Double Friday Random Ten

Since I did my Friday Random Ten last week, but never had time to post it, I'm posting this week's and last week's.

This has been two of the busiest-- and most rewarding-- couple of weeks of my life. I mentioned before that a week ago Monday, I had my first Med-Surg exam of the two I'll have this rotation. It's generally considered to be the most difficult test of the second year. I was happy that I got a B-- especially after finding out that most of the class got C's, D's and F's on it. A lot of people are at the edge of dropping out of the program.

Last Friday, we had the HESI exam-- a practice for the NCLEX, the state nursing board I have to pass when I'm done with school in order to get my license. It was one of five I'll take this semester, but the most important one. It's comprehensive, covering everything we learned in the whole program, and counts for a percentage of the grade in one of my classes. It's probably a good thing that I didn't know, until right before the test, that it counted for 15% of the grade, not 1.5% like the other HESI's, which are in specific content areas, count.

I whipped through the 160-question test in a little under two hours, and got the score immediately. I needed to get at least an 850 to get the full 15%. I got an 1007. About a third of the class did not get the 850. The average score was in the high 800's.

I had one more test this week-- the clinical test for my Med-Surg rotation. The instructor, Ms. Beaumard, is one of the favorite teachers I've ever had. She's rigorous and demanding, but knows just when to back off when you're nervous. She inspired us to be better nurses.

Thanks to her and other instructors, I've felt different this semester. I used to walk into clinical days scared to death. Each time I was doing something new and terrifying. I'm still doing new stuff, but I approach it with a new attitude. I'm eager and excited to learn a new skill.

I passed my clinical test with flying colors. Yesterday, the last day of that rotation, Ms. Beaumard did evaluations. Mine was short and sweet. Ms. Beaumard told me that I'd done a great job this semester, and that she didn't have any concerns about my abilities as a nurse-- unlike some of the other people in the program. She praised my critical thinking skills, and that I was going to be a good nurse. Having her tell me that was like having Willie Mays tell me I was going to be a good baseball player.

I have my second and last Med-Surg test on Monday. Then I start my final rotation, Gerontology. Six more weeks to graduation.

1. Mastercharge- Albert Collins
2. I've Been Loving You Too Long- Otis Redding
3. Run Through the Jungle- Creedence Clearwater Revival
4. Gimme Shelter- The Rolling Stones
5. Hold Me Tight- The Beatles
6. Tattooed Love Boys- The Pretenders
7. Car On A Hill- Joni Mitchell
8. I'll Be Around- The Spinners
9. Bastards of Young- The Replacements
10. Roll Over Beethoven- Chuck Berry

Notes:
1. I was fortunate to see Mr. Collins while he was still with us. Great performer.
2. A classic from a guy who was taken from us way too soon.
3. CCR commenting on the Vietnam War.
4. From the great "Let It Bleed" record.
5. Some older Beatles
6. "I shot my mouth off and you showed me what that hole was for..."
7. Read about this song in "Girls Like Us," which was about Ms. Mitchell, Carly Simon and Carole King.
8. Great break-up song.
9. I saw their last show nearly 20 years ago.
10. I saw Chuck Berry at a show in Grant Park in 1986. Left and discovered that Keith Richards joined him on stage shortly after I left.

And last week's...

1. Hotel Illness- The Black Crowes
2. Love Too Good- The Jefferson Starship
3. Bohemian Like You- The Dandy Warhols
4. If We Make It Through December- Merle Haggard
5. Baby, I Love Your Way- Peter Frampton
6. Rock Me On the Water- Jackson Browne
7. There's a Moon in the Sky (Called The Moon)- The B-52's
8. Your Gold Teeth, Part II- Steely Dan
9. A Girl Like You- The Rascals
10. She- The Monkees


Notes:
1. This is my current favorite song.
2. Gracie Slick voicing some past relationship regret. I can relate.
3. Love, love, love this song!
4. Maybe the perfect country song.
5. I love Lisa Bonet's version of this in "High Fidelity."
6. Jackson Browne taking a spiritual turn.
7. This one was fitting for the "biggest moon" that turned out to be a bust here in Chicago-- overcast that night.
8. A lot of people missed how damned funny Steely Dan was, including this song.
9. Love the Rascals/Young Rascals!
10. For a prefab band, these guys were awesome.

