Something Good This Way Comes

The New Year has promise. So did the Millionaire Raffle ticket that Joreen put in my stocking, an ingenious marketing ploy touting how high the odds are that you could become a millionaire by purchasing a $20 ticket. What does 1:125,000 mean? Citizens Bank Park holds close to 46,000 people. Put three of them side by side, put 41,666 people in each, and then pick which person has a winning ticket in their pocket. Oh, well, who needs the jackpot? I have the woman who bