As is my custom, I’m not picking strictly from music released this year, but new music I’ve acquired this year (actually starting December 2007), even if it was released prior to this year.

So, after sifting through the nearly 70 new albums/ep’s I’ve acquired in the past 7 months, here’s my favorites so far, in no particular order.

• Flying Upside Down - Griffin House
  If I was going to rank these, this one would be #1 on the list, the one I’d recommend above all of the others. It also contains one of my favorite songs of the past six months or so.

  Check out “I Remember (It’s Happening Again)“.
   

• Mudcrutch - Mudcrutch
  I love all things Tom Petty. This year he got together with his original pre-Heartbreakers band (which actually includes two Heartbreakers) to record the album they never did 30+ years ago. I’m glad they did, as the result is a fantastic album.

  Check out “Scare Easy“.
   

• In The Future - Black Mountain
  Canadian psychedelic rock band’s second release. I stumbled across this on eMusic, and have enjoyed it more with each listen.

  Check out “Angels“.
   

• With Arrows, With Poise - The Myriad
  I downloaded an EP from indie band The Myriad earlier this year that contained earlier versions of some of these songs, and got this immediately after it became available more recently. In short, it’s outstanding. Great music with lyrics that occasionally hint at their faith. When year end comes, this will likely be near the top of my list.

  Check out “You Waste Time Like A Grandfather Clock“.
   

• Deconstruction - Justin McRoberts
  I discovered singer/songwriter McRoberts via a review I read of this album, downloading it shortly thereafter. I find him comparable to other favorites of mine like Andrew Osenga and Derek Webb, both musically and lyrically, asking tough questions regarding faith and action. This is another one that may drift to the top part of my list.

  Check out “Done Living“.
   

• Gravity Love - Sandra McCracken
  I used to know of McCracken only as “Mrs. Derek Webb”, but no longer. I’ve heard none of her other work, but I want to now. Elements of pop and folk, occasionally bordering on country, a very good album.

  Check out “Shelter“.
   

• Mission Control - The Whigs
  I first heard The Whigs on Letterman in late January, and immediately liked their sound. They sound familiar (track 2 sounds like it was lifted from an INXS album), although at the moment I can’t quite place all of the other artists they remind me of. Still, a very good disc. The Whigs rock.

  Check out “Right Hand On My Heart“.
   

• Vampire Weekend - Vampire Weekend
  It seems they’re most-often called “afro-pop”, which I admit is a term which I was unfamiliar with. I just downloaded this less than two weeks ago, but I’m enjoying it a lot already. It’s a lot of fun.

  Check out “A-Punk“.
   

• Heretic Pride - The Mountain Goats
  “Urban folk” - another term with which I was unfamiliar. I guess it sounds like this. This one had to grow on me, particularly John Darnielle’s voice. However, after repeated listens, it became a favorite.

  Check out “Sax Rohmer #1“.
   

• Casting Shadows - The Black Hollies
  This album sounds like it’s straight out of the 60’s, and while I’ll probably tire of it eventually and it will fail to make my year-end list, I’m still loving it right now.

  Check out “Paisley Pattern Ground“.
   

And, a few others I’d recommend that didn’t make my top 10:

• XV - King’s X
  If you’ve read this blog over the last few years, you already know King’s X is one of my favorite bands. I also believe they are one of the most underrated bands ever. They continue to get it done.

  Check out “Alright“.
   

• Straightjacket - Steven Delopoulos
  I was a big fan of Burlap To Cashmere’s lone album about 10 years ago, and more from BTC’s frontman was welcomed. Delopoulos’ Greek heritage always comes through in his music, and this is no exception. A very good collection of songs.

  Check out “The Ruin of the Beast“.
   

• Girls and Boys - Ingrid Michaelson
  I was unfamiliar with Ingrid until I found this on eMusic, probably because I don’t watch Old Navy commercials or Grey’s Anatamy, where her music has been featured. Anyway, I really like this album, especially her voice, which, at times, reminds me of Leigh Nash (Sixpence), another favorite of mine.

  Check out “The Way I Am“.
   

• Blackbird - Alter Bridge
  Yes, I realize that Alter Bridge is simply Creed with a new lead singer (albeit a better one.) I am aware that what little credibility I had when it comes to recommending music may now be history. Ridicule me if you must, but I like it nonetheless, and there seems to be nothing I can do about it.

