Friday we flew to Boston to play a private yesterday for an organization that works with mentally disabled adults. We played the same event last year and we were all pumped to do it again as we remembered the open bar and fantastic food. This year didn't disappoint. Before the gig I got to squeeze in lunch with the esteemed Dr. Patrick Eaton and his beautiful family at his home.

(I should add that I've always like Boston and have always had a good time visiting despite the fact that I hate the New England Patriots with ever fiber of my being. With the Boston Red Sex playing in the World Series while we were there I was ready to be around some insufferable Boston sports fans but luckily I was able to avoid any run-ins).

So lunch was great and the gig was cool, this morning we rented a couple of SUVs to make the three hour drive to Sarasota Springs, NY. Well, we thought it would be a three hour drive, our tour manager (aka Magellan) likes to rely on GPS Navigation systems and let me tell you, they are always crap. We got lost and turning around on these Toll Roads up here is impossible. After a long drive and long soundcheck we played a concert at a Casino here in Saratoga. It was cool but I'm ready to get to the city. Knowing I'm going to have a new home, neighborhood, roommate, and routine makes me pretty anxious to get things started.

The Colts won today. The Day of Reckoning draws near ...

... for me to leave.

I'm heading out to NYC for the rest of the year tomorrow. We actually have a gig in Boston and Saratoga over the weekend before opening at the Carlyle on Tues. This year is going to be pretty rough since I'll be missing Milo but we have our visits well-planned so that will help. I'm coming back to LA on Nov. 18-19 and Dec. 2-3. Then Milo and Carrie will join me in the city for the second half of April. Baby's First Christmas is going to be on tour, he's a pro already. Skype will help also. Thank heavens for grandma! Carrie's mom is coming to visit for three whole weeks which makes me feel a lot better about leaving her alone. Both Milo and Murphy can be quite a handful.

I've resolved to be as healthy as possible this trip to avoid getting sick. I've already had one cold this year, I don't need another. NYC is a beautiful place but it can really seem wretched if you have a cold and its cold and rainy outside. So I don't plan on drinking on an empty stomach and blacking out like I did last year. Hooo-boy!

So wish me well and keep Carrie and the baby in your thoughts. I'll be online with updates from the city.

Certain thoughts go through a person's mind when they look out their window and see strong winds rustling trees back and forth and blowing leaves and other junk through the air; "looks windy, I better grab a sweater," "the wind is really kicking up, its probably going to rain soon." You don't expect to walk out your door and be slammed in the face with an 80 degree wind and air dry enough to make your skin instantly ashy.

That's what we're dealing with down here, dry wind like I've never experienced before. They're called the Santa Anna winds and usually they're pretty comfortable. Not so this year. As I'm sure you've heard by now the winds have stoked fires all across Southern California. The closest fires to us are about 15 mi. away so we should be cool but not unaffected. Carrie has a co-worker who had to evacuate her home and sleep at a local high school and all outdoor activities were canceled because of poor air quality. The smoke looks like big clouds up in the sky and makes everything overcast. Pretty weird.

At a lecture in Carnegie Hall Harry Potter author JK Rowling revealed that the character Albus Dumbledore, head wizard in the series, is gay.

I can't wait to hear what kind of debate this causes, Carrie and I already had a heated discussion about the topic this morning (she thinks its okay if people read the book and think he's not gay claiming "I don't care what the author says," I for one am a firm believer of author's intent). It's very brave of Rowling to write such a powerful, gay children's character and hopefully this will do a lot for tolerance and understanding.

In news unrelated to gay wizards my cold is starting to subside finally. We had a rough weekend as I was playing at a jazz club in Hollywood every night and didn't get home until 1 AM or so. So I had to sleep all day and leave Carrie with the sick baby, she was a real champ. We're taking Milo to the doctor today, hopefully the little guy will be feeling better soon.

And if you haven't heard Los Angeles is on fire. None of the fires are too close to our home luckily. Let's hope it stays that way.

-Zicam Nasal Gel, every four hours
This stuff is magic, start taking it at the first hint of a cold and it will either
keep your symptoms pretty quiet or stop the cold entirely.

-Ibuprofen, every four hours
You can use the generic stuff but it doesn't have the sweet coating like Advil does.

-Saline Sinus rinse
Saline solution squirted in to one nostril, comes out the other. Its like snorting
pool water but does it ever clean you out.

-Multi Vitamin


Even with the best treatment regimen having a cold still sucks. Milo has one too. Hearing the little guy coughing and breathing heavy because of congestion is one heartbreaking sound. He seems oblivious though.

Al Gore has won the Nobel Prize his efforts to raise awareness about global warming.

It really makes you think about how much different the state of our country's global relations and economic situation would be if he had won the election he received the most votes for back in '00. Luckily this might be used as a springboard to run again.

What a weekend. Driving all over SoCal really wore me out. I was on the verge of a cold all weekend long put I chilled that out thanks to Zicam (this stuff really works) and a saline sinus rinse. I'm playing some electric bass in the show now which is a lot of fun. We have a few days off until Friday when we open at Catalina, a popular jazz club in Hollywood.

Later today is the long-awaited recording session for my Bossa Nova band. I don't think it will really get off the ground until next year.

In the ever-growing trend of production companies using a viral website to promote the release of an upcoming film, the Sci Fi channel has launched this website for Tin Man, a re-imagining of The Wizard of Oz, it really looks cool. I can't wait to see it.

I'm not sure if summer is over technically speaking (you know, lunar calendar, solstice and all that) but by most accounts and by my calendar it is.

I went in to this summer wanting to do two things: spend lots of time with Milo and play more quality music around L.A. Going in to the summer I knew my touring schedule was going to be very light and I'd have more time to accomplish both and looking back I'd say I did. Carrie and I were lucky enough to find a Babysitter who would only charge us for the days we took Milo to her house (most places make you pay by the week, every week). I've seen his hair fill in, teeth pop out, and watched him scoot (he's not quite crawling yet) across the floor with astonishing speed.

On the music side I've played around town about as much as I could've expected. I've reconnected with some old musician friends and made some great new ones as well playing some really great creative music. Technically speaking I'm of the belief (and it's a popular one) that you get better on you instrument in plateaus as opposed to slowly and steadily making progress. That is to say you go through periods of sharp growth in your playing then it levels out, sharp growth, level out, etc. I feel I've hit another plateau this summer which is great.

Now that October has started my touring/work schedule with Tyrell fills up again. We are literally all over the state of California this week. Last night we played in Santa Barbra (it was a casual, a private party somebody hired Steve for, but I think he charges upwards of $20,000 for private functions like this so folks are usually a lot cooler when shelling out that kind of dough for an artist), today we rehearse in Hollywood (we are working on a bunch of Burt Bacharach tunes, fun stuff), tomorrow we fly up to Napa, Friday we fly back and play in Glendora (east of Pasadena), Saturday we have a gig in Malibu, and on Sunday we wrap it up with a concert in San Diego. That's a lot of driving.

Work is pretty consistent all the way through March. I am indeed making the NYC trip for the third year in row playing in the city during November and December. That gig is looming large and I leave in less than a month. YIKES! Being away from Milo is going to be tough as hell! But I'll be coming home a couple of times and of course mommy and baby will come to the city for Christmas.

And how was your summer?