JESUS IRON

A Methuen, Massachusetts, woman claims to have discovered the face of Jesus burnt onto her iron.

Mary Jo Coady first noticed the face of Jesus when she walked into her daughter’s room. The 44-year-old mother of two stated that the appearance of the face proves that “he’s listening.”

She plans to buy a new iron and keep the holy one in a closet.

Tiger Woods takes responsibility for that mysterious car crash Friday and denies rumors about his marriage and claims that he’s having an affair. On his website Sunday, the golfer wrote, “This situation is my fault and it’s obviously embarrassing to my family and me. I’m human and I’m not perfect. I will certainly make sure this doesn’t happen again.”

Tiger addressed the rumors that he and his wife, Elin Nordegren, had a physical altercation following a National Enquirer report that he had an affair with New York club hostess Rachel Uchitel. He writes, “This is a private matter and I want to keep it that way. Although I understand there is curiosity, the many false, unfounded and malicious rumors that are currently circulating about my family and me are irresponsible.”

A 9-1-1 tape of the crash reveals that Tiger was found in front of his neighbor’s home, unconscious and outside of his car. This disputes the story that Elin smashed out the back window of the S-U-V with a golf club to rescue Tiger, who was trapped inside. On his website, he writes, “My wife, Elin, acted courageously when she saw I was hurt and in trouble. She was the first person to help me. Any other assertion is absolutely false.” But T-M-Z reports that Tiger told a friend that “his wife had confronted him over reports he was involved with another woman…and that his wife scratched his face up during the argument. Tiger told the friend he then left the house, started driving off and his wife then came out with a golf club, striking the vehicle. Tiger then became distracted and hit the hydrant and then a nearby tree.”

Tiger and his wife have refused to meet with Florida police on three separate occassions to discuss the accident.

Hope you hadn’t gotten your hopes up — Jimmy Page, Eric Clapton and Aerosmith’s Joe Perry and Brad Whitford are not starting a super-group. A post on engineer Kevin Shirley’s webpage has been taken out of context and falsely reported. He’d simply written about working with and admiring a number of great guitarists, including Page, Clapton, Perry and Whitford.

Shirley clarified the post, saying, “Unfortunately, it’s a misread — all I said was I am recording a legend (and I have done plenty in the past), and this guy is seriously thrilling! The Page-Zep thing is not what it is. There is a super-group — there is a classic rock re-mix, but the speculation is all misguided.”

Robert Plant was recently in a Los Angeles recording studio with producer Daniel Lanois [pr: lan-WAH]. Plant was lending his voice to demos by Black Dub vocalist Trixie Whitley.

I wish I could say that I didn’t do the thing I dreaded.  But I did.  Well, we were  having the most wonderful time at our friend’s house for Thanksgiving and there was that beautiful turkey, with moist stuffing, homemade cranberry sause, and about 17 different veggie dishes…and PIES.  With ice cream!  And whipped cream.  It was amazing.  With all that it takes to produce a huge Thanksgiving feast, I know why my mother used take a picture of the table all dressed with the food on display before anyone would touch it.  That was a lot of hard work! 

I wish I could say I am sick of turkey, but I’m not.  I love it.  I even love the tired feeling afterward.  It goes with the football games on TV.  This weekend bordered on a football overdose.  I think my son finally met his limit of football on TV.  I had just enough.  But then I did other things and missed some games.  I sure enjoyed the ones that I did see though. 

I also wish I could say that I went to a gym and took a spin class.  I didn’t.  I shopped on Black Friday thinking that would work off any and all wrongs committed on Thanksgiving.  It didn’t. 

So, on Saturday I gardened.  Which was good.  It wasn’t raining and I filled up our yard debris bin, and the neighbor’s bin too.  My neighbor has a yard service because he HATES do deal with the yard.  So, when I run out of room in the big green container, I use his.  I can hack down things at lightening speed, and because this is the great GREEN Northwest, it all grows back.  Pretty much.

