With the Yankees in town last night, a lot of our kickball team wasn’t able to make it to our game because they were at PNC Park, so we lacked Meadows’ heckling of the other team and our usual pitcher. It didn’t matter, though, as we rolled to a 11-1 victory over the yellow team.

I’m not sure if it’s the fact that I’ve been playing a lot of soccer this year, or if I’ve channeled my inner youth a little more successfully, but I’ve been connecting much better this season. I cracked two homers over the fence last night, which I only achieved once the entire season last year. I imagine Ryan – another big foot on our team – would’ve cracked a few over the fence as well if he had shown up. It was one of those kind of nights. The other team’s only run came from a first-inning homer over the fence by one of their players who wanted to take part in the homerun derby taking place at Armstrong field.

I finished 3-for-4, with two homeruns and a single (2 RBIs, and 3 runs). I also had one error (thanks, left pinky). I’d like to give a big “thanks” to the yellow team for the generous pitching and for allowing our team to look like the Yankees pounding the Pirates last night. Hopefully the next time we play them, it’ll be a tighter game.

I know 20 is an arbitrary number to semi-celebrate or reflect on, but I figured after seeing Pearl Jam 20 times now, I could post my PJ facts to show my small world that yes, it definitely is a bit ridiculous. Also, if you’re wondering, every time I drop any money on seeing Pearl Jam (or any band for that matter), Cake’s “How Do You Afford Your Rock’N'Roll Lifestyle” plays on a continuous loop in my head.

It’s always been worth it, though, despite my displeasure with the majority of Pearl Jam’s fans. The sporadic trip to Massachusetts, the trip to Canada with Mundis with no plans on where to stay, and the subsequent food poisoning I endured…all worth it. The only bad experience that I’m still not happy about…the moron who splashed piss on my leg during the last Pittsburgh show. I sincerely hope he got a DUI on his drive home for ruining the whole experience for us…tool.

Anyway, here’s the rundown of my live Pearl Jam experience:

8 years of shows
16 venues
2 countries
7 states
1 district
1 province
2 time zones
19 posters
11 opening bands
133 different songs
7 – average number of songs that I had never heard live before played at each show
576 total songs played
29 – average number of songs during show
9 different songs tagged onto the end of Daughter

How many bands do you know that are going to play an average of 29 songs per show with such variety? There are definitely “better” bands, but very few are comparable as a live band, and very few vary their set lists night after night.

For a random reference, here’s a list of the songs that I’ve heard the most, followed by the amount of times played. It’s no surprise that I wish a moratorium on the majority of these songs. I think Mundis would agree…

Corduroy (17)
Even Flow (17)
Better Man (16)
Do the Evolution (16)
Given to Fly (15)
Daughter (14)
Yellow Ledbetter (14)
Elderly Woman (13)
Alive (13)
Black (12)
Rearviewmirror (12)

So, I am finally recovering from a very long weekend of driving and waiting in lines – both of which I really don’t see myself doing in the near future – to see Pearl Jam.

Show 1
On Thursday morning, I hopped in the .:R for the all-to-familiar ride to York to meet Mundis so we could carpool to the first show in Camden. We were making good time until we started second-guessing our original routes to dodge traffic. Now, we had left with plenty of time to see Pearl Jam take the stage, but Mundis and I have an urgency in making sure we don’t miss out on the concert posters, and our navigation errors set us back well past when the gates opened. This usually means that you’re not going to get a poster, so we reserved ourselves to the eBay search after the show. Fortunately, Eddie Vedder decided the poster flippers needed to be halted a bit, and a new system for purchasing posters went into effect during this mini-tour. Now when you purchase a poster, you receive a wrist band that you must bring back to the stand that you originally purchased the poster from after the show. The wrist band is then cut off and you receive your poster. It seems like a pain, but when you arrive an hour after the gates open, you really appreciate the thought put into not allowing people to purchase multiple posters for themselves (primarily to sell). We were very fortunate to get our posters for night one.

The show, though, was the real surprise. While I think PJ typically puts on a show that would rival any rock performance around, Thursday’s show was a real treat. It wasn’t the most amazing show I’ve ever seen, but it’s was definitely a great one – especially for those of us who have seen the band a number of times. After the semi-rare, though increasingly less obscure “Hard to Imagine”, PJ went all out energy for the rest of the show. While there were some mellow songs mixed in, the show maintained its high tempo until the end. After a sick version of The Who’s “Love Reign O’er Me”, and experiencing a great crowd, all of the hassles, lines, and traffic were quickly forgotten. It’s a shame we had to drive home and get ready to do it again the next night.

I’d also like to add that for all the grief PJ and other musicians get for standing up on stage and putting their thoughts out there regarding politics, the war, etc., Ed’s speech on Thursday was probably the clearest view into the real emotion that drives some artists. Before playing “No More”, Eddie talked in a way that was real. Sometimes, he can definitely go off and get too…well…political, which I don’t really care for (even if I usually agree), but on Thursday, his speech was from the heart, and just added so much emotion to the song. “Maybe it’s because I’m sleeping a mile away from the fucking Liberty Bell…”

His dedication of “Light Years” to Tim Russert and his family was also a nice touch. Anyway…

Show 2
Night two was much smoother all-around. The ride was easy despite the traffic. We arrived early, met up with some friends to tailgate, and went in around 6:45 to get our poster wristbands. After that, Mundis and I just took in the sounds of Ted Leo & The Pharmacists. They weren’t bad, but I thought they were a little too loud and muddy to really give the band a fair shake, so we left our seats and chilled in the lawn until PJ came on. After a great night one, we were both pretty skeptical about what night 2 would bring. Pearl Jam doesn’t usually play a lot of the same songs during a two-night stand, so with a lot of surprising moves pulled out on night one, we sort of knew that night two wouldn’t have the same surprise factor.

