Great weekend, work wise... feeling the love!

Great weekend, work wise... feeling the love!

Current mood:accomplished

What a great weekend...I worked my tail off, but the rewards were great, the weather stayed nice and I got a little change of scenery. Most importantly, I was definitely feeling the love from the public. Sometimes you get a little burned out, or maybe think people may be getting tired of your act...but weekends like this are just the elixir....

First, Friday was incredible...we had a capacity crowd with no hassles or incidents...everyone was having a blast, and when the dust cleared, I was informed that we broke all revenue records for that night, so they were very pleased! We ended up taking the party to someones house in the area until about 2:45, and that was a lot of fun as well!

Saturday I did a corporate gig in Jacksonville. That was a pretty long commute, but it was worth it. I was on the 35th floor of the Modis building in the River Club, over looking the city from all angles. Great view, and awesome sunset. That went very smoothly, and was not high maintenance as I expected it to be. It was a corporate banquet and awards ceremony, with dancing to follow. They also had a silent auction for some donated items. I was encouraged to bid on items if I liked, as the proceeds were all going to a local charity. They had high ticket items such as cruises and a week in Cape Cod, and stuff as small as stuffed animals or manicure sets. There were also cash cards from Lowes, Home Depot and a local chain of gas stations.

I was amazed that the cash cards were not reaching the face value of their issue...$50 cards with $20 bids...so whenever I found those, I kept bidding. They had a $100 gas card and $200 gas card. I think there was a communication breakdown on the $200 card as I believe the donator was from a window washing company and their card was on top of the gas cards, so I think the quick readers may have thought it was a $200 window cleaning card, LOL! So, long story short, the $100 gas card went for $75, and I got the $200 gas card for $100. Free gas, yay me. That just added to the perk of the commute, not to mention the nice bottle of wine they gave me, and a take home box with filet and shrimp, asparagus and potatoes... With a 2 hour drive home, that never saw my zip code, LOL!

Sunday was my second day at the new gig, and the first day not encumbered with a Super Bowl! My peeps came out IN DROVES! We slammed that place...not sure how many people exactly were there, but the singers list hovered around 40 singers!! I consider a show with 20 singers to be very successful. Forty is just phenomenal, and the ratio of observers to singers was great, so there was plenty of support for the singers via dancers and clappers.

An interesting observation is the age group. I have a very diverse following, specific to venues many times, and this new gig is an upstart and could have gone either way, but it appears the older clientele are taking it over!! (When I say older, I mean like 50 and up...the more seasoned customer...there are younger folks there as well though!) That is fine with me, since as a rule they will eat and are relatively low maintenance customers for the venue, but they are probably not as heavy drinkers as some of my younger clientele...I just cant wait until we diversify and get more of the young crowd in there and start really showing them some bar revenues on top of the solid food revenue! Red wine and beer are nice, but Jager Bombs and tequila shots add up really fast, LOL! I really think when I promised them I would bring a crowd, they had no idea how many people really would be there. They are all smiles and are showing me a large amount of appreciation for taking a very sleepy night and turning it into what may be the best night of the week for them. That is a rep I am proud of. I like knowing that the venues I work at have had their record revenue intakes set on nights when I am performing.

Thanks to all of you local folks for your support, kindness and friendship!

Tornado Damage

Tornado Damage

Current mood:grateful

Hey there. Well, by now, our tornado woes are known by all. It appears they have become the national headline since Friday. I thought I would drop a quick note here, and post a couple of pictures.

Tornadoes are different from hurricanes in that the prep time is far less. Around 10-11 o'clock, Volusia county still was not even in the warning zone. I was doing my show at Finnegans to a packed house, despite the constant rain. There was some tornado talk, but we did not feel we were in peril. At closing time, I asked the manager to turn on the weather channel, just to see if there was anything to worry about.

The rain never let up all night. I was wondering how the heck I was going to get my gear into the van. As luck would have it, once I got everything to the dance floor and propped the door open, the rain stopped! I loaded my van without so much as a drop of rain, closed the door and the rain continued!

I got a good early start home and was focusing to get home by 3:00. Got home at 3:08, without a worry! Fell asleep around 20 after and woke back up at 3:45 with Samantha freaking out about the weather. The hail then bombarded the house with a low roar, so I turned on the weather channel to see the most hellacious storm coming right over us. The storm itself was moving 57-65 mph, so I knew even if it was horrible, it would not be a long term event. The TV reports were saying that the roads that I had just taken home minutes before were now closed because of flooding. The electricity went out, leaving us on our own for a bit, then came back on after the worst had passed.

