July 18th-24th

Saturday July 18th
My birthday and my four year anniversary with John. We were up late after a late night last night but my sister Julie and son Aidan phoned to wish me a happy birthday. John made pancakes and we tuned into our favourite radio show the Rhythm Review. We had planned to have dinner at one of the Bay restaurants but it was a very hot and humid day and I developed a bad headache. I had to take a knockout pill so dinner was out! We watched some TV and went to bed early!



Sunday July 19th
Today we caught up on some chores and walked by the beach and then later we ate at Yiasou's, a Greek restaurant on the bay. We sat outside and had a delicious meal. Later it turned cooler so we had a walk by the water and watched the boats for a while before heading home in a beautiful sunset.
Later we watched TV. The health debate is dominating the news this week. There are 47 millions Americans with no health coverage. President Obama points out that this has a hidden cost to the taxpayer and if these people could have affordable coverage overall costs could be reduced. The Republicans are complaining that it would cost too much. It seems that there is a lot of wastage and over servicing and overcharging which should be investigated. This week John received a $500 bill for a test which his doctor recommended. He was not told that this test was not covered by his insurance. To me this seems very unjust. People should know what charges they will be liable for
July 20th Today was the first really wet day we've had so we decided to go to a movie. The funniest movie around right now is `The hangover' so we decided we needed a good laugh. The movie is about four friends who drive to Vegas two days before one of them Doug, is to be married. The next morning they wake up to find Doug missing, a tiger in their bathroom, a baby in the closet and other strange things. They have to try to piece together what happened and find Doug. Well worth seeing!
July 21st.
Today was warm and sunny again so we set off for Manhattan and wandered around Battery Park and Seaport. We found a cool new hat for John (see photo) and wandered around enjoying the street dancers and checking out the market stalls and shops. We ate some Delicious clam chowder and were planning to get pizza on the way home at Spumone Gardens but the queue was so long we had to forget it.












July 22nd
Most mornings this week we've watched the Tour de France live.France is 5 hours ahead of us here on the East Coast so it usually works out that we watch the last hour or two which is the most exciting. Many American are watching it this year because of 7 time winner Lance Armstrong competing. At present Lance is in overall third place so we are following his progress and becoming more familiar with some of the other competitors. We had been looking forward to seeing Gladys Knight and the O Jays at an open air concert at Coney Island but unfortunately the weather turned bad. There was a very heavy downpour. Last week we watched Robert Cray in the rain but it started well into the concert when we already had seats. We weren't even sure if the concert would go ahead so reluctantly stayed home and watched `American gangster'.
July 23rd
The weather changed for the better again today so we went down to Prospect Park to see the Holmes Brothers and Buckwheat Zydeco. I saw the Holmes brothers in Adelaide two years ago and thought they were great. They are a trio who sing amazing harmonies and their repertoire includes some great gospel, country, blues and R & B tunes. They did a great job of warming up the audience for Buckwheat Zydeco. It was the first Zydeco band I've ever seen live and now I want more! Buckwheat was incredible. He was backed by a six piece band with two hot guitar players, bass, drums, organ/washboard and trumpet. They worked their way through some well known and lesser known tunes, some originals including the title track from their new album `Lay your burden down' and some covers like `Walkin' to New Orleans' and `Hey good lookin'. They finished with `Peace love and happiness' and had the whole audience joining in and yelling for more but they had played for over one and a half hours so there were no encores. This band really made the audience feel good and this is why they are in huge demand for festivals and concerts. The sky turned cloudy and there was lightning during the concer but thankfully this time no rain! We met up with Ricky, John's friend, and after the concert we headed to a nearby bar for a drink before catching the subway home.

