: We Gotta Get Out Of This Place
“If it’s the last thing we ever do . . .”
Or so sang Eric Burdon and the Animals back in the 1960s. I’m finding that sentiment resonates with me more and more these days, only in my case the “place” is our house (not to be confused with the House of the Rising Sun). The problem I have is, literally, getting out of the house and walking/driving to where ever I’m headed with everything I need. Somehow, the list of things I need with me keeps growing. Let’s see . . . . . .
Wallet
Cash
Cell Phone
House Keys
Glasses (especially if I’m driving)
Car Key (which car?)
Mask (just in case)
Tissues
Did I take a pill for my seasonal allergies?
Properly attired for where I’m headed?
Address of my destination (if a new place)
Did I use the bathroom?
Turn off stove, oven?
Yikes! And that’s not all. If I’m going to karate did I bring my gear? If I’m taking the train into the city, I like to bring my laptop with me to do some composing on the train. Did I download the latest version of the piece I’m working on from the cloud? Did I bring my good ear phones? If I’m going swimming at the Y did I bring my googles, etc? If I’m going for yoga, did I bring my mat?
Being absent minded, I rarely make it out of the house in one piece. Invariably I’ll get down the front steps, then pat my back pocket and “Crap, I forgot my cell phone“. I’ll get inside, search for my cell phone, then realize I put it in my inside jacket pocket. Go outside, get in car and – “Dang it, I forgot to lock the door“. Go out, lock front door. Rinse & repeat. Sigh.
My running joke about all this is that if my body parts were not attached to me there would be pieces of Eric scattered across the metropolitan area. But I am getting better at this. I’m finding that if I start getting fully prepped about an hour before I actually leave? I may only have to make one trip back into the house. Progress!
Hmm. Now that I think about it, Pieces of Eric might not be a bad name for an album (if I ever do another one).
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Meanwhile, in other news my composition – Suite for Strings, Episode 2 – got 3rd place in the String Orchestra division of the ‘Città di Barletta’ International Composition Contest. This raises an interesting question. Can I now add the words “award winning” to my resume? Or does that only apply if you win first place? You can listen to it here.
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Meanwhile, I’ll make sure you leave in one piece if you come to one of my up and coming events:
Thursday June 9, 9:00 PM – 1:00 AM
Better Off Dead at The Great Notch Inn
400 US-46, Woodland Park, NJ 07424(973) 256-7742
http://www.betteroffdead.com
https://www.facebook.com/Great-Notch-Inn-45741843010/
It’s basically summer now and “Da Notch” will be in full gear. We’ve prepped a few new songs for this show, hope to see ya.
Saturday June 11, 7:00PM-9:00
Arthur Neilson at Ruthie’s BBQ
64 1/2 Chestnut Ave, Montclair, NJ (973) 509-1134
The weather app on my phone is saying 60% chance of rain on Saturday, so we may be inside, but either way we’ll be making some high energy music. Remember to BYO.
https://arthurneilson.com/
http://www.ruthiesbbq.com/
Sunday June 19, 6:30PM-7:30
Arthur Neilson at The Bitter End
147 Bleeker St, New York, NY (212) 673-7030
A special event here – Arthur & company will be making a rare NYC appearance at the legendary Bitter End on Bleeker St in NYC. The doors open at 6:00 and we will be doing one set starting 6:30. There is a $10 cover charge and a two drink minimum if you sit at a table (one drink if you sit at the bar, no minimum if you stand).
https://arthurneilson.com/
https://bitterend.com/#/events?event_id=56678