The storm cut a swatch across central FL leaving a wake of devastation in the communities from Lady Lake to New Smyrna. Lady Lake got the worst of it, then Paisley, then DeLand, then NSB.

Once we saw it go to the coast we were able to relax a bit and go back to sleep. Reports were coming in about sporadic damage, but the light of day would prove to show that things were far worse than we ever could have imagined, and let us know just how lucky we were not to be a few miles south.

The TV reports focused mainly on the mobile home parks and the church in Lady Lake, but there was so much more damage than even the TV showed. Full brick and mortar structures were just obliterated. A few 100 year old homes here just ceased to exist, with no evidence they were ever there...just obliterated. Trees were pulled up in clumps and left to rest from their original locations. Trees in the path were snapped in half like matchsticks. It really is an amazing, awesome sight.

The areas of Deland hardest hit were in the area from Hontoon Island, east to Beresford, east to the truck route, east to New Hampshire Ave, and down New Hampshire ave to Kepler. You cannot get onto the residential roads in these areas unless you are authorized. There is law enforcement on every corner checking ID. The truck route and Woodland reopened as soon as the debris and wires could be cleared. I was able to get to the corner of Woodland and New Hampshire to get a couple of snapshots (driving my old Dodge work van to fit in, and not look like a sight seer!)

(EDIT...couldnt make the photos host on here so I will put links...)

http://i35.photobucket.com/albums/d161/harryoke/IMG_0081.jpg

This is what is left of the Health Dept. The health dept was located in a shopping center that was once a dept store, but was converted to be government offices. There are still some retail shops, restaurants and a HUGE telemarketing operation there. It is looking like they may have to trash most of the plaza, as a large percentage of it is now structurally unstable. Every light and pole in the parking lot was blown away as well!

http://i35.photobucket.com/albums/d161/harryoke/IMG_0084.jpg

This is what is left of a building that housed the sherriffs office, a Dollar General store and a laundromat. It will need to be razed.

http://i35.photobucket.com/albums/d161/harryoke/IMG_0088.jpg

This was a building that the owners just spent MONTHS remodeling 100%. It is a Meinecke auto repair center and a transmission shop. They have only been fully open for about a month in their freshly remodeled building. The wind tore up the structure, and the billboard blew over and cut the building in half. I cant see how they can save it. All of the businesses in this area for about a full block took damage of some major regard.

What these pics do not show is all of the residential damage as the storm kept going...this is just one corner where I stopped to grab a couple shots.

http://i35.photobucket.com/albums/d161/harryoke/IMG_0095.jpg

Here is a shot toward the Applewood apartments. Most of that is pretty gone...either blown away or tree damage. The air conditioning shop beyond it is pretty much toast.

http://i35.photobucket.com/albums/d161/harryoke/IMG_0106.jpg

Here is a random shot of the trees laying next to the road. This is pretty much what it looks like along the path of the storm.

As I said, these dont even scratch the surface of the issues, but it is pretty amazing to see what can happen in 5 minutes with little warning. This all hit a few minutes before 4 and by 4:05 it was all over. Most people were asleep and had no clue.

There but for the grace of a few miles go I. Phew.

Grrr...venting...

Grrr...venting...

Current mood:pissed off

In the 80s outside today on this blustery winter day. Have to run the air to dry the inside air as it is so humid.

My project today is to tear down my carports. I put them up about 9 years ago or so...and someone has recently gotten around to noticing them. They are not permanent type permittable structures, they are canvas canopies that remove easily for hurricanes, etc... that require no permit as they are deemed temporary.

I originally put them up when I bought this house to protect my very nicely restored Ford Galaxy 500. Leaves from all my trees kept falling on the new paint, and the rain or dew was causing staining from the leaves. I have since grown accustomed to getting into a cool shaded vehicle, and being able to have a car wash last indefinitely since the cars were protected from the elements and debris.

I went to the courthouse to get a permit, and the bureaucracy involved is amazing! I would have to have surveys done and engineering performed to attest to the rigidity of the structures in winds before they will even talk to me.

I had a 10 day window to remove the stuff or face a $1000 a day fine.

Now I have to either contact a contractor to have some permanently affixed to the house as an addition, if zoning allows, or have new temporary carports installed by a professional after submitting the engineering and having a new survey done. I had my property surveyed about 9 years ago, but the survey I take to zoning has to be less than 5 years old. I am sure the boundary has changed in the last 4 years.

