Ranking Full Stop.

Waist High has just learned the line up for Season Two of Bands Reunited:

New Kids on the Block
Morris Day & The Time
The Motels
ABC
Haircut 100
The English Beat

"4 Rows Of Scummers."

Greatest drunk phone call received this week:

Who: Friend of Waist High attending day #2's festivities in a 4 day bachelor party celebration for someone we went to high school with.
Where: New San Diego Padres stadium: Padres vs. Dodgers.
What: "There are 30 of us at this game. 4 rows of scummers!"

ATTENTION FRESYES: Greatest Oregon license plate seen while leaving the Shell Gas Station: FRSBRG.

Isn't She Lovely?

My daughter will be 16 years old in 5 weeks. She gave permission for me to post this picture because she thinks she looks real "hot." Stay off the roads, for she might be a licensed driver by September.

Pissed And Pleased Both At The Same Time. Redux.

Now with photo:

Back in February Waist High tried to find out as much as she could about a story of a hideous sex offender that was loose on the streets of Bakersfield. In the search she came across the story at nbc4.tv. The story is no longer available but the head at the top of the news page is. Damn if it wasn't Paul Moyer, one of WH's all time favorite L.A. newscasters. I have kept a picture of Paul and Kelly Lange with me ever since I took it in front of the Temple City Library after a parade in 1975.

Grabbing Hands. Grab All They Can.

It was so rad to hear Depeche Mode's "Everything Counts" coming from the satellite radio in the tanning bed on Monday. Not so rad that the menu on the wall calls that particular station "Adult Contemporary."

Paid Vacations Rule!

My teen daughter and I spent several days in Central Oregon last week. She has levied a "surcharge" on Waist High for allowing me to post pictures we took from her camera phone. This photo was taken on Highway 22 and is some of the best beauty Oregon has to offer.

This is Smith Rock State Park in Terrabonne Oregon. One of Waist High's all time favorite places to visit. This is the view from our tent.

No vacation of Waist High's would be complete with out Deschutes Brewery beer.

Men's Journal Ranks Deschutes Brewery's Mirror Pond Ale #1

From The Bitter Truth: "The staff at Men's Journal selected an expert tasting panel including: Daniel Bradford, president of the Brewer's Association of America, Alton Brown, host of Food Network's Good Eats, beer writer Michael Jackson and Jim Parker, executive director of the Oregon Brewer's Guild. After craft beers from across the United States were sampled and ranked, Mirror Pond Ale came out on top, winning Men's Journal Gold Crown."

Stay Out. Stay Alive.

Raise a glass tonight. It was 25 summers ago that Waist High and family moved to the lovely land of Bakersfield.

Quote Of The Week.

Greatest thing said this week by Waist High that you will never know what it was in response to: "Yeah, tell that to Kurt Loder!"

"Mother Daughter Bonding My Ass!"

Till we meet again. Waist High and her mouthy teenaged daughter are gearing up for a 5 day vacation to Central Oregon. Waist High has been really looking forward to this trip, but her daughter, not so much: "This is gonna suck!" Waist High: "But it will be a chance for us to have some mother daughter bonding." Teenager: "Mother daughter bonding my ass. I hate traveling with you!"

"Card Privileges Void If Not In Regular Attendance."

Pictures. They Tell A Story Better Than This Half Baked Blogger.

Redux: adj: brought back - used postpositively.

I've Got Your Number Fresno. Well, Close. I've Got Madera's Number.

I have walked your streets. I've had my senior portrait taken in your town in 1985.

Dammit I Wish Oregon Was A Community Property State.

For the viewing pleasure of my regular readers (yes I've got regular readers), I present to you the former Mr. and Mrs. Waist High on the day of their business arrangement, er...I mean marriage. Last week, just over 11 years after this picture was taken, these two individuals had a conversation in which he revealed to her that they might still be married had she just attended to her only job and that was to "keep me happy."

Light a candle, say a prayer, have a stiff drink, for in 7 weeks they will have a daughter with a drivers license.

Run For The Hills!

Waist High now has scanning capabilities.

I Guess You Can Right Click 'Save As' From Your High School's Web Page.

 

We're the Vikings of the Valley, Standing true and bold. Bravely waving are our colors, Shining green and gold. Friendships we will cherish always, Upward our goals will lie. To you we proudly sing our praises Hail all Hail West High. 

Photo courtesy: West High School

Europa My Old Friend. Redux.

For this week's Not Forgotten Watch, Waist High revisits one of her entries from the primitive days when she did not know how to post pictures:

As an 1980s music geek, I was dazzled to find out that there was a sequel to Thomas Dolby's 1982 rhapsody "Europa and the Pirate Twins" on his 1992 CD ASTRONAUTS & HERETICS. There, you will also find the enchanting "I Love You Goodbye." For all things Dolby, check out The Flat Earth Society.

I Have Fallen In Love.

