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So I should be working on my analysis of TOC right now but today has been the day of distractions (wonderful and not). I had to stay home from work with my son, who has been sick for the last couple of days. By this afternoon, he seems to be feeling quite a bit better and I am guessing that he will be fine by tomorrow, which means we should still be able to go out and have a good time celebrating my birthday father and son style. I have also been thoroughly distracted by the new album, What a Terrible World, What a Beautiful World by the Decemberists. Listening to it (over and over) has reminded me how much I love this group, Colin Meloy’s wonderful lyrics, and the super catchy pop hooks and folksy stylings that they seem to be chasing in this new album. I keep finding myself thinking about the different times I shot the band while they performed at Edgefield, the Crystal, and at the Aladdin Theater, and how some of my best memories from my early twenties involved being at their shows or listening to their music. On top of listening to the new album, I have also found myself stuck at the typewriter. I have a couple story ideas that keep bumping around in my head and the new music started shaking things out in different directions than I had been originally expecting. Again, this is something the Decemberists’ music has always done for me. With all of this, it has been more or less impossible to stay on track with the TOC project, but I will get back to work and have this thing finished by this weekend.

I hope you all take the time to check out the new album from the Decemberists. It really is fantastic.

-Jake-