Hey, its only money, right?

So as of today, my vehicles sit in the bright sun, exposed to the heat and rain and the leaves falling on the wet vehicles. Oh well.

Grr.

I thought maybe someone was picking on me personally, and that still may be so, but my neighbor has one in her backyard and they are after her too apparantly. Maybe they saw hers when mine were reported or vice versa. Who knows...I am sure they wont tell me who complained. But, we dont live in city limits, we live in the unincorporated county, so we are not held to the same high standards as "city folk". LOL. So, this action amazes me, as I see far more "podunk" activity around me going unnoticed.

I wonder if they will need to see a permit or wind engineering for my lawn furniture or garbage cans...they are far more deadly than my canopies, which had survived MANY storms and hurricanes with no trouble.

MORE BUREAUCRACY GONE WILD:

On a similar subject, those who know me well know this part of my life well...

To save money for several years, I bought a mobile home...in 1988 I believe. This served me well, with cheap lot rent, and modest living for a single bachelor workaholic who basically needed a crash pad. It was in a family trailer park, but they would send inspectors around to check out your lot and cite you for violations of their policies.

They had the nerve to cite me once for having an ugly truck...a nice old 64 Ford Fleetside I had that was a little rustic looking...had some primer spots etc... They asked me to avoid having unsightly vehicles on premise, LOL. (When I lived there, I had a lot of cars...up to 11 at once, but I never kept more than 3 at my house at a time...that is a subject for another Blog, LOL) This citation put the bad taste in my mouth with them...

I worked for a company that installed burglar alarms, so I put a yard sign in my yard showing I had a burgler alarm installed. They cited me for that, so I pulled out the bylaws and nowhere did it say they were not allowed, so I went to fight the power.

They could not show me the rule either, but cited the rule that if your house was for sale, the forsale sign had to be attached to the trailer, and not the yard. I told them I disagreed with their interpretation and they argued back. I asked about election signs and they agreed that was ok as they were temporary. I asked about lawn ornaments, and again, they conceded that they were not signs.

So off I went home to move my sign from the yard, to the side of the house, and I continued off to make another acquisition...PINK LAWN FLAMINGOS! I bordered my driveway, flowerbed and sidewalks with them. I nailed them up in my trees, and attached them to the side of my trailer. They were HIDEOUS and hilarious.

Not a word was said... ;c)

When they cited me for peeling paint, they were right, but it occured to me to paint the trailer like the Partridge family bus just for good measure.

The white trash in me wanted to acquire the front of a semi truck to attach to the front of the trailer and make it look like a semi truck! The cab would have been where my kitchen was, so I would have a comfy spot to have coffee, LOL! That was not covered in the rules either, LOL!

Oh well, that passed, and this too shall...just venting. I feel better.

Odd Observation

Odd Observation

Current mood:weird

Well, the tornado left about 37.5 million dollars in damage in its wake. Hundreds left homeless, and many of the trailer dwellers and apartment dwellers are uninsured. That is sad, and unfortunate that they did not carry insurance.

Embry Riddle aeronautical university was hit especially hard, with each building taking some damage, as well as 65 of their airplanes being destroyed.

What was weird was that Spruance Hall at Embry Riddle was built around 20 years ago. During the building, someone painted "Merry Christmas" on a girder facing the road in yellow spray paint. The tornado tore the facing off of the building in the exact spot that message was painted, revealing the eerie message some 20 years later on Christmas Day.

I am also amazed at how little national coverage there was for this event. I saw the news cover a small storm in Tallahassee, but have heard no national mention of this tradgedy affecting 100s of people directly, and thousands indirectly on Christmas Day.

F2 Tornado Christmas Day

F2 Tornado comes thru DeLand and Daytona

Current mood:shocked

F2 tornado came thru about 2pm. We dodged a major bullet. About a mile and a half from here, about 200 homes took damage. Major devastation. The place is evacuated as gas lines were ruptured. The images are just getting to the media. The WalMart is being used as a staging area for that area, but the tornado continued east, and did a lot of damage to the residential area by the police station, wiping out an apartment complex and playing havoc with a huge area of the city. The counts are still coming in.

Many people are going to come home on Christmas to no home. We rode thru some of the damaged area on the way home from dinner, and it is amazing. I called my house to be sure the electricity was on, as we had no idea what to expect. Fortunately we have no apparant damage that I can see, and our electricity is on, so that is good!

I had dinner at my brother in laws house, with the whole family there. He owns a business downtown and we feared it was levelled. A friend went down and checked it out, and it appears to have sustained no damage, but everything after 100 feet away is majorly damaged. He has no electricity there, but that is a small issue compared with having damage to the building.

Making for an interesting day. Keep a good thought for those more affected. Tomorrow will probably reveal some big hardships.

Go figger....

Go figger....

Why does everything seem to wait until a holiday to break? Last year we found a plumbing leak and had the TV blow up on Christmas, this year water has come flooding from underneath the kitchen faucet.

The main water supply valve outside is completely buried now that they dont actually look at the meter anymore, so I had to dig that out to shut the water off, since there is not a shutoff valve under the sink. So, now all the water to the house is turned off.

It is going to take a plumber to sort where the leak is coming from, and good luck getting one on a Sunday, Christmas eve. I have one on the way and he should be here by 2...and there will be a $149 Holiday surcharge on top of the bill. Oh well. The floors ought to be dry by the time he gets here anyway.

Whatta Weekend!

Whatta Weekend...

Current mood:accomplished

Hello all! What a whirlwind weekend! I have been so very busy with work that I have been neglecting my blogs, lol.

Yesterday was the Shark House fundraiser at Rossi's to benefit the employee family relief fund. I think it went really well, and we had an unbelievable turnout. I got there at 2 and there were already people there.

Many people ask me where I have had the largest rotation of singers, and for now, the answer will be at the benefit! I stopped counting around the 60's...and at points I know we had over 70 singers in line. Of course, some of the singers had to bail out before their turn...nothing like a 4 or 5 hour wait, LOL!

It was suggested that I was going to charge people to sing...like $5 a song, to raise money. I had a better idea. I would let everyone sing for free, but I would take bribes. A $20 would get you to the front of the line...so if you were the 12th person to hand me a $20, you were the 12th singer...all who handed in a 20 or more went to the front of the list. If you wanted to sing next, just hand me $100.

Now assuming I could get 15 singers an hour in (and that would have been tough with raffles, announcements, etc...) that would have only raised about $75 an hour for the cause. The way I did it, after 4 hours of karaoke, I personally raised $1350.00 in bribes alone! I felt REALLY good about that! I was also able to hand Robin an envelope stuffed with cash when I got there...that came from donations made in cash at my other shows this week! That is money that is above and beyond the other efforts, such as the raffles and auctions and contributions being collected elsewhere. So, I am happy to say that it looks like the efforts are working, and we will be able to help some of these folks who may need it. There are more ways to help and I will put them on my website at www.harryoke.com today.

I ended up shutting down around 10pm...that made a long day, but worth it.

On Saturday I did a corporate holiday party just South of Jax. That went really well...we were in a different room than last year, and they had me on a moveable wall with no electricity. That was the only oversight. Once they got electricity to me all went well. The folks seemed a lot more receptive than they were last year, and I was definitely in my groove with the age group. The other parties around us broke up and we kept it going until midnight...some folks from the other parties were walking by and crashed our dance floor since the DJ seemed to be doing such a good job, (coff-coff), LOL!

I always enjoy the reward of being in the right crowd, playing the right music. When people are up for a party, and receptive to entertainment, and interact by requesting, commenting and dancing, it makes the job eaier for me...and I do a better job. Nothing is worse than being at a party that people are being forced to be at, and they are not music people, or dancers...and you cant really get them going. I tend to take nights like that personally, until I have that really good night to remind me that I may actually know what I am doing to some degree.

DJ jobs are infinitely more difficult to me than Karaoke jobs. With karaoke you definitely use a different side of your brain. Not that karaoke is easy, but you are relieved of the song choice process at least. When you DJ, if you are good at it, you must have a strong working knowledge of songs and be able to know in 15 seconds what the better song to play is going to be, then start thinking of the next one, to keep the people happy, working the ebb and flow of energy.

Well with most of the holiday work behind me, things will get back to normal...although now I will have my Sundays free since the fire. This will be a temporary setback...I am looking forward to having a few Sundays free for now, but I have no illusions that come January or February, Sundays will find me onstage at yet another venue. I have some prospects, but nothing committed, so any rumours to the contrary floating around out there are just speculation. It has been less than a week, and already I hear the rumors on the street of where I am gonna be next, LOL!

All for now, and all the best to you all...