The "Better Late Than Never Tuesday Friday Random Ten"

Completely missed last Friday's Random Ten, since I was busy with school and work. We had a test coming up that is generally considered to be the most difficult of the year, covering coronary problems, AIDS, tuberculosis and lung cancer.

I got together Saturday with a handful of classmates to get ready for the test. One of those people is pretty damned annoying, but worked as a paramedic and understands the coronary stuff, which includes reading EKG's, something the rest of us struggled with.

The study session must have worked; a test I would have been thrilled just to get a "C" on, I got a "B." I kept my mouth shut about it though, because I found out most of the rest of the class (including the annoying former paramedic) got C's, D's and F's.

Going in to clinical today, I had the realization that something has changed. First, knowing that I got through the toughest portion of the program yesterday, I know that I can do this. Secondly, I realized that I'm no longer terrified going into a clinical day. I look forward to learning new skills and perfecting ones I've already learned. I had a moment today when I realized how much I've learned. On clinical days, we team up; one person is the "lead" and the other is the "team member," who is basically serving as a CNA (certified nursing assistant). I was the team member, so I set about getting sets of vital signs, changing linens and witnessing while my partner gave meds.

Toward the end of the day, my "lead" was about to give a heparin shot-- something that we do a lot in the hospital (it's an anti-clotting agent-- people who are bed-ridden are more prone to blood clots). My partner asked me to do it, but I'd given a lot of heparin shots and so thought it best for her to do it, especially since she was the lead. As she started giving the shot, I realized she was doing it wrong, though it was too late to stop her. She gave the shot at a 90 degree angle, like you'd give an insulin shot. A heparin shot is "subcutaneous;" you give it just under the skin, at about a 30 degree angle.

Fortunately, where she gave the shot, on the underside of the patient's arm, was okay-- there's enough fatty tissue there so that it was okay. But I was mortified that just a few weeks before graduating, she did not know that this was how to give heparin. I found myself wishing I'd have gone ahead and given the shot.

I was not the only person mortified. A resident who was in the room took her outside and politely but firmly told her what she'd done wrong. I was glad the resident did it and I didn't have to. But I learned a couple of valuable lessons. First, if I see someone about to do something wrong, go ahead and stop them. Secondly, to have confidence in what I've learned.

On Friday, we have the comprehensive "HESI," a practice for the NCLEX, a big nursing board I take at the end of this program that I have to pass in order to officially become a nurse.

I've got a lot coming up. One of my kids starts his last year of high school this year as the other is starting it. I'll be starting a new career, and may have to move out of the place I've called home for the last nearly-13 years. Oh, yeah-- and I'm turning 50 in a few weeks. It's all good.

1. Ruby Tuesday- The Rolling Stones
2. Turn That Heartbeat Over Again- Steely Dan
3. In the Heat of the Summer- Phil Ochs
4. Fade Into Me- Mazzy Star
5. Are You Gonna Be My Girl- Jet
6. Painting By Numbers- James McMurtry
7. I Hear You Knocking- Dave Edmunds
8. Walkin' After Midnight- Patsy Cline
9. Ever Fallen In Love?- The Buzzcocks
10. She's So Modern- The Boomtown Rats



1. I've always found this to be one of the Stones' more lovely songs.
2. From "Can't Buy A Thrill," one of the greatest debut albums ever.
3. The late, great Phil Ochs, singing about the riots that racked the ghettos of America's cities in the mid to late sixties.
4. This song is haunting and achingly beautiful.
5. Love this nasty little song from a few years back.
6. The son of "Lonesome Dove" author Larry McMurtry. He just did a couple of shows at the Old Town School of Folk Music, just a few blocks from my home.
7. Dave Edmunds had a hit with this back in 1970.
8. Spent many a night in college walking home-- alone-- drunkenly singing this song.
9. A new wave classic.
10. The Boomtown Rats at their snottiest.

