End o' week musings

TGIF! And I mean it! Tomorrow I intend to take a nice, long afternoon nap. But then, that's getting ahead of myself.

Last Friday Linda and I went to the Dockside Grill in West Covina to see The Subs. We both enjoyed a bowl of soup- hers clam chowder, mine lobster bisque. Things were going well until Linda asked the band to play "Sweet Caroline," she didn't know that she might come to regret her request. I knew how it would go and it did- they launched into the song straightforward and it went downhill from there with word substitutions, audience participation and even the bartender ringing a big brass bell. After that Linda would meekly offer a song suggestion with a plea for it to be played "right." But she said she would definitely return to see The Subs again, so that's says it all.

Saturday my friend Byron (the creator of the Naughty Mickie comic strip you see here) came over for lunch and lots of talk and laughter. After he left, I gussied up and hit the road out to Universal Bar and Grill in Universal City to catch singer/songwriter/guitarist extraordinaire Joe Walla perform an acoustic set. He hasn't done that in ages and was delightfully on top of his game. The crowd didn't want him to stop and this included a lot of people there who hadn't heard him before. I hope he does some more of these unplugged shows because they're different and good!

Tuesday I had dance practice and Wednesday I went to the James Gurney lecture at Art Center College of Design in Pasadena. Gurney is the author and illustrator of the Dinotopia series, a collection of books which relate tales from an island where man and dinosaur live together in harmony. Gurney's work is wonderful and he also does landscapes and other painting. He explained his work process from beginning to completion and shared other humorous stories. It was definitely worth attending, plus he signed my book.

Last night... oh my! It was the night of nights- the Doo Dah Queen Party and Pre-Doo Dah Soiree at Hyperion Tavern hosted by one of my favorite celebs Tequila Mockingbird. The crowd filtered in, slowly filling the venue to catch Ukelar Winter, Count Smokula, Tequilabilly and several other acts, including Almase Arabesque.

"It's my night, I can dance if I want to," I teased, walking in with my crown and scepter. Then I saw the stage- it was long enough, but it wasn't even sidewalk-wide deep. This would be a challenge. Valerie and I inspected the stage and decided what the heck, we'd give it a go. And the audience cheered us on as we danced through four numbers- two rocking sword choreographies, a sultry, sexy pop number and a semi-traditional drum solo. We managed to not fall off the stage or bang into each other and were as graceful as possible in the limited room. We must have done well because we received nice compliments the remaider of the evening.

Tequilabilly was really good too. Tequila has a warm and wonderful voice and her guitarist, Billy, is very talented- they make a good pair. Count Smokula offers accordion spiced songs that you would least expect, including "Paint It Black" and my favorite, "Oops I Did It Again."

I'm late with my blog, not to mention everything else, today because I was a guest on Horror Kung Fu Theater, a cable show on Time Warner which is shown throughout Los Angeles and surrounding areas. I showed up in proper Queen attire and was briefly interviewed about the Doo Dah Parade and then I danced with my swords and veil. It was fun! I hope it spreads some joy on this rainy day.

I will be appearing at the Fret House in Covina 7:30 p.m. Saturday for open mic night and next Friday from around 8 p.m. on I will be dancing at McGinty's Gallery at the End of the World for 1st Friday Art Club. There, we will have live drummers and a extra dancer, my very beautiful friend Tamara.

Photos to share this week are my friend Erik Stein's motorcycle and me with Queen Erika at the Doo Dah coronation.

In rotation this week: Orange Sky, 69 Eyes, Offspring, Brides of Destruction, Tribe of Gypsies, Aerosmith, Racoon, Monster in the Machine and Tha Riks.

My thought is important this week- take time to recharge. I have been burning the candle at both ends. Working, holiday shopping, dancing, singing, making appearances, etc. And everyone at my job has been coming down with colds. I have been taking my vitamins as always, but have started bolstering myself with some extra zinc. I have received a ton of invitations for this weekend and over next week, but I'm going to be very picky-choosy because I know I need to keep up on my zzzzs so I don't get sick. Saturday after yoga, it's fuzzy socks, soft blanket and a nap. Maybe you should do the same...

Keep on rockin'

Queen Mickie