Saturday afternoon my friend Chris and I went to the Singing Christmas Tree at the Keller.  All these years in Portland and I’ve never seen that holiday tradition.  It was like the biggest Christmas pagent ever.  Crazy big.  A cast of thousands.  Ballet.  Nativity scene.  Flying angel.  Children singing.  The 12 Days of Christmas done with the right amount of people doing the things in the song.  Wise men.  Santa.  My senses were overloaded.  I had also had way too many cups of coffee and when I had to get up and decide which way to exit our row during the show, I felt bad about having to disturb people.  Apparently this was a good thing as my friend Chris informed me that the gentleman next to the lady who was sitting on my right was fast asleep until I got up, so at least he didn’t miss the show.  See how I put that good spin on that little moment?  Just think if he had continued to sleep and had started snoring.  His wife would have had to poke him and that could have caused some kind of afternoon arguement.  I helped avoid all of that.

Anyway, it was lots of fun and huge and the only evil thought I had during the whole performance was that the flying angel in the show reminded me of when Gene Simmons “flew” during the Kiss show the week before.  Then I thought of what that would look like if it were Gene in the middle of the performance. 

Merry Kissmas Everyone!

Right before Dio was set to start a European tour, frontman Ronnie James Dio was hospitalized. Now nearly two weeks later, Wendy Dio, his ex-wife who also manages the band , followed up about her husband’s hospitalization, stating that he’s been diagnosed with the early stages of stomach cancer.

Beginning treatment for stomach cancer at the Mayo Clinic shortly, she said, “After he kills this dragon, Ronnie will be back on stage, where he belongs, doing what he loves best, performing for his fans.”

Now 67 years old, Ronnie has been in several globally successful bands in addition to Dio, such as Black Sabbath, Heaven & Hell and Rainbow. Earlier this year, Ronnie toured with Heaven & Hell and released ‘The Devil You Know,’ a collection of new material with his former bandmates during his Black Sabbath years.

At the moment, the Dio tour remains canceled, and there is currently no plan to reschedule the dates.

I have to tell you about the time I met Ronnie James Dio.  It was backstage before his show at the Memorial Coliseum at the peak of his fame with his self named band.  My brother Neil was visiting and we had backstage passes.  We went back to say hello before the show, and Ronnie couldn’t have been more wonderful.  He was so very kind to my brother who was a teenager at the time.  Not only that, but after the show (which ROCKED the house down) I got a personal handwritten note from the man thanking me for the interview and for coming to the show.  Just one of those things that sticks in my mind.  Oh, and he was listening to an unlikely album backstage before the show, which I recognized.  I would tell you who it is, but I swore to Ronnie that I wouldn’t.  So, to this day, it’s my little secret.  Let’s just say that it’s totally unlike what you think a metal God such as himself would listen to.  As theatric as his shows were, now that I think about it, it really isn’t that surprising.

I wish Ronnie and his family all the best, and if anyone can kick cancer’s ass, it’s the mighty DIO! 

Send some prayers his way please.

Every year about this time, riders start thinking about stowing their motorcycles for the winter—whether it’s because there’s a foot of snow on the ground or because of holiday commitments. And every spring, the phones at motorcycle dealers ring off the wall with customers who did not store their bikes properly and wonder why they won’t run.

Some preparation now will ensure that you are out riding in the spring instead of waiting in the dealer’s lineup. And a key question is where you will store your bike.

One solution may be to ask your dealer if he offers a storage program. This is ideal because he will often prep, store and have the bike ready to ride when you are ready again.

However, if you prefer to store it yourself, you will need to find a place that is dry and out of harm’s way.

Choose a location away from windows. The ultraviolet light can fade your bike’s paint and plastic parts. Direct sunlight can raise the ambient temperature of the storage area, which will promote condensation when the sun goes down, so cover plain glass with some sort of opaque material.

Also, cover your bike with a specially designed bike cover—not a sheet or a tarp. Why? Because a sheet absorbs moisture and holds it against metal surfaces and then rust forms. Also, damp fabric will breed mildew and this may attack the seat material.

A tarp prevents moisture from getting in but it also prevents it from getting out. Trapped moisture will condense on the bike and then the rust monster is back.

Instead, choose a specially designed motorcycle cover made of a mildew resistant material. The material is slightly porous, so it can breathe. The right storage location will help ensure your bike is good to go in the spring, but it’s also important to check all your fluids and protect your bikes body from the harmful effects of disuse and storage.

Source: Courtesy of TotalMotorcycle.com

When I was a little girl, yes, I played with Barbie dolls.  I not only had the Barbie with 3 wigs, but also her “best friend” Midge, little sister Skipper, even younger sister…I forget her name, and the dutiful boyfriend Ken (who went bald quickly with that glued-on fuzz they put on the first dolls…so I used a permanent marker to give him hair again…just like hair club for men).  

My Dad was so cool. He built furniture for my little Barbie family using nothing but his own imagination and tools.  He was a building contractor, so working with wood was a hobby for him until the very end of his life.   Since I didn’t have the Mattel version of the Barbie house, my Dad made room dividers that I could set up all over the floor of our living room, or out on the deck when the weather was good and sometimes this would become a sprawling Texas-style one-floor mansion.  If you’ve been to Texas, you know what I’m talking about.  The spread would be especially large when my friends would come over and bring their dolls. 

My best friend Gay Marie would come over and bring her Barbie and Ken.  This was all well and good with our mothers until we got busted for having our little plastic couples make out.  Ah yes, that was near the end of our Barbie days when REAL boys entered our minds.  Also, Gay Marie, being the oldest child, had little sisters and a brother that lived to torture her, so her Barbie would be missing chunks of hair, or having wardrobe malfunctions, and I think even one time she was missing her head.  Poor Anne Boleyn Barbie.  If I recall, she also had a Ringo Beatles figurine that met some untimely end because of siblings.  I think she has forgiven them for that.  Maybe not.  You know how it goes with siblings. 

I remember the very last time I played with the whole Barbie set-up.  I was all alone on a weekend hanging out with the family.  Being raised an only child there were no siblings to torture me that weekend.  I had occasional foster brothers and sisters from time to time, and eventually hooked up again with my birth family, but that’s another story and a book that I’ll have to write later.  So, while being alone, I thought about the dolls all packed away and how I hadn’t played with them in quite a while.  I think I was about 10 at the time.  It made me sad.  I was one of those children who never should have read “The Velveteen Rabbit,” so I drug out the boxes of furniture, room dividers, clothing that my mom had sewn (I may have managed an apron or something very basic…it was another world, ladies) or my aunt had crocheted, or I had saved up chore money to buy, and made an afternoon of it.  It made my Dad so happy he took a picture of me.  I think he knew it would be the last time this would happen.  Mom even made me lunch and brought it to me so I could keep playing in this little Barbie world for the afternoon.  Did I mention that I had the best parents in the entire universe? 

I did drag out the dolls and clothing one time with a neighbor’s daughter and she deemed them “retro Barbie.”   This is the little neighbor girl who embraced goth in a big way and was probably much happier when I gave her the Black Sabbath box set years later, but it was fun playing with her that afternoon.

I have a son, brothers, a Godson, nephews, but not a girl to be seen born into this family.  Apparently I killed that chromosome when I was born. Girls have to marry into this world of mine.  Good luck to all of you who tread here.  The path is fertile, but male.  Imagine how much I would love to pass along this love of little plastic figures with cone boobs, unruly hair, and all this damned antique hand made furniture.  Especially now that there’s going to be a Joan Jett doll. 

Mattel, the maker and distributor of Barbie dolls worldwide, has announced a “Ladies of the 80’s” line of the doll.  Joan Jett leads the way.  Little girls will now be giving the voice of “I Love Rock ‘n Roll” a wardrobe change, and launching her into great adventures I’m sure.  Also making the grade are Blondie’s Debbie Harry who is an outstanding pick for her moxy, hair, and style, and Cyndi Lauper.  She will be the one who comes with Wrestlemania accessories.  Remember when she was into the whole wrestling thing?  What was that about? 

The dolls retail for $35 each.   I wonder if they will ever have one for Pat Benatar?  She was definately a lady of the 80’s.  Plus she had that great haircut and headband.  How about the Wilson sisters of Heart?  That’s a must in my book.  Can’t you just see them in those outfits on the cover of “Little Queen” and then outfits to buy for the less chaiste look and bigger hair from the “Heart” album from 1985?  There’s advance sales and marketing right there my friends!

Chrissie Hynde would be perfect!  She could kick all the other doll’s butts, throw her guitar down and stalk off the stage.  Plus she could have the most amazing amount of boots to collect!  And guitars…and accessories like microphones and amps!

Ah, little girls and their dolls.  It really doesn’t end does it?  A bit different, but still really fun.  I guess I could sell all that “retro” Barbie stuff and donate it to a charity.  Then it’s all for a good cause.  If I can only find it up in that crazy unorganized attic of ours.

Rock on sweet children!

I was toast by the end of last week, but I’ve already written about that.  

Last night gave me a boost that I really needed.  

KGON has been a partner with the Trans-Siberian Orchestra for years now when they come to Portland, and every year, it’s great to turn new people on to this show and this amazing group of people who put it together.  The cool thing about TSO is that when they come to town they give $1.00 of every ticket sold to a local charity.  This year, and in the years before, Paul O’Neill comes to us and asks who we think needs the money, and while there are so many deserving organizations…we tell them about the Community Transtional School.  This year when I was talking to Paul prior to the show, we talked about the charity and the work they do with homeless children ages 4-14, giving them an education to break the cycle of poverty.  This is truly God’s work, and if you doubt that there are angels who walk among us, take a trip to the school and talk to the teachers.  They are a private charity who is doing this work without blaming parents for being poor, but raising up the children in that situation of homelessness, to see that there is more to life, and they can achieve it.

Paul O’Neill is one of the most tender-hearted, generous, visionary artists around.  After the conversation he tells me to get in contact with Adam in the office (who we met for the first time this year at the Portland show) and tell him to send the school two Apple Mac Books.  Oh yeah, and then he said that he was sending an extra bunch of loaded visa cards for the school to use on whatever they needed.  You can imagine how thrilled the school was.  Plus the extra $13,050 in the checks they were awarded last night.  Great big “Happy Gilmore” checks!  

I stayed glued to my seat for both shows.  Every year Paul O’Neill says that the show is bigger than last year, and every year I think “but HOW?”  Yes, it was a bigger show.  More visuals, just crazy!  

The other thing I have to rave about is that the band not only comes backstage for a meet and greet with fans and winners of our contests and us radio geeks…but after that, they go out into the concourse of the arena, sit at a very long table, and sign autographs, shake hands, and thank every last person who waits for them.  As I was leaving last night, the line was very long.  I had stayed for both shows, did the check award with the band to the charity at both performances, went backstage with my Godson Anthony and his roommates who I think met their future wives….and bless my soul, I was tired at the end of it all.  But I had not PERFORMED TWO SHOWS.  Two very athletic shows with effects and incredible music.  Preceded by double shows in Seattle and Vancouver.  I was humbled at the cast and crew of TSO because not only do they “bring it” for every performance….they also give back to every community they touch with their shows…and they still smile at the end of the night and thank every single one of the audience who want to meet them.

It seriously blows away anything I’ve ever seen in rock and roll in terms of touching the audience.  

And they do it every year from November 1st through January 1st.

I can’t wait until next year.

God bless TSO!

What a week it’s been!  I now totally understand the Warren Zevon line “I’ll Sleep When I’m Dead.”  It wasn’t a bad week, just incredibly busy.  

