I get nervious, I don't want to work on the songs, I don't even want to do the gig hoping somehow a natural disaster like a sink hole will cancel it. Yeah, I know what it is. It's just me being a wimp. I'll get through it. When I show up with my gear all that will disappear. It always does.
Monday, that's today........and my "Week of Fear" begins. But I'm not on that mistress Facebook that has taken so much quality time away from my music and family. I WILL work on my singing. I will work on finding more songs to play. I will NOT miss Facebook.
Well, I did it. I am no longer on Facebook. I did it on a whim actually. I finally got tired of the ass kissing, political stupidity and stupid photos. I know, I guess I could have ignored it but if you know me, I just can't.
I have friends I will miss and some I won't. In person they are great, on Facebook they bug the shit out of me. It's like when you get out of your parent's house and move in your first place with your best friend only to find out that they get on your nerves and you can't stand them. We have all been there.....or most of us have. That relationship is changed forever.
And then there are the whiners........Jesus H. Christ.....so many WHINERS. The ones who will complain about the stupidest shit to get sympathy comments. And the worst part is that it comes from grown men. The same guys who talk shit and act like bad asses but the first time someone hurts their feelings they cry like a teenage girl who has had her iPhone taken away. Pathetic.
Then there are the folks who think every negative comment is about them and they have to ask, "What do you mean by that?" Nothing. It wasn't about you....."Lighten up, Francis." I was tired of watching opportunists post and brag about their gigs and triumphs that were at best amateur.
And the photos.......between the cat photos and somebody's obsession of some guy who dyes his facial hair and kisses another guy's ass in a vain attempt at purging his fans.......I better stop there.
Lastly, I was tired of being the guy who was entertaining everyone with my hot opinions and entering the Coliseum for bloody battles about morality, politics and the things I mentioned above. Funny thing, some dickhead would be sending "Go get 'em, Pat!!" messages privately then unfriending me citing my "negativity and bullying". Come on you jerk, unfriending me wasn't about that and you know it.
So there you go, so long Facebook. I'll get my dirt the old fashion way, on Sunday mornings from my bass player.
Almost 22 years ago I was lucky enough to spent 3 weeks playing music in Tokyo, Japan. It was in the Roppongi district which is were all the clubs were. I was amazed at this whole new world since the only other time I had traveled a great distance from Utah was to California. In Europe they use the same letters and English is a big part of the language. In Asia, they don't use letters and English is limited to what most have learned in school ("Jack has a chair") . This was a BIG thing to get used too.
The Japanese I met there were kind and optimistic. The music scene there was great. At the time I knew nothing about vintage guitars or amps but I remember going to music stores and one in particular. The guy who owned it showed me all these great guitars he had in his shop. I took pics of them not really thinking about it. Years later after living in Dallas and seeing that same guy at the Dallas Guitar Show I stumbled upon those pics. I was amazed to see late 50's Gibsons and Fenders in rows hanging on the walls of this little guitar shop. I was so young and stupid then.
The other musicians in Tokyo that I met were great people. They wanted to play and jam but they must have been disappointed with me because I really didn't know what I was doing. One band that stuck out was a Beatles tribute band in a club set up to look like the Cavern Club. They had the look, the gear .......everything. I would see them during the day and they STILL dressed up as the Beatles while ordering sushi. That's dedication.
Anyway, just some thoughts brought upon by the events there. I hope and pray they make it through but it will be a long journey.
Whenever I think the attitude of some people has gotten as low as it can for the common man and the middle class something comes along to take it down even lower. Because of the "cut the taxes for the rich and big business" tactics of Gov. Scott Walker (R) of Wisconsin the debate has become of public employees vs private sector employees. Now I will admit I am a little bias because my father worked for MSHA (Mining Safety and Health Administration) from the late 80's until he recently retired. Before that he worked in the private sector in the mines. Early in his career as a miner he was also a member of the UMWA.
The current trend of demonizing public employees is nothing new. Before this it was one of Ronald Reagan's go to mantras. In the 80's public employees were seen as lazy and incompetent. Public employees have always been a target of the Republican and Libertarian parties just like the private sector worker has been for big business. Again, this is nothing new, yet this go around it is different. The banking industry gets billions in our money for bailouts. Their actions were blatantly criminal yet they are not being held accountable. No arrests, no indictments....nothing. These people not just rich, but super rich and they did it at OUR expense. Wall Street robbed us and with their smug attitudes did it right in our faces with no remorse.
Yet while these fat cats make millions and in some cases billions off of corporate welfare, America is blaming public employees. The very people who protect, serve and teach our children. THESE people don't make millions or billions. So why do people hate them and not Wall Street? Jealousy. You see, public sector employees live next door, they shop at the same grocery store and their kids go to the same school as us. So the attitude is, "Why do they get a great health insurance plan?", "Why do they get a great retirement plan?". Why? Because over the decades since "trickle down economics" and deregulation has been the norm the private sector worker has gotten less and less. The widening gap between the rich and the poor has widened greatly. As public workers' pay has been consistent, the pay for for the private sector has either stayed the same of gone down. There is no such thing as a pension for the private worker any more. Its all 401K......IF your employer has such a plan. And this 401K plan is only worth what Wall Street says it is on any given day. Remember how many people lost their 401K retirement plans at the end of 2008?
Another part of this jealousy stems from job security. One of the positives of being a public employee is knowing that the threat of being laid off is minimal. Again, the private sector employee has had job security erode with each coming decade. In the 80s to the current economic down turn it wasn't uncommon for top management to lay off thousands of employes for a nice bump in the company's stock value and a big end of the year bonus. Most private sector employees live in fear that at anytime they can be unemployed.
Jealousy of the Unions. yes Unions. We hear over and over about how bad the public workers Unions are, yet how often have they ever went on strike? How often have they disrupted anything? Are there bad Unions? Of course there are. It would be silly to say that Unions have never done anything unethical, but these practices have never come from the members, usually its the higher ups. Are there Union workers who are lazy? Duh, of course, just like there are lazy workers in non Unions jobs. Unions help protect the worker, they are a good thing. They are not destroying the economy. How can they when less than 8% of the workforce is Union? I'll even go on and say that the reason why American workers are treated the way they are is because of the lack of Unions.
The Right has done a great job demonizing the public employee and their Union. The same thing happened in the 80's and look where it led the private sector worker in America. Next on the chopping block is the public sector. The debate in Wisconsin has nothing to do with a budget deficit and everything to do with an agenda to destroy Unions.
.............yet the criminals on Wall Street still get a free pass while they do not invest in America, do not create good paying, steady jobs and walk around with my and your tax dollars. Its amazing to me America has not waken up to this.
I wonder how many people who cry about America's debt are themselves in massive debt. Like the Republican party which is the hole millions of dollars. Now of course the GOP will say its in debt because contributions are down..........mmmmm.....
Lets see, America is in the hole because we spend too much, the Republican party owns millions because they are not taking in enough money......
So two weeks ago the Huckster said that the Republican Party and the Tea Baggers needed to get away from the whole birther thing......although he didn't come out and say President Obama was born in America.
........and they understand the challenges teachers face along with public employees.......or maybe they know that collective bargaining is a right. Its funny, but there is plenty of hypocrisy on the Right with Conservatives and Libertarians. You see, they cry about people's rights being taken away but only when it suits their cause. Never mind the fact that a right....IS a right. You take the good with the bad. That's life.
Gov Scott Walker is losing ground and support.Are people seeing Unions in a bad light? Are they starting to realize that "trickle down" economics is a failed idea? Are they starting to see that big business isn't investing is America but its own pocket books? I hope so.