July 10th -17th

July 10th
We had a morning walk by the beach and later went back and played some bat & ball and sunbathed. On Friday nights during Summer there is a firework display on the beach at Coney island. Huge crowds turn out o watch it and since we'll be at concerts for the next few Fridays we thought we'd go. After a leisurely stroll down the boardwalk we arrived and enjoyed the spectacle. We met up with John's friend Ricky and had a beer.and watched a fantastic African American drum band. I'd never seen anything quite like them before. they were a marching band with female dancers and two young men leading the way. There were different drums playing a New Orleans style rhythm. people seemed drawn to them as they played their hypnotic music. We had another drink at Cha Chas bar where a very average blues/rock band were playing and walked home on the now deserted boardwalk arriving home about 12.30pm!
July 11th
Today was very hot and the beach was crowded early in the day. We were up late and after listening to our favourite Saturday radio show, Felix Hernandez on Jazz 88 we had some chores to do and shopping so the day passed quickly. We chilled out in the evening and watched one of the few Ben Stiller movies I haven't seen, The Heartbreak kid, also starring Michelle Monaghan, who seems to have been in the last few movies I saw! Stiller plays Eddie who bows to pressure from his father and best friend to marry Lila who seems a hottie but turns out to be a nightmare. Then he falls for Miranda (Michelle Monaghan) and things become complicated! Later we watched Real time with interesting guests, Oliver Stone and Billy Bob Thornton That show is always controversial and Bill Maher is always outspoken about many issues.
July 12th
We had lunch with Louise again and watched the Tour de France on her large plasma TV. We've been following it on nights when we're home, always great to watch. especially as I was in the Pyrenees a few years ago and recognise some of the towns. Six time winer Lance Armstrong is riding again and doing well currently in third place.Later we watched `Don't mess with the Zohan'. Somehow I missed this in the cinema as I couldn't find anyone else who wanted to see it. I don't always like Adam Sandler but in his he plays an Israeli commando who fakes his own death because he wants to be a hairdresser in New York! It had some wild moments and a message of peace so I enjoyed it!
July 13th
Today was another warm day when we decided to make the most of the beach.I walked and John ran in the morning and later we played paddle ball. By the evening there is usually a sea breeze so it's very pleasant. Later we watched Larry King.His is the top rating show on CNN and for the last two and a half weeks EVERY night has been about Michael Jackson! the American public seem to have a n endless fascination with the man and how he died. They are are still awaiting toxicology reports so can only guess at what lethal cocktail probably killed him.
July 14th
Sonia Maria Sotomayor has been nominated by Obama for the Supreme Court so in order for her to be appointed she has to be questioned by the Senate. The questioning goes on for several days and this is shown on TV and is what is making the headlines today. The appointment is controversial as Sotomayor was born in the Bronx of Puerto Rican parents. She would be only the 3rd female and the first Latino to Be a Supreme Court judge. She stated ` I would hope that a wise Latina woman with the richness of her experiences would more often than not reach a better conclusion than a white male who hasn't lived that life' and she has been criticised for this remark! This afternoon we went to the local mall to search for a hat for John but despite looking in Sears, Maceys and other places we came away empty handed! Obama threw the first pitch in tonight's All Star baseball game and joined the commentary team for a while! He just returned from a trip to Africa which had plenty of TV coverage and of course the Africans loved him!
July 15th
This afternoon we visited the New York Aquarium at Coney Island. I love watching and marvelling at the fish and they have many rare species. My favourites are the otters, seals and walruses. There are outdoor and indoor display areas and plenty of information so we spent a couple of hours there and walked home. It's about three miles so we were tired when we got home. After dinner we watched Larry King, who is still focusing on Michael Jackson! Then we watched a late movie, yet another one featuring Michelle Monaghan, a romantic comedy called Made of honor. Tom loves Claire but doesn't want to commit. When Michelle announces she is marrying a rich Scotsman he realises how much he loves her and tries to win her back.
July 16th
This year marks the 40th anniversary of the Woodstock Festival and tonight's concert at Coney island was a celebration. The problem is that many of the 32 performers and bands who appeared there are no longer with us or no longer performing. The audience was mostly people in their 50's and 60's who love nostalgia.This concert featured three bands who appeared on the Saturday but were not in the movie, John Sebastian, Mountain ans Creedence Clearwater Revival.The first artist was John Sebastian who is very popular as he hails from Greenwich Village. He's now 65 and his voice has lost its tone but the audience loved hearing hits like `Daydream, `Welcome back' `You didn't have to be so nice' `Did you ever have to make up your mind' and `Do you believe itn magic' and he rounded it of with some nice harp.
Next were `Mountain' who mst be the loudest and heaviest band in the world! They are a power trio reminiscent of cream but with less blues influence. They played their big hit `Mississipi Queen' and `Blowin' in the wind' and lots of other loud fast music and once again were incredibly popular!
Last was CCR. Singer/guitarist/songwriter John Fogerty left the band some years ago so this was a recreation with original members Stu Cook and Doug Cosmo Clifford on bass and drums and featuring John Tristao on vocals guitar and harp. They sounded authentic and pounded through their many hits beginning with Born on the Bayou and working through Susie Q, Proud Mary and many more. We had a leisurely walk home on the boardwalk and arrived back just in time for the late edition of Larry King, again talking about Michael Jackson!!! Larry appeared on the Jimmy Kimmel show and said that he thought this story might last another couple of weeks! There are still the toxicology reports to come and other issues to be explored!

