Toast for Brekkie

Tha Roots

So I can't follow up a post like that without pointing out a fundamental property of life that continues to astound, amaze, and generally obfuscate me: the good is served up piping hot and fresh simultaneously with the bad. In the midst of the maelstrom last week there was still time for an incredible concert that was a privilege to experience: The Roots. I can't claim to have seen nearly enough hip hop acts to gauge their game, but I can say it was more compelling and real than most other concerts I've been to regardless of genre. The guitarist was unreal, channeling Hendrix (complete with teeth-shredding licks). ?uestlove and the other percussionist lent a strong backbone to the sound, a rhythm so much more organic and satisfying than the samples used by so many rappers. The encore lasted thirty minutes (!) and included a medley of songs far removed from hip hop: everything from Nirvana to Blue Oyster Cult. At the end the lights came up and the band members signed the drum head, gathered up the drum sticks and other miscellany and threw them into the adoring crowd. Black Thought came down off the stage, shook hands with and signed autographs for everyone on the front lines. It was kickin', and this was just a small university venue.

Embracing the good and neglecting the bad is also made easier with the appropriate perspective. Today I have said viewpoint for you in the form of some of the most well written prose on the topic of cosmology that I've ever run across. The author: Bill Bryson. The book: A Short History of Nearly Everything. You can read an excerpt here.

In other news, I can't shake this illness but an afternoon of beach volleyball has put a sizeable dent in it. Maybe that's the first step out of this quagmire. Today a coworker actually said, after hearing about the events of the past week, that I'd met my monthly quota. Here's hoping.

Posted by George at April 27, 2005 10:55 PM