Howard has gone into the Web log and added pictures! Last night he sneaked in and I see he put up pictures of himself and me and Steve Cichon and Nick Otto.
Easy for him! He is always so photogenic. The photo above, I took it the first or second time Lounge Academy was back in session after the disruptions of the last year. Howard looks dapper even with a mask around his chin!
I am going to have to get in the habit of taking pictures more often. For instance we have none of the distinguished journalist Jim Corbran who also joined us last night, nor do we have any of Ryan Lysarz, the president of WBIG-TV. All right, I am done name dropping for now.
Well, not quite. Looking at yesterday's comment section I am honored to see that we may expect a visit from the Sensibly Shod Commoner -- yes, the influential food blogger.
Is that great or what??
We are on a roll!
As the great blues singer Big Joe Turner would put it: Let it roll like a big wheel, in a Georgia cotton field!
That is a recording I love!
We are all about show business. We are still talking about Friday, and here it is Sunday.
Speaking of which, I sang today. Howard is not the only singer in the family! I went to church this morning and this being the Feast of the Assumption I sang "Hail Holy Queen."
Don't laugh. That is a demanding number, I will tell you that.
It has a range of well over an octave and I had to nail every note because the soprano, Philomena, was singing a descant at the end. As I was singing, I was thinking: The hymnals always say this is a German melody. Are they sure it is not Irish?
You know the Irish. They come up with these song to show off how daring you can be with your voice. They originally came up with the melody to "The Star-Spangled Banner." The purpose of the original song was to show off your chops at the corner pub, preferably while standing on top of a table. That is what one of the Irish Tenors told me. Anthony Kearns if memory serves me. Well, he did not say the part about standing on top of a table. But it is easy to fill out the scene.
Anyway. That was what it is like singing "Hail, Holy Queen." Luckily, I had my training watching Howard and his professional singing approach.
Oh look! Here is an Episcopal congregation singing "Hail Holy Queen."
I love when Protestants start singing Catholic hymns. Especially in Latin, which, at the end of "Hail Holy Queen" you have to soar with that "Salve, salve, salve Regina!
See, this is how you go down the rabbit hole. I started out with Lounge Academy, went on to Big Joe Turner and here we are at "Hail Holy Queen," sung by Episcopalians, at that.
Being on Keto means that at Lounge Academy I no longer drink wine.
The bartenders at the Statler Lobby Bar who are wonderful make me a vodka and soda. I did not know how to describe what I wanted because I did not know what I wanted. But they assessed the situation and they came up with this lovely summery lemon vodka soda. It comes with a lot of ice and I let the ice melt and I end up with this drink I can sip on forever. Kind of watery once the ice melts, but tasty.
There is this bottle of Gato Negro sitting around downstairs and it looks at me as if I am cheating on it. Every day I tell myself if I want, I can open it with dinner and measure out five ounces. But I would just rather skip it, you know?
If you are drinking wine how in the world do you stick with five ounces?
Five ounces is nothing! Nobody in the world drinks only five ounces!
And so I sip that vodka soda. And the evening goes by too fast, I have to say that.
Last night we had a crowd that was a little smaller than normal. Howard and I figured out why. It was because our friend Dave Corbett was having a party tonight and he had invited all the Lounge Cadets. Many people cannot go out two nights in a row and so they gave us the slip and were saving themselves for Saturday.
The exception was our friend Brenda who was missing because she was at her reunion at Hamburg High School. That was a valid excuse.
When God closes a door, He opens a window, and so we got to see several people who we never get to see. Our friend Deborah Lynn Williams was sitting next to Gary at the bar when I walked in. Our friend Angela was also in attendance. Angela is a dancer and is the most toned person in the world. I will have to ask her what exercises she does.
And... and ... we had a couple of bona fide celebrities. Steve Cichon, the author and historian who ran for County Clerk a few years ago. And I got to discuss with him some of the historic buildings in our Parkside area that I have been sketching on my nightly bike rides.
From left to right: Nick Otto, Steve Cichon, and Howard Goldman.
And with Steve was Nick Otto. He is the son of radio talk show host John Otto! John Otto passed away several years ago and no one has ever stopped missing him. I have written about John Otto before.
My brother George used to call John Otto's show! John Otto called him "George from Cleve Hill." If you called John Otto you would get a medieval name like that, and it would be yours.
Mary and Nick Otto at Steve Cichon Park.
Nick Otto is fascinating. He is a Mayflower descendant for one thing.
I said, "Nick, which Mayflower founding father are you descended from?"
He said: "William Bradford."
Of course!! Who else?
That is Mr. Bradford at the top of this post. It feels now as if he is family. Nick also told us stories of growing up in an apartment house in North Buffalo where there was a Mr. Weezy who used to appear in the basement. Mr. Weezy never threatened him or did anything, but he spooked Nick out. Nick was about 6 at the time.
That is part of the fun of Lounge Academy, you know? Howard goes on playing and singing the standards, and we listen, and in between numbers we can pass hours talking of this and that. Things like William Bradford and Mr. Weezy.