July 17th

Today was humid and cloudy with thunderstorms forecast for later but undaunted we set of or Prospect Park in Downtown Brooklyn for the first Celebrate Brooklyn concert we've been to this year. On the bill was one of our favourite blues/rock/pop guitar players Robert Cray and Brooklyn soul band the Sweet Divines. Both of us have several of Robert Cray's albums but hadn't seen him live before. We got there early so we could check out the queue as we wanted to get good seats. The queue wasn't to long so we decided to grab dinner at a local cafe. We ordered wraps in pita bread but it turned out to be way ore food than we thought so we ended up taking half of it with us to eat at the concert later. I'm writing a more detailed review of the concert for those interested but will just say here that the music was fantastic, one of the best concerts I've been to even though Robert Cray's set was performed during a thunderstorm! Everyone came prepared and hung in there and some people were out dancing in the pouring rain! it was a thrill for us when just before Robert Cray hit the stage, one of John's tunes `I'm leavin' you' was played over the PA system.! John never gave them that album so they must have bought the album or the tune! This tune, a slow blues, is his best seller on itunes and has been for several years.

July 1st - July 8th

July 1st
Got up late as we didn't get to bed until around 2.30am! Had a lazy morning watching Federer v Karlovic at Wimbledon. Federer looked in good form and I'm certain he will win the tournament and break the record. Next we watched Lleyton Hewitt v Andy Roddick. This was a very close match which could have gone either way but Roddick prevailed. He will face Andy Murray now in the semis.
I love being able to watch Wimbledon at a civilized hour! Once it finished we turned the channel over and its still all Michael Jackson!
July 2nd
It was another humid day but we managed to have a walk by the beach before showers set in.Later we went shopping in Brighton and in the evening watched the Michael Jackson special! Later we watched John's favourite movie Scarface!
July 3rd
Today was a beautiful warm day. We hung out at the beach this morning and later set off for the Upper West Side where we were going to see jazz organist Dr Lonnie Smith again on his birthday. We saw him last year and were lucky enough to chat to him. Since then I have interviewed him on my radio show. We met up with John's friend Ricky and his girlfriend Suzie. All the jazz clubs in New York make more money by having two or sometimes three sessions in an evening so we went to the first session which went from 8pm to about 9.30. Dr Lonnie was great as usual and I was able to give him a copy of the interview.Its a long journey there and back so we arrived back around 11.30 and got our things ready for our trip to Jersey on July 4h.
July 4th
Last year we went to the Hot dog contest at Coney Island on this day but this year we went to spend the day with John's sister Rosemarie and her husband Anthony in their beautiful new home in New Jersey. Anthony picked us up and Louise, John's mother.
The journey there took over two hours as the traffic was really heavy and apparently a car had blown up on the Verrazano Bridge! This bridge connects Brooklyn to Staten Island and Staten Island to New Jersey. Once we were through Staten Island and on to the New Jersey Turnpike the traffic thinned out a bit. We arrived at Rosemarie ad Anthony's home about 2.30. We had been hoping to use their pool but it was not quite warm enough. Apparently the whole Summer so far has been cooler and wetter than normal so everything looks very lush! After a guided tour of the house, which was greatly admired, Anthony started the BBQ. John's niece Gina and husband Josh arrived with Nicholas their two year old son and Isabella, just one month old. We spent an enjoyable day eating and drinking plenty and catching up on news. Later after dinner and some delicious chocolate cake we went out to the street to watch some local fireworks. The big display is the Maceys show in Manhattan but it was fun watching the local fireworks on the quiet street with Nicholas really enjoying it all!
July 5th
Having arrived home so late last night we got up late and then settled down to watch Federer v Roddick play the Wimbledon final. Last year we had watched the whole Nadal v Federer match and agreed with the commentators that this was the best final ever. The 2009 final came pretty close though. Federer won 16-14 in the fifth set but it could so easily have gone to Roddick!
July 6th
The weather is still beautiful here so we are making the most of the beach. I'm still adjusting to New York time. All the TV stations seem to be showing nothing but Michael Jackson! Tomorrow is the Memorial concert. In the afternoon we called in on Louise, John's mother, did shopping and later we decided to watch a movie and settled on `Duets' which I'd seen before and enjoyed again.It's an offbeat kind of movie that focuses on a group of people entering a karaoke contest and features some very good karaoke from Huey Lewis, Andre Braugher and Gwyneth Paltrow but there was also some bad karaoke!
July 7th
Today it was all Michael Jackson. We watched the Memorial concert along with millions of others and found it very moving. This man had such a huge impact on pop music. He became popular at a time when videos were being used as a promotional tool and he had a very visual stage act plus great tunes. All the performers were outstanding especially Stevie Wonder and Jennifer Hudson and the speech by the Rev Al Sharpton really resonated!
July 8th
We decided to make the most of the beach today and took our bats and balls and had some fun. Later we watched `Cadillac Records' a movie about the history of Chess Records. It wasn't an accurate portrayal of what happened and it omitted a lot but some of the music was good. I thought that casting the ubiquitous Beyonce as Etta James and using her voice in the songs was not a good move. Her voice wasn't strong enough and she was too good looking! Adrien Brody playing Leonard Chess did not look 52 when he died! Also it showed Muddy visiting the UK in `67 when he first went there in the late 50's! I bought many Chess records in the 60's so it was probably more interesting to me than many others but I still felt more could have bee done with the story.