While the show was good, I have to admit it didn’t move me like night one. One good thing, though, was that PJ only played 7 songs from the night before. The bad news? It was probably the shortest show I’ve ever seen them play despite them playing one more song than the night before. The crowd also was a far cry from the crowd from night one – surprising to me since it was a Friday.

After taking a wrong road out of Camden, we hit up Wawa for a late dinner…and another 3 am arrival at Mr. Mundis’ humble abode.

Show 3
The next day, I met up with Kim, who flew in from Pittsburgh to go to the DC show. We decided to head down on Saturday and just hang out near the arena to avoid another day of traffic and stress on the road. I hadn’t really been in DC for any extended amount of time since I was a little kid, so it was nice to be somewhere unfamiliar for a few days. We just grabbed some food and brews and hung out for a while. The next day was the show, and I needed to rest up big time.

Sunday went pretty smoothly, as I was able to get my tickets, meet up with Mundis, and get our posters with little difficulty. The show was really good, but they definitely played quite a bit of the same stuff from the Thursday night set list, albeit a little cleaner and a lot longer (any 30+ song night is going to be nice). I have to wait for the bootleg to come out, but Sunday’s version of “Black” was absolutely beautiful and moving. The whole night had a very sad vibe to it, and one look at the set list basically confirms it. Of course, that feeling was pretty juxtaposed with the next to last song – a surprising first-timer for me, but not-so-phenomenal attempt at “All Along the Watchtower – which got the place jumping after PJ ripped the Verizon Center down all night with moody tunes of heartbreak.

The crowd was pretty good, and the venue wasn’t too bad. My only complaints were that I didn’t sit with Mundis, my seats were on the floor and not really close at all, and there was only one place to eat after the show – Clyde’s (good food and service at midnight, though!).

All in all, the weekend was great. It might just be me, but Pearl Jam is a band that really makes the travel, the lines, and the hassle of dealing with idiot fans, worth it. The varied set lists, the long shows, the masses singing in unison…it’s a beautiful experience, and one that I wish I was experiencing tonight and tomorrow at Madison Square Garden. As it is, I’m going to live vicariously through Mundis, Missy, and Audra – who are going to MSG for the both shows…and who I also now hate with a passion. Ha ha.

Until next time…

Is it just me, or is kickball making serious waves these days in city-based adult sports leagues? It seems like each year, I find out that more and more of the people I know are playing in their respective locales. All I know is that it’s actually a lot of fun to play, and not solely in that nostalgic sense. It really is fun.

Our league started on Wednesday, with our AE team winning 5-4 in the bottom of the 7th. I had an RBI and 3 runs, and almost hit, well, kicked for the cycle in going three-for-three (home run, triple, single). I also made 3 errors thanks to my severely sprained or dislocated left pinky giving me hell while trying to gather up grounders. The highlight of my day was definitely throwing a guy out at first from third by hitting him in the legs. I doubt I’ll be able to do that often. We were pretty rusty, but I think we’ll be good-to-go in the coming weeks.

Anyway, after our second-place finish last year in the Kickball for Hope tournament, I’m hoping that our team makes a run at the PSL championship. There’s been a lot of advertising and publicity here in Pittsburgh around the league, so I imagine the level of play is going to be much higher with the increased popularity. I’m looking forward to another fun season!

If you have absolutely no life, you can follow our progression/regression here. We’re team 6 – the team rocking purple!

My effort at putting together a clever headline for this entry probably took a little more time than M. Night Shyamalan’s effort in writing The Happening, so please forgive me. I’m sure you’ll hear many references similar to my headline for this very sub-par movie in the coming weeks until it quietly dies.

The Happening starts brightly enough. The opening titles with the fast-forwarding rolling clouds was really nice, and the music set the tone for a strong, creepy opening. Unfortunately, after about 10 minutes, the movie falls to complete crap. I would think a story about a unexplained phenomenon that causes people to commit suicide would be so much better.

First, you have lifeless characters who are terribly drawn up in the script. There’s an underlying love story that’s is too uncomfortable to believe – I mean, there’s just no chemistry between the two primary characters (Mark Wahlberg & Zooey Deschanel) throughout the movie. Then you’ve got a bunch of useless extra characters that only work in taking away from any focus that the story starts to build.

I get it…another post-9/11 flick about an unnatural event causing havoc on the masses, but this is no Cloverfield. Beautiful camerawork and so-so concept aside, the dialogue was weak, the characters weren’t strong, and the movie left you wondering where the payoff was. Was it worth watching? I guess, but I imagine most viewers are going to be really disappointed – especially when they realize that Shyamalan forgot to write in his characteristic plot twist.