Blissful beloved rest day, oh how I love you. It was rainy and cold this morning, and you said unto me, "It's ok..sleep...sleep like the dead." And I did.

I've failed my quest to stop spending so much monies on shows. I picked up tickets to the Sky Cries Mary show at El Corazon in Seattle on November 5. I meant to order their new live CD back in July, but I didn't so I'm hoping to pick up a copy while we're there.

I opened up my SCM folder at work today and realized I don't have very many tracks. How can this possibly be?!? I have six of their nine CDs at home! Where have I failed? I suspect my change in music players may be to blame. I carried all my music in my 20GB Zen, which I don't use anymore because, well, it's seems so gi-normous in the age of the nano and the nano.

This should be a great show, and as a added bonus, one of my favorite people will be there. His band, Stalking Jane has a show on the 10th at the Ash Street Saloon. I've had the honor of hearing these songs evolve; some from mere seedlings. I love all the tracks and I'm crazy excited to see this entire project live.

I read a comment on the Stalking Jane page saying the singer sounds like Tori Amos, but I'm not hearing that at all. I get hints of Natalie Merchant, and I can't get over how much the first 30 seconds of the song "Reach Out" sounds remarkably like the softer, more delicate songs from Dahlia (they aren't a band anymore – although you may still be able to check out the video of their performance at Doug Fir)

Song of the Day – California Dreaming – Sky Cries Mary. This cover of The Mamas and The Papas classic was the first song that a certain favorite person of mine used to turn me on to SCM, followed by "2000 Light Years From Home", "Rain" and "Every Iceberg Is Afire". Don't get me wrong, these tracks still languished in my music collection for several weeks before I had enough sense to be interested in listening to them, but once I did, it was all over. Anisa (ok ok, and Roderick too) is now and forever added to the list of vocalists I want to have sing to me in my bedroom.

And yes Julian, it includes you too. Because you know I still love you.