  Check out “Rise Today“.
   

That’s it. That’s the list.

Now, a few months away from 3 years, I think that time has come. First of all, I’m finding it difficult to make time to post anything to begin with. It usually takes some time for me to compose a post (I tend to spend too long trying to decide if it’s what I want to say, and then still often change it here and there after it’s posted.) But even more of a problem is the fact that I’m finding it difficult to actually want to post anything. I have thoughts about various topics, but then just don’t want to put forth the effort to try to organize them into a post. In short, I’m tired.

That is, in part, due to stress right now. I’m pretty stressed at the moment due to various things I won’t go into right now. Nothing major, really, but I stress out over pretty much everything, and unfortunately, I don’t handle stress well, particularly when there are several different things contributing to that stress. Lack of sleep is one of the manifestations and it’s been a long week (preceded by several other long weeks in recent months.) Again, I’m pretty tired these days, both physically and mentally.

I’m finding it hard to find time to do things I really want to do, and dealing with online stuff has become too much of a task for me right now. I checked my reader this morning, and I’m currently subscribed to nearly 140 feeds from blogs and other sites, and I’m about to cut that back by at least 50%, if not more. I used to scan for headlines I’d want to read, but I don’t even do that anymore in some folders. I find myself too often just clicking “mark all as read” in several folders and figure it’s time to let them go.

So, for the time being, at least, I’m going out of business. “Everything that’s on my mind” is just too scattered right now to try to put into a post on any kind of regular basis. My online presence at Facebook (see right sidebar) will remain and I might even occasionally post something over there if I feel the need. But for now, this will be my last post here. The site will remain up for a least another month (as I’m now paid through late next month.) After that, it may go away or I may keep it online for a possible “comeback” in the future. We’ll see.

For now, that’s it. That’s the blog.

It’s my first iPod, as my digital music device up until last night was a sandisk 1G player I got last year about this time. It was the cheapest I could find at the time with 1G at only around $30-$35, I believe. I got it mainly to have something for yard work last summer. Oh, and it was hot pink, but it was the only color they had. It’s been great for what it is, but also somewhat of a pain since it only holds 1G. With eMusic and other music purchases each month, I would fill it up with completely new music on a monthly basis and have to remove anything else. I’m glad to have more space now.

I considered other non-iPod devices - I’m not as thrilled with using iTunes, as I’ve enjoyed the ease of just dragging and dropping from folder to folder. But, everyone I know who has one recommended the iPod, and so I’ve been importing away since last night. I considered the 80G classic, and with over 90G of music on my hard drives right now, it seemed like a better choice. However, I ended up settling on the 8G. I think it will be enough for now.

Now, I’m off to import some Iron Maiden…

Currently listening a lot to some solo work by Andrew Osenga (formerly of The Normals, currently of Caedmon’s Call) and Jon Foreman (Switchfoot).

Also, enjoying the new Delirious?, The Mountain Goats and Sandra McCracken (wife of one of my favorites, Derek Webb).

Anyway, here it is (no embedding this time.)

• Andrew Osenga
  Letters To The Editor Vol 1
  Souvenirs & Postcards
  Listen: “Swing Wide the Glimmering Gates”
   

• Jon Foreman
  Fall EP
  Winter EP
  Spring EP
  Listen: “Southbound Train” & “The Cure for the Pain”
   

• The Mountain Goats
  Heretic Pride
  Listen: “Sax Rohmer #1″
   

• Sandra McCracken
  Gravity Love
  Listen: “Shelter”
   

• Delirious?
  Kingdom of Comfort
  Listen: “Kingdom of Comfort”
   

• M Ward
  Post-War
  Listen: “Requiem”
   

• Matthew Barber
  Ghost Notes
  Listen: “You and Me”
   

• Atomic Opera
  Alpha and Oranges
   
• The Myriad
  Prelude to Arrows
   
  And last but not least…
   

• Bob Dylan
  Dylan
  Listen: “Subterranean Homesick Blues”

That’s it. That’s the list.

I thought Kansas might have trouble lasting 40 minutes after the emotional game with UNC. And it appeared in the final minutes that they weren’t going to be able to finish this one like they did Saturday night. Memphis had the game in hand, but then missed four out of five free throws in the final minute, and Kansas sends it to overtime.