Starting with Monday when I had a CT Scan after my show.  Yes, another one.  Looks like the surgeon and I will be making a date in the future.  Good news is that it’s not life threatening.  Bad news is that I’ll probably have surgery sometime early next year for the hernia I already had repaired in June.  Again.  Sigh.  Oh well, at least it’s something I can deal with.

Then Tuesday was THE DAY OF KISS ALIVE 35!  KGON’s pre concert event was so much fun!  Getting ready for it was, shall we say, labor intensive.  A big thank you to our amazing women of the KGON Marketing and Promotions department.  They kicked it up.  WAY UP!  Arranged for KISS make up to be done at our all ages party.  I really enjoyed having the area where families could be part of the event.  There were so many multi generational families at that show!  If you missed it, let’s just say that it was an incredible night of effects, make up, sweat, volume, stage antics, and everything that KISS is known for.  Again, thank you to Tommy Thayer just for being such a cool guy and a Portland native.  Check out my podcast interview with Tommy. 

Then Wednesday wasn’t really so horrible.  I did finally get the permanent crown on my back molar so things are good now.  Also just the preparation for Thursday made Wednesday a very long day.

Thursday was KidsGiving 2009.  WOW!  It’s an all day event and I LOVE LOVE LOVE every minute that I get to spend raising funds and food for the kids in our community.  The problem is that my feet didn’t like me so much after spending so many hours on them.  I know, what a whiner!  Amy, Heather, Kate, Josh, and Kyle were out at locations longer than any of us, but they are also younger and that does count.  God, I sound like my mother.  It was an amazing day and I can’t thank everyone enough who was involved with this event.  You all rock my world, and the world of the kids who benefited from your generosity.  Marty, Shannon, Dave and I were all so moved by so many things that day that I can’t even express it here in words.  One of the precious moments that happened is when a young man came up to Concert Dave (who was matching funds on site with his own money…I LOVE CONCERT DAVE!) and asked if he would match his allowance.  How could that not move you to do something for the kids?  I’m sure Amy will blog about the trip to the Community Transitional School because she and Dave went there with the big truck of food.  I wish I could have been there, but I was back on the air giving money away.  Tis the season.

I was supposed to attend the Bill Champlin show at Jimmy Mak’s on Thursday night, but when I looked at the clock after we shut down the broadcast, it was already 7:30pm, and that’s the time the show started.  So to all my friends who went, I know you had a great time and it was the best show you ever saw.  Several have called to tell me I missed the best show from Bill ever.  I’m so sorry, but I was toast.

Friday was also a night of rock with The Black Crowes, but I had to miss that one too.  I think all of us who did Kidsgiving missed it.  I do however have two very realistic fake Black Crowes on my porch left over from Halloween, so I was celebrating in my own way.  At home.  Hope it was good for those who went.

Yesterday was that crazy day of football.  I thought I’d have to perform CPR on my family before it was all over.  

Right now I need to get off the computer and run off to meet friends so we can go to the Trans-Siberian Orchestra show at 3, then Amy and I are staying for the 7:30pm show.  My Godson, Anthony and his roommates from college are coming to that one.  More tomorrow on the show.  Running again….

As much as I’m looking forward to KISS tonight, I’m kinda bummed to miss the 3rd night of WWII in HD on the History Channel. The last two nights have been facinating! I’m sure they will air it again but you just never know if KISS will tour again, right?

I saw them at the Coliseum when I was 16 years old. They were not in makeup, (I know, right? What’s the point?) and they were with Slaughter and Winger. How’s that for a butt rock lineup? It was awesome and I am really excited to see them tonight. My kids have been begging me to go but I’m just not a fun mom. HAH!

Anyways, if you won’t be joining us at our pre-concert party from 5-7pm at the Rose Garden, please check out WWII in HD on the History channel at 9pm and educate yourself on what our armed forces do for us. The Guadalcanal footage? Extraordinary! That’s my Veteran’s Day speech 6 days late. See you tonight!