Lenny
Topic: by Lenny
Hi everybody...

As you all have undoubtedly heard (and probably forgot), I am "hitting the road," getting out of Providence and moving on to new challenges and greater things. Or I'm throwing my life away. I haven't decided yet. (Hi mom!)

My phone is getting disconnected on October 15. So don't call me. Seriously. It just won't work. I'll let you know what my new number is soon as I have one, but in the meantime you can get a hold of me here or at: studio@production68.net

I have to apologise to all of you I have lost touch with or just plain owe 'phone calls to. I'm sorry, I am terrible at keeping in touch (but obviously I am not THAT sorry, or I would have done something about it)...

Where am I going, you ask? For the most part I am undecided, but I know I will be in Pittsburgh and vicinity for the near future at least, and then I'm moving to New York City. I am planning on doing some travelling while I have the chance, so don't be surprised if I call you asking for a place to crash.

You can check out my weblog -- https://mediafaction.tripod.com/blog/ -- if so moved for my writing, music and any other artistic endeavors.

take care and I'll talk to you soon...

- Lenny

I'm a dead man.
Topic: by Lenny
I have pneumonia, the sixth leading cause of death in the United States.

Pneumonia is a general term that refers to an infection of the lungs, which can be caused by a variety of microorganisms, including viruses, bacteria, and parasites.

Often pneumonia begins after an upper respiratory tract infection (an infection of the nose and throat). When this happens, symptoms of pneumonia begin after 2 or 3 days of a cold or sore throat.

[more here]

Twenty Years Ago Today
Topic: by Lenny
"Weird Al" Yankovic and the Dead Milkmen's Psychedelic Journey.

It was twenty years ago today (well, this week) that I first heard "Eat It" by "Weird Al" Yankovic. It was a snow day and Miss Kelly's whole fourth grade class must have been at home listening to Jet AM 1450 in Erie, PA. The radio was on for weather updates (not a small thing in the country in the days before cell phones, cable tv and paved roads) and we heard it, every hour on the hour:

How come you're always such a fussy young man?
Don't want no Captain Crunch, don't want no Raison Bran
Well, don't you know that other kids are starving in Japan
So eat it, just eat it...

Psychologists speak of "imprinting," certain moments of vulnerability in one's life where the loudest, most dramatic stimulus makes an sudden and permanent impact on his or her personality. If sexuality and confidence can be determined in an instant during these moments of imprint vulnerability, why not one's sense of humor?

Those of you that know me know that I have the sense of humor of an eight year old... which might possibly be traced back to that cold, gray January day when the best kicks available to my mother, my brother and myself were on the AM radio, every hour on the hour.

Don't want to argue, I don't want to debate
Don't want to hear about what kind of food you hate
You won't get no dessert 'till you clean off your plate
So eat it...

That was the moment that decided I was to become a musician. By that summer Joey Cieslak and I (lifelong friends-to-be, brought together by our love for Star Wars and "Weird Al") were collaborating on the first of our song parodies:

Here's a little story 'bout Iraq and Iran...

The thing that I never realised was that "Weird Al" Yankovic was not a real musician. .. that one simply does not listen to "Theme from Rocky 13 (Rye or the Kaiser)" the same way... with the same irreverance... that one listens to "Stairway to Heaven."

And as I got a little older, and everybody was listening to the Doors or Black Sabbath or Led Zeppelin I was listening to the Dead Milkmen. What I learned from the Milkmen is that if everyone thinks you are a joke you can get away with damn near anything (though what I probably should have learned is that if everyone thinks you are a joke you'll end up leaving music behind to design web pages, do tech support, go to grad school... ANYTHING... because there you'll never make any money as a musician)!

Looking back it seems to me that the Dead Milkmen, as well as being a lot of fun, were very psychedelic (I seriously doubt that the lyrics to "I Am The Walrus" or "A House Is Not A Motel" make more sense than the lyrics to "Belafonte's Inferno"). And who can deny that there is a romantic heart evidenced by tunes like Dean's Dream? Like a MAD Magazine contaminated Love, the Dead Milkmen did whatever they damned well pleased ... and what could be more rock'n'roll that that?