And now, Kansas has their third national championship, joining UCLA, Kentucky, Indiana, North Carolina and Duke as the only schools with three or more titles. (I believe that’s the full list, but it’s late, so don’t hold me to that.)

I saw Rick Pitino on PTI a month or so ago and they asked him about Memphis. He said their only possible weakness was at the line. Others have said the same. Unfortunately, despite having shot the ball quite well from the line during the tournament, it proved to be their downfall anyway.

I didn’t really care who won at this point, and just wanted a close, exciting game that went down to the end.

That’s what we got. A tremendous shot by Mario Chalmers to tie the game with two seconds left in regulation. When Kansas scored the first four points in overtime, I thought Memphis had to score the next trip down or it was over. They didn’t. It was.

I feel bad for Memphis. Anytime you lose a lead late in a game it’s unfortunate, but being up by nine with just over two minutes remaining and then missing four straight free throws to let Kansas back in it has to be devastating.

I’ve never been a Memphis fan, and have never really cared for Calipari, but I was sort of pulling for both teams tonight. I hated to see either team lose, and I would have felt bad for Memphis regardless of how they lost. But I really hated to see it happen the way it did.

Nevertheless, a great game to end the season.

Now, the long wait until November . . .

Danny Green isn’t dancing tonight.

Travel Hansblow is going home.

And Ol’ Roy may have changed his mind five years ago, but Kansas fans could still give a s*** about North Carolina. It had to be especially sweet for them to reach the title game by sending ol’ traitor Roy home.

An 18-0 run in the first half sealed Carolina’s fate, despite a furious comeback. I was almost certain that Bill Self’s team had self-destructed like so many Kansas teams - coached both by Self and ol’ Roy - had done in years past. I thought it was only a matter of time before UNC completed their comeback and was hailed as the greatest team to ever set foot on a basketball court and Travel Hansblow proclaimed to be the god of all living things.

When it was 40-12, I was thrilled. It was happening. Not only was Carolina going to lose, but they were being embarrassed. Far better. But when it was 54-50, my joy had fled and deep concern that Kansas was about to complete the biggest fold up by a team in final four history (which, with Kansas’ win, is still held by Maryland, who lost to Duke in 2001 after leading by 22 in the first half.)

Fortunately, Billy Packer - who with about 7:30 to go in the first half proclaimed on air that the game was over - proved to be a prophet after all. Kansas pulls out the win and sends UNC packing 84-66.

My day was made.

GTHC!

I wasn’t going to be surprised by anything in the final four, considering the caliber of teams playing. And despite picking UCLA, it wasn’t at all shocking to see Memphis take them out.

In Memphis’ last three games, they’ve looked as good as anyone has during the whole tournament, so I might be slightly shocked if they don’t win Monday night. Free throw shooting was supposed to be their only weakness, but I noticed in their win over Mississippi State in the 2nd round that they were hitting them down the stretch, and they did so again as Texas attempted a comeback. If they hit their free throws, they may not have any other weakness to exploit. They’ve been playing the “no respect” card, and seem intent on making sure everyone respects them by late Monday night. As of now, it looks like they just might get that respect after all.

I just hope it’s a good one, but for now, I think I’ll go with Memphis.

Okay, one more time: GTHC!

I will never forget one particular time when I used “the word.” I can’t recall what grade I was in at the time, but I believe it was either fourth or fifth. After recess, in which my team had lost a particularly competitive game of kickball to a team primarily comprised of black kids, I was angry and let my feelings be known to a white friend in the hallway on our way to the restroom. That’s when it happened. I don’t remember exactly what I said, but I used “the word.” And a black friend in my class, walking behind us, overheard me.

Understandably, he made a big scene and started shouting at me - in the hallway, into the restroom, while I was actually using the restroom. He was angry - and rightfully so - and I was angry, too, although probably more so at the fact that I’d been heard than the fact that I was an idiot. It wasn’t the first time I’d said it, and it probably wasn’t the last.

But what I remember most vividly was returning to my classroom. The word had already spread. When I walked in, I saw a friend of mine staring at me, with watery eyes. She was a good friend of mine. She had been since we were in kindergarten. She was one of my best female friends in my grade. And she was black.

That’s the last thing I remember about that day.