Back in the USA 09

June 24th
Another cold winter's day in Adelaide. I'm looking forward to some California sunshine. My daughter in law Leanna dropped me off at Adelaide airport in good time for my flight to Sydney so I indulged myself in a hot chocolate and a snack in one of the cafes at the airport. The flights were a little behind schedule probably due to the bad weather but we departed for Sydney only 20 minutes late. Janet Klein was on the flight and we had a little chat about the Adelaide Cabaret Festival. Janet sings and plays ukele and looks like a performer from a bygone era!
My international flight to San Francisco was about an hour late departing as we had to wait for travellers from connecting fights that were late. The plane was totally full as it is now the beginning of the holiday period in the US. As the US is behind Australia in time I actually arrived only one hour after leaving Adelaide on 24th June!
As I usually have trouble sleeping on planes I take long international flights as an opportunity to catch up on movies I've missed. I like having my own individual screen and choice of movies. I managed to watch five on this journey! There were several that I had seen reviewed on The Movie Show, the first being Two lovers. This was a European style low key movie set around Brighton Beach in Brooklyn, New York, very near to where John lives so there were some familiar backdrops. Joaquin Phoenix had the main role in this film. He's a very intense actor and I will never forget his performance as Johnny Cash in Walk the line and this is supposedly his last movie as he announced last year he was quitting acting and planning a career in music. In this movie he plays an unstable aimless young man forced to live with his parents again after the break up of his marriage. As the title suggests two women come into his life both very different characters and he has certain choices to make.
Easy virtue was another movie I'd missed at the cinema and was interested in seeing. It was about an Englishman from an upper class family who falls for a glamorous American woman (Jessica Biel) and after marrying her takes her home to meet the family. His mother (Kristen Scot-Thomas does not take to her new daughter in law and the family is gradually torn apart.
After these two fairly demanding movies it was time for something lighter. I watched The International, a fast moving thriller with British actor Clive Owen in the lead role and 12 Rounds, an action movie set in New Orleans starring wrestler John Cena.
The fifth movie was a romantic comedy starring Rene Zellweger as a high powered consultant sent to Minnesota by her company to streamline production at a local food factory. She has a difficult time relating to the locals and especially the union boss played by Harry Connick Jnr but since this is a romantic comedy you somehow know that she'll change her mind about him!
We arrived in San Francisco only 20 minutes behind schedule and I was down in Monterrey by 1.30 pm. The usual morning fog had just cleared. I spent the rest of the day eating and catching up on news with my friends Janis and Dennis.
June 25th
It was a cool morning at first but soon evolved into a typical sunny California day. Janis and I headed off to the Tehama club where I did my first ever aquarobics class. I found it very invigorating although there were some moves I just couldn't manage in the water! The club includes a golf club and is in a beautiful setting in the hills behind Monterey. You can see Clint Eastwood's house from the pool! As the club is owned by Clint Eastwood I was hoping he'd show up there which Janis told me he does occasionally but unfortunately not today!
We had lunch and then I decided to check e mails. As I logged into Yahoo I saw something about Michael Jackson in the headlines but didn't really pay any attention. When I looked again I was saddened to see that the king of pop had just died at age 50. This made my first day in America a very memorable one. Farah Fawcett had also just passed away but every TV channel was focusing on Michael Jackson. The nation is in shock.
Janis and I went to the Farmers market later in the day and then we had a relaxing evening watching The French Connection which I hadn't seen for years. Now I'm more familiar with New York I could recognise many of the streets featured in the movie!
June 26th
Today we drove to Santa Cruz with Janis's friend Nancy. We looked around the Macey's sale and all ended up buying some new clothes! Nancy also had to collect her dress for her son's wedding which takes place next week-end at Yosemite. On the way back we called in at a native nursery and I wished I could take some of their plants home! Nancy treated us to lunch at a restaurant at Moss Landing, a popular fishing spot, and on the way home we called in at Nancy's home to see her lovely new kitchen and home decor.
June 27th
I spent most of today at the Monterey Blues Festival.Perfect weather and fantastic music.There were so many great bands playing many of which I'd never heard of. I'll write more about this later. The highlight for me was the evening in the main arena with Trudy Lynn, Lucky Peterson and Clarence Carter but I also really enjoyed Terry Hanck, Elvin Bishop, Leah Tysse and the OG's and Janiva Magness. I found a great CD stall and couldn't resist buying a couple of albums!