With the voice of Angela McCluskey. From Hits Magazine, "The striking vocals of Angela McCluskey will make you remember the first time you heard Miles blow his horn or Billie sing the blues." You can catch a sample at angelamccluskey.com.

Never Underestimate The Power Of Cement.

Not wanting to wait 11 months to post this on Nick Rhodes' birthday, I present to you the greatest discovery of the Summer of 2004.

On a whim, Waist High asked the vacationing Amy Langfield to go just north of Wilson and New Stine Roads in Bakersfield California to see if still written in the sidewalk was the letters TA/NR. She went, and she found it.

The story behind this is that Waist High friend "T" had a major crush on Nick Rhodes of Duran Duran for the better part of 1982 and 1983. Evidently it was so major that we carved TA/NR in the freshly laid sidewalk.

Thank you Amy.

Because This Is A Family Blog.

Rounding out the events of this past weekend: Waist High received an e-mail comment from the former keyboard player of one of her all time favorite 1980s bands. That, coming on the heels of drinking more booze than humanly possible and then doing SOMETHING VERY BAD!

Finntastic.

Waist High had the great pleasure of seeing The Finn Brothers last night at Portland's Crystal Ballroom. You will know the brothers from various projects: solo work, Crowded House, and Split Enz. They put on an outstanding show. The highlight of the evening of course being "Six Months in a Leaky Boat," and "I Got You."

Just as impressive was the opening singer Angela McCluskey. Angela, a "Scottish chanteuse," (bigbaer.com/telepopmusik) was the female voice on Telepopmusik's "Breathe."

With the worst hangover in 4 years, the night was good.

You Don't Scare Me Bigfoot!

My lovely and freshly kissed by a cheesy dude daughter makes her way to Bakersfield tomorrow for 2 weeks of Sun Fun Stay Play. She is already freaking out that she will "suffocate."

You see, we left mighty Bakersfield for the Pacific Northwest 11 years ago and have become accustomed to not seeing the sun much. Sources tell me it was 103 yesterday in Bakersfield.

Waist High may have to live with the fear of running into the Oregon Bigfoot at work, but it was 75 here yesterday. I'll live in fear 40 hours a week if it comes with 75 degrees in the dead of summer.

Are You Ready For A New Sensation? No!

As I sat on my back porch last night I had the displeasure of watching my 16 year old daughter and cheesy dude make out. It was the most nauseating thing. EVER. A nausea I had never experienced before because I have never witnessed someone I gave birth to MAKE OUT!

I guess I wasn't all that upset because I was calling everyone I could think of while it was happening.

20 Years. It's Been 20 Years. 20? Can't Be.

"20 years ago this week 'Relax' by Frankie Goes To Hollywood becomes the biggest selling single of all time in Great Britain, replacing Paul McCartney's 'Mull Of Kintyre' for that honour." (classicbands.com)

Cheesy Dude Update.

The fine young fellow who tried to put the moves on my daughter the other evening commented today that the next time he rides his bike all the way over, he "better get some action."

Dear Lord Deliver Me. I Did Not Sign Up For This.

I really never thought I would have to hear the following story from someone I gave birth to: WHILE I WAS AT WORK my AP honors student daughter has a friend over who just so happens to be a boy and who she just so happens to have known since the second grade. When he arrives she goes into her room to charge her cell phone and when she does he sits down on the couch. Not 30 seconds later she comes back out and he has taken his shirt off and is sitting on the couch. He tells her he only put "deodorant under one arm" and was hot and sweaty so he needed to take off his shirt.

The quote that may or may not top that is when my daughter's father found out about this and said, "Tell him I've got two acres behind my office and a shovel!"

"I Was Just Over-Served."

It's been a Hell of a week what with Fresyes and Amy Langfield (spell check tells me to use Longfellow) almost coming to blows, Waist High having a date with a man, an epic discovery on the streets of Bakersfield, and Glen Campbell uttering the greatest phrase EVER to explain his recent drunkenness and subsequent arrest.

2400 Bladen Street.

The childhood home of a long time/good friend of WH. *She* never disrespected her parents by having parties when they were out of town. She was a good girl.

2301 Bladen St.

 

Photo taken just hours ago by the vacationing Amy Langfield: the childhood home of Waist High. Amy is scaring me as she roams around the town. If the walls of this house could talk. Oh, but wait. They can. On the wall of the far left bedroom once sat the words: "CHINI CRISIS." What the drunk writer intended to spray paint was "CHINA CRISIS." 

Photo courtesy: A. Langfield

Sun. Fun. Stay. Play.

Today is a good day to check out amylangfield.com. All kinds of goings-on for the Langfield family as they vacation in Bakersfield. Some of it even taking place on Buck Owens Boulevard.

If all 7 of my full time readers would put pressure on her to do as I asked in the comment section of her "Bakersfield, Woah Nelly!" post, I would present to you my best post EVER!