I’ve changed a lot since that day. Growing up in the 70’s, there were a lot of things that were not frowned upon the way they are today. Political correctness had not taken hold of society as strongly as it has these days. You could “get away with” a lot of things that you can’t today without being called on it or punished for it. Things have changed, and most of it is for the better.

I was still a few weeks away from my first birthday when Martin Luther King, Jr. was murdered in Memphis. On this 40th anniversary of that tragic event, I am only a little bit proud of how far I’ve come since that day in the late 70’s, being very aware that I still have a long way to go. I believe we all do. This country has made significant progress since that day in Memphis when King was taken from us, and I believe that, were he alive today, he would praise that progress. But I believe that he would also lament that we’ve not made it further than we have. Despite the advances we have made in matters of race, we’re not there yet.

I honestly cannot remember if I apologized to my good friend or anyone else for my stupidity that day after recess. I believe I did, as she and I remained good friends, and I did maintain a good relationship with all of my black classmates after that day, even the guy who overheard me. I probably haven’t seen either of them since the early 80’s, after I left prior to our 9th grade year to attend a private school. I don’t know where they’re at or what they’re doing these days, but I hope, if they remember this story, that they know that I’m sorry, and that I’m ashamed of my part in it, and have forgiven me.

I’ll tell you who was right, though. My man Jay Bilas. He picked all four teams to reach the final four. Except that he didn’t do it two weeks ago when the bracket was revealed. He did it in October. That’s pretty impressive. Probably that Duke education.

So, for the first time since the tournament expanded to 64 teams in 1985, all four #1 seeds have survived the regionals. Now it’s being called the greatest final four ever. Perhaps the lineup is the greatest as far as teams go. There are 143 wins between these teams. That’s amazing. Memphis has tied the single-season win record, currently with 37 wins, also held by Duke (1986, 1999), UNLV (1987), and Illinois (2005). One more win and they break the record. Along with Memphis’ 37 are UNC with 36, and UCLA and Kansas with 35 each. That’s unprecedented as well, I believe, and awfully impressive.

Odds are still against Memphis. People started questioning them after they lost to Tennessee at home. They play in a weaker conference than most other highly ranked teams, and so a home loss to a quality opponent seemed to increase the doubts. After a difficult game with Mississippi State in the second round, everyone expected them to fall before now. I was one of those people.

However, they seem to be playing with the proverbial chip on their shoulder, suggesting that nobody respects them. The last team I remember vocalizing that regularly throughout the tournament was the 1995 Arkansas team. The defending champions struggled during some of their SEC play, and then, as a #2 seed, won their first round game by only 1 and had lost their second round game with only seconds left before Syracuse’s Lawrence Moten took a cue from Chris Webber and called a timeout he didn’t have. Arkansas sent the game to overtime and eventually won. They reached the final game that year, singing the same “no respect” song Memphis is singing. Unfortunately, they did finally lose. To UCLA. Who, this year, plays… Memphis.

The other thing going against Memphis is that no team has won the national championship with less than 2 losses since Indiana’s undefeated season in 1976. Memphis has only one loss. In 1979, Larry Bird and Indiana State were undefeated before losing the championship game. UNLV was undefeated in 1991 before losing in the final four. Duke had just one loss before losing in the title game in 1999, and likewise, one loss Illinois fell in the 2005 title game. For some reason, it’s hard to finish without a couple of losses.

I picked UCLA to win it all. While I only picked two of the final four this year, my finals is still intact (UCLA over Kansas) for the moment. I’ve said before that if UCLA returns to the final four for the third straight year, they will win it. They have had to battle in some of their games, but that’s not uncommon for national champions. I was a little nervous yesterday after Memphis won. That was three #1 seeds, with Kansas playing red hot Davidson in the final game. With four #1’s reaching the final four being unprecedented, and Bill Self coaching the fourth, odds were stacked against Kansas. But they pulled it out, and I’ve heard several people say in the past week that they looked like the best team. Perhaps Self and the team getting that monkey off of their back will allow them to relax and just play this weekend. .

Whoever wins it all has their work cut out for them, because obviously they’re playing two of the best teams in the country to do it. After a number of blowouts in the sweet 16 and even the regional finals, the last three games should all be quite good. I’ll be surprised if any of them are decided until after the final TV timeout.