June 28th
Sunday had a shorter programme than Saturday so we relaxed and went later to the festival. Again I enjoyed all the bands I saw. Top of today's bill in the main arena were the Neville Brothers who are right up my alley musially. What amazing harmonies and musicianship! Before them Barbara Morrison and Denise LaSalle had the arena rockin'. Kenny Neal drew a good crowd performing originals and standards and I enjoyed local blues/funk outfit Rene Solis and Lucky 13..
June 29th
The day started off very cool and misty as it often does in Northern California. Janis and I drove up to Carmel and browsed around some art galleries and some other shops. Later she dropped me off at the Aquarium which I always enjoy visiting. I spent an hour and a half admiring all the creatures and walked downtown where we met up with Dennis and enjoyed lunch at a Lebanese restaurant. In the afternoo we had a look aroud Stevenson house. I hadn't realised that the Scottish writer and poet Robert Louis Stevenson had spent some time in Monterey. There was plenty of memorobilia nd the curator told s some interesting anecdotes about the author. We weren't alowed to ake photos inside but the gardens were beuatiful too so I took a pic there! Later I caught up on some e mails and began packing for my journey to new York tomorrow. The TV still has Michael Jackosn on constantly!
June 30th
Dennis and I set of to San Franciso in good time for my flight but when I checked in I was told boarding was now 2.30 instead of 12.30! I rang John to tell him not to set off too early to JFK. As it turned out it was actually 3.30 before we boarded and the 3.20 to NY left before our plane. We finally left around 4pm. On internal AA flights you don't get to choose your movies so we all watched `Hotel for dogs' which turned out to be a cute family movie especially for dog lovers like me! Of course the story was totally improbable but you just watch it for the irresistable dogs! When we landed a lady opposite me got up and removed a little dog basket from under her seat. None of us realised that we had a canine passenger. I told her he looked like the dog `friday' in the movie! We landed at 12.05 and by the time I reclaimed baggage it was nearly 12.30! John looked tired but of course pleased to see me and it felt great to be back in New York! We finally got to bed about 2.30am. My sleep patterns are still all over the place! More soon!