The "How Did I Get This Old" Friday Random Ten

Had a hell of a week at school. I'm waiting for the whole cardiac thing to fall in place in my head. SA nodes, V-Tach, Atrial Flutter, etc. I expect it to happen sometime Monday afternoon or so.

I'm enjoying this clinical rotation, despite the fact that it's causing me to be even more sleep-deprived than usual because of the combination of work and clinical schedule-- close the restaurant late, then up at 5:30 am. Have Ms. B., one of the best teachers I've ever had (I had her last semester, and was fortunate to be able to choose my schedule to get her again.) Yesterday was annoying; had to work with the most annoying classmate ever in history, and a nurse who was high-strung beyond belief. Still, it's all good. Thanks, Ms. B, and thanks to the other classmates.

In the meantime, my son's turning 17 on Monday. Trying to get my head around that, and also the fact that I'm done with nursing school in 9 weeks.

We celebrated my son's birthday by going down to a favorite restaurant down in Chinatown, then coming home and watching "Napoleon Dynamite." I was reminded of the day, nearly 17 years ago, that the most terrified guy in the world drove his girlfriend's car home from the hospital with a girlfriend he hardly knew, and a day old baby in a car seat in the back. And I'm reminded of Bill Murray's line Lost In Translation, as the character "Bob Harris," who says

"The most terrifying day of your life is the day the first one is born...Your life, as you know it... is gone. Never to return. But they learn how to walk, and they learn how to talk... and you want to be with them. And they turn out to be the most delightful people you will ever meet in your life."

And they have.

1. Stratford-On-Guy-- Liz Phair
2. Mean Mr. Mustard- The Beatles
3. Wild Horses- The Rolling Stones
4. Lucy In The Sky With Diamonds- The Beatles
5. The Mansion On The Hill- Bruce Springsteen
6. The Scorpion Departs But Never Returns- Phil Ochs
7. Born In Chicago- The Paul Butterfield Blues Band
8. The Stripper- David Rose
9. No Feelings- The Sex Pistols
10. That's Entertainment- The Jam

Notes:
1. From "Exile On Guyville." Liz must have been in my social circle, from everything I've read about this record, but I don't remember meeting her, let alone dating her. So I can't be one of the asshole ex-boyfriends she's singing about on this album. Not that I wasn't an asshole then.
2. From the great second side of the "Abbey Road" album. Back when there were second sides, or records, for that matter.
3. One of my favorite songs to play on guitar. The Sundays, who are best known for "Where The Story Ends" did a lovely version of this one.
4. Love the story of this song; everybody thought it was about drugs because of the initials. It was just about a picture John Lennon's son drew of his friend Lucy at school.
5. From Mr. Springsteen's "Nebraska" album. If there was a more beautiful song than this one ever written, I have yet to hear it.
6. Ochs was best known for his political songs, but wrote some power songs about tragedies that moved him. This one was written from the point of view of a sailor on the Scorpion, a US nuclear sub that was lost in the Atlantic in 1968.
7. My parents used to go see the Paul Butterfield Blues Band in the mid-sixties at Big John's, in the Old Town neighborhood, where we lived. Love this song and album.
8. Anybody around my age remember the shaving cream commercial this one was used in?
9. The Sex Pistols only recorded one album. But why record another when you got the first one right?
10. Rumor has it that The Jam were who the Clash were making fun of in "White Man In Hammersmith Palais" ("They've got new suits and Burton suits....")

Had a crushing last few weeks. Finished my Pediatrics rotation, which was very productive. I've begun my second Med-Surg rotation. Since I got a very low lottery number in registration, I was able to get the instructor I wanted, Ms. B., a very funny, strong-willed French lady who is one of the best teachers of any subject I've had in my life. As I'm fond of saying that she rides you like a five dollar burro, but you learn a ton. She understands that time management is going to be one of our big issues when we're nurses, but also wants to make sure we can think critically.

Last weekend, Kim and Mel went out of town, and it was just Adam and I. I took a rare Saturday night off-- an expensive proposition, but needed, I thought, to spend some time with him. He's missed the most time with me of everybody. Last Saturday, we hung out together, and my best friend Jim came by. We watched an old movie, "Start The Revolution Without Me," which I used to watch with my father whenever it was on television. Neither Jim nor Adam had ever seen it, so it was really fun to watch it with them.

My son and I got to talk a lot. I'd been concerned about him. At the end of last summer, his cousin, my ex's nephew, died at the age of 28. He was more like a brother to my son-- a really nice kid. I came to the conclusion, at the end of the weekend, that he's dealing with it as well as one could expect.

Over the weekend, we had a bunch of great talks. He amazes me sometimes. He's dealt with so much-- he has to deal with my ex- way more than I have to. And yet, he thrives-- he's just unbelievably smart. He talks about history, economics, philosophy and understands Game Theory way better than I ever did when I studied it in Grad school. He's got an incredible intellectual curiousity; we walked over to our local little bookstore and I gave him some money to buy any book he wanted. He chose a book about the famine in China that was caused by Chairman Mao's disastrous policies. How may sixteen year olds do you know who would choose to read about this? He's fascinated by economics and government policy. But above all of that stuff, he is just a genuinely nice person. I couldn't be prouder of him.

In less than two weeks, he turns 17. I'm having trouble getting my head around that. There are times where I feel like it's been only six months since I was holding him on my lap feeding him. I know that he is going to love college, but I can't believe he's almost there.

In other news, my daughter's school basketball team went to the playoffs. They won the first round, but were knocked out in the next round, in a game this evening. I was really proud of my daughter; she played aggressively and well. I hope that this summer we can find some time to play together.

I spent some time tonight doing some online case studies for the Pediatrics HESI test (a preparation for the nursing boards) that I'm taking Monday morning. It's a little staggering to know that I'm so close to finishing this all-- ten weeks left. I'm amazed at how much I have learned, and I'm amazed at how much I have to learn. I've come to the realization that I'm entering a field that I can spend a lifetime learning in. And I'm pretty damned good with that.


1. The Times They Are A'Changin'- Bob Dylan
2. Queen Jane Approximately- Bob Dylan
3. Will The Circle Be Unbroken- Asleep At The Wheel
4. To Be Young- Ryan Adams
5. Car Jamming- The Clash
6. Don't Take Your Guns To Town- Johnny Cash
7. Dock Of the Bay- Otis Redding
8. I Think It Was the Wine- Corky Seigel
9. The Needle And The Spoon- Lynnrd Skynnrd
10. Blues With A Feeling- The Paul Butterfield Blues Band


Notes:
1. One of the hallmark songs of the sixties. Also at the beginning of the movie "Watchmen," which I got for Christmas.
2. From "Highway 61 Revisited," one of my "desert island" albums.
3. A great old standard served up by Asleep At the Wheel on the great album "Served Live."
4. Love this song. If you've ever seen "Old School," it's the song played at the beginning of the movie.
5. From "Combat Rock," and album that came out 29 years ago. Can you believe it?
6. Some classic Cash
7. I never, ever get tired of hearing this song, or singing it and playing it on guitar. A post-humous number 1 for the immensely talented Mr. Redding.
8. I friggin' love this song, which sums up a lot of my younger years. My parents used to see Seigel at Big John's, a club in Chicago's Lincoln Park neighorhood back in the late sixties.
9. Skynnrd warning about dope.
10. Another band my folks used to see at Big John's in the sixties.