Thing I’ve loved about the tournament: since UNC hasn’t lost yet - and for the love of God will somebody please beat them? - Davidson is the obvious next best thing. That was a great run. They proved early on this season that they could play with anyone, losing close games to UNC, Duke and UCLA (despite leading UCLA by 12 in the second half). They weren’t the Cinderella that GMU was two years ago. Everyone knew (or should have known) they could play coming in. And they were one final shot away from the final four. I’ll be anxious to see what they do next year.

Thing I won’t miss about the tournament: listening to the likes of Clark Kellogg, Digger Phelps and, most of all, Bill Raftery, who makes my ears bleed. I didn’t even mention Billy Packer, which astonishes even myself, but these three are just unbearable.

My final four prediction will remain. As I said, I picked UCLA over Kansas in the final, which almost certainly means Memphis and UNC will be playing Monday night. But I’m going to stick to my guns.

All you need is [Kevin] Love. UCLA over Kansas on Monday night.

GTHC, GTH! And I agree with Roy…

We all went to see Horton Hears A Who this weekend. It was pretty good. I didn’t enjoy it as much as I did several Pixar movies, but it was still fun. I usually find Jim Carrey to be annoying to some degree, but he wasn’t too bad here. I’ve had Bury My Heart At Wounded Knee (HBO) on my DVR for months now, and I’m hoping to find time to watch it this week during my time off.

My eMusic downloads refreshed this past weekend. I’ve not decided what else I’ll be getting yet, but I finally pulled the trigger on John Fogerty’s double-live album The Long Road Home - In Concert, which I’ve had on my list for many months now. It’s part solo, part CCR, and it’s all good. It includes one song I was unfamiliar with, apparently from an album of his a few years ago. It’s called “Déjà Vu (All Over Again)”, where Fogerty expresses his opinion of the Iraq war, suggesting it’s another Vietnam. Check it out.

I finished A.J. Jacob’s book The Year of Living Biblically yesterday. I enjoyed it a lot. First, it was hilarious. Jacobs is pretty funny. But, I also found it thought provoking at times. How seriously do I take the Bible? How do I, at times, interpret it to fit what I want it to say instead of taking it for what it says? My one complaint is that it probably could have been a bit shorter. He tended to include plenty of accounts that really didn’t add anything to the story. But still, I’d definitely recommend it.

I’m currently reading Erwin McManus’ The Barbarian Way. I read this about two and a half years ago, but as I think I mentioned before, I’m a part of a book club with a couple of ministers from my church, and that’s our book for March. I’m about halfway through.

In other books, I’ll start reading Lewis’ Mere Christianity over the next few days. Our small group at church is beginning a study of it this week. I’ve had this book for probably 15 years, and have yet to read it. So, finally, I will. Also, I picked up Shane Claiborne’s new book, Jesus For President, a couple of days ago. I plan to start it next week, after I’m finished with McManus.

I was somewhat sad to see the series finale of Jericho last night. I guess we won’t get to see America’s next civil war, although I understand the producers are still hoping to land it somewhere else after CBS showed them the door. A fair amount of it was beyond belief, but I still enjoyed it while it lasted.

If you don’t read Greg Boyd’s blog, go check it out. He’s had some great stuff over the last month. Start with his Feburary 28th post and read up to the present.

I’ll probably have a tournament update next week, but until then, here’s #3:

Also, in 2004, I picked three of the final four (UConn, Duke, Georgia Tech) as well as the final game correctly (UConn over Georgia Tech). So at least a couple of times in recent years, I’ve not done too bad picking the final weekend.

But it is with little confidence that I post my rushed picks this year. My lack of time has caused me to pick many games with less information than I’d like, so I don’t feel very comfortable about many of my picks. Nevertheless, here they are.

My final four picks are:

• East: Louisville - because I simply could not bring myself to pick UNC
• MidWest: Kansas - because I don’t think anyone there can beat them
• South: Texas - because Memphis’ bricks at the line will bring them down
• West: UCLA - because next year is Duke’s year

My championship game has UCLA beating Kansas. I said earlier this year that if UCLA returns to the Final Four for a third straight year, they will win it. Of course, the trick is going to be getting there again. UConn could prove to be difficult if that game happens, but I don’t think anyone out of the bottom - Duke, Xavier or anyone else - can take them out. So, I’m sticking with UCLA.

You can see my full bracket of picks here (pdf).

Tip-off is about two hours away.

Let the madness begin.

And, I almost forgot . . . #2