A Few of My Favorite Things: My Toronto Blue Jays Mug

I had a twelve hour clinical shift today. I've adapted to the twelve hour days pretty well-- that's the kind of shift I'll be working in nursing, in all likelihood-- but I had to work last night, so ended up getting less than four hours of sleep. This is my last long clinical of the semester, indeed of nursing school. Life goes on.

I'd been promising (or threatening) a new feature, "A Few Of My Favorite Things." I haven't been blogging nearly enough, and since I crashed for a couple of hours after coming home from clinicals and having dinner, I've got a little energy to blog.

With full time school, full time work and parenting two teenagers, coffee has become the elixir of life to me. I tend to drink coffee in the late afternoon and early evening to extend a day that by then has become long, and frequently after a nap. I acquired the treasured Toronto Blue Jays cup through a job. Larry T. a guy I have worked for on and off over the years is one of the more remarkable people I've ever known. I first worked for him in the late eighties in a deli he co-owned. I continued to work for him at a barbecue joint he owned.

Larry, an African-American guy from the south side of Chicago, is intelligent, funny and gregarious. On a trip to Toronto, a city he loves as much as I do, he met a couple of other restauranteurs, who sent him home with a bunch of little gifts, including a Toronto Blue Jays coffee cup-- the one pictured above.

The 1993 World Series, between the Philadelphia Phillies and the Toronto Blue Jays, was one of my favorites. One of my favorite-ever baseball players, Joe Carter, who had at one time played for my beloved Cubs, was the hero of that series, a moment I recounted in this post a couple of years ago. In fact, I was working at Larry's barbecue joint watching it on television.

The mug sat around the restaurant for ages before I realized that it was eventually just going to get broken or lost. I took it home to make sure it had a good home.

In my post about the Joe Carter World Series game, I recounted how at the time of that game, I was awaiting the birth of my son and an uncertain fate, and that how that moment was my favorite moment in a World Series until seeing that son pitch in a little league world series over a decade later. When I have a simple cup of coffee (always black, no sugar) from that cup, it's a reminder of my son, a reminder of my friend Larry, whom I'm still friends with, and a reminder of how great a game baseball can be.

Last week I got on Ebay to get one more thing to go along with the mug: a 1993 Joe Carter Toronto Blue Jays baseball card, which I will frame and put in a place of honor.

The "Three Months To Go" Friday Random Ten

Today marks three months to go to two milestones: graduation from nursing school and my 50th birthday. Today I thought a lot back to a time two years ago when I was waiting to find out whether I got into Truman College's nursing program. Lots of things seemed a long time away-- hearing about nursing school, my 50th birthday and my son's 18th birthday. Now the first two are a quarter of a year away, and the last one is just a little over a year away. The last one means that my son--and I-- no longer have to deal with the decisions of an angry, capricious and emotionally stunted person, my ex.

In the meantime, I had my first test of my final semester on Monday. I was nervous as hell about it, but it turned out well-- after thinking it was going to be a "throwaway" test that I'd have to do better on another test to make up for, I got an "A." It was the lowest possible A, but an A nonetheless.

I had another good moment in school last Sunday. For all the things I've done in this life, I had zero experience in the medical field. Everything I've done, from cleaning up an adult to giving a shot (or 60 or 70 one day when I gave a bunch of people flu shots), to giving a heparin shot with a tiny needle or an Accucheck blood sugar test, it's all been outside of my comfort zone. I've taken some pride in being able to do that, to step outside of my comfort zone, but often found myself relieved when I was able to avoid some new skill for a while. This last Sunday, during clinical, our patient (we had a low "census" so my partner and I had to "share" a patient) was being discharged, and so we had to discontinue the IV on our patient, a 42 day old baby. I jumped at the chance to do it. It was one more skill I could add to my bag of tricks. My instructor supervised, and I removed the IV. For the first time, I wasn't nervous at all. I'd come to the realization that with the right instruction and instructor, I can master each skill. It was a nice moment.

I've got a couple more weeks in my Pediatric rotation, and one more test. I'm looking forward to my next one, my second Med-Surg rotation, with one of my favorite clinical instructors, a crazy French lady who is rigorous, humorous and inspiring.

In one of my favorite movies-- a mini-series, actually, "From the Earth to the Moon," there is a scene in which the crew of Apollo 9, a mission that was to test the Lunar Module, a piece of equipment that had huge difficulties in the development, rattled off all the "firsts" that their mission would have. They would have difficulty finishing half of the things, let alone all of them. Yet, the commander of the mission enthusiastically says "I can't wait!"

These last two clinical days, I came to a several realizations. One was that the nurses who were actually responsible for the patients we were working with had complete confidence in us. We checked in with them, told them what we were doing, asked them relevant questions and all, but in the end, we went in and gave care to those patients. Secondly, the patients' parents had complete confidence in us. They asked us questions, and when we told them things-- things to watch for after discharge, etc.-- they listened and took note.

The last was that I have confidence in myself. Nearly five years ago, I was told that I was not going to be retained in the teaching job I loved and thought I'd work until I retired. My confidence was shaken to the core. I felt pretty shitty about it. Now, five years later, I'm feeling pretty damned good. The asshole in me wants to send a card to my old principal, the one who made the decision not to retain me, when I graduate.


1. Funky Kingston- Toots and the Maytalls
2. Find Somebody- The Rascals
3. Dancing in Heaven- Q-Feel
4. Just a Closer Walk With Thee- Joan Baez
5. Everything Is Beautiful- Ray Stevens
6. I Believe- Don Williams
7. School Days- Chuck Berry
8. What's On My Mind- Kansas
9. I'm Gonna Make Me Love You- Diana Ross and the Supremes with the Temptations
10. Five Feet High and Rising- Johnny Cash



Notes:
1. I find this song hard not to dance around to. Infectious.
2. Not one of their better-known songs, but a great one. Discovered it through Little Steven's Underground Garage.
3. An eighties one-hit wonder
4. Joan taking a walk down the gospel lane
5. Mr. Stevens was known for his humorous song, but his one was serious and with a lovely message.
6. Mr. Williams wrote hits for other, including Eric Clapton's "Living On Tulsa Time," but this beauty was a hit for him.
7. A solid classic from Chuck.
8. First heard this one when I started listening to FM radio in high school in the mid seventies. Still a favorite.
9. The Supremes with the Temptations? There was no way they were gonna miss!
10. Johnny Cash singing about a flood or train crash or prison? Go figure.

The "Snow Up The Yin-Yang" Friday Random Ten

Sorry for the long absence from posting; I've been keeping up with my favorite bloggers, but haven't had the energy, given the circumstances, to post much.

As most people know, we got socked by a blizzard here in Chicago. It's made life a little more crazy than normal. I'm sore head to toe-- not only from shoveling snow, but from a spill I took down the back porch steps-- ironically while going to the basement to get a bottle of wine.

I am partaking in the infamous Chicago "dibsing;" the placing of lawn chairs, brooms, garbage cans, etc. to stake out a space you spent hours digging out for you car, and in my case, my wife's car as well. Above is my neighbor's "dibs," which scores high in every area of classic dibs: variety of material, ugliness and overkill. He also scored points for clearly being drunk when I saw him with his nephews digging out the space at 11:30 in the morning.

Tonight is a night in with my kids and two of their friends. My wife and her friend (the mother of one of the kids) are going to a meet and greet with Rahm Emanuel, who's the likely next mayor of Chicago (she just posted this picture of herself with him on Facebook). Besides spending time with the kids, I'll also been hitting the books; I'm assuming that although my school was closed on Wednesday that our test will go as planned on Monday, since the material on Wednesday wasn't going to be on the test. I've realized lately how bloody exhausted I am, but keep reminding myself that there's only about three months left to this journey. Plus, I got a little added incentive. This week they announced graduation day: May 11. It happens to be my 50th birthday. Finishing this program would be the best 50th birthday present I could give myself.


1. Real Man- Todd Rundgren
2. Beautiful Brother of Mind- Curtis Mayfield
3. Silver, Blue and Gold- Bad Company
4. Joker Went Wild- Bryan Hyland
5. Valley of the Dolls- Dionne Warwick
6. I Can't Tell You Why- The Eagles
7. Sean Flynn- The Clash
8. Mississippi- Bob Dylan
9. Talkin' About You- The Rolling Stones
10. Lady Madonna- The Beatles


Notes:
1. First heard this one on WXRT, our local "Prog Rock" station in the late seventies. Still one of my favorites.
2. This guy, who grew up in the projects here in Chicago was amazing. His son roomed with a friend of mine at Eastern Illinois University.
3. A guilty seventies pleasure; I love these guys. They wrote a ton of great songs.
4. One of many hits Mr. Hyland had.
5. Love Ms. Warwick's voice, especially when she's singing the songs of Burt Bacharach and Hal David.
6. The one hit of theirs sung by newcomer Timothy B. Schmidt.
7. About the combat photographer Sean Flynn, who happened to be the son of the actor Errol Flynn. He disappeared with another photographer near the Cambodian border while covering the Vietnam War, and is widely assumed to have been murdered by the Khmer Rouge. I read a New York Times article about a year ago about a friend of his, a fellow combat photographer, who is still trying to solve the mystery of his disappearance.
8. From the great "Love & Theft" album.
9. From "December's Children."
10; One of the songs Paul penned. A few years back, I saw Yoko refered to Paul as "Solieri to John's Mozart." Not only was this an ungracious thing to say, it's wrong. Paul is a phenomenal songwriter.

The Depths of Winter Friday Random Ten

Yesterday I had an epiphany: it's right around now, the third week of January every year, that I begin to really hate winter. It arrived right on schedule yesterday.

Had a busy, busy week. I went back to school this week. It was great seeing all the friends I've made over the last few years there. I ran into a couple of friends who dropped out last year who are trying it again, successfully, it would appear, this time.

In the meantime, I'm waiting; waiting for a supplementary textbook I ordered a few days ago, and mainly waiting for a couple of pairs of glasses I ordered. I had realized that I pretty much had a headache all the time. I thought that it was because of the stress of juggling full time school, full time work, kids and a marriage. I realized a couple of weeks ago that it may have had to do more with an outdated glasses prescription. I thought about waiting until I was done with school, but thought better of it. I went in for an exam and discovered that my last exam was in August of 2007. No wonder I was getting headaches. This prescription was my first bifocal one. Both my reading and distance had changed significantly. I got a good deal on a two pairs. No bells or whistles except for the bifocals being lines-free, which was included in the special deal they had. I'll have to wait until after school to get the thinner lenses, non-glare, etc.


1. Living In Hard Times- Wendy Waldman
2. Rock and Roll Niggah- Patti Smith
3. Hello Stranger- Barbara Lewis
4. Things Have Changed- Bob Dylan
5. Queen of Hearts- Gregg Allman
6. Sugar Man- Rodriguez
7. Althea- The Grateful Dead
8. C'est La Vie- Robbie Nevil
9. 30 Days- Chuck Berry
10. Understand Your Man- Johnny Cash


Notes:
1. Ms. Waldman's written hits for other people, but I loved this song of hers performed by her that came out in the mid-eighties.
2. Patti Smith deconstructs and redefines the "n-word" brilliantly in this song.
3. Ms. Lewis is a Chicago native.
4. Dylan at his dourest.
5. A beautiful smoky song.
6. Rodriguez has been a pretty recent discovery for me. Great political singer-songwriter who's being rediscovered these days.
7. From the "Go To Heaven" album.
8. This guy was one of my one-hit-wonders. Didn't know he was white until I bought the single back in the day.
9. I'm hoping Mr. Berry is doing better; he collapsed onstage here in Chicago about a month ago.
10. Listening to this one, I realized that musically and thematically, Dylan's "Don't Think Twice, It's All Right" is nearly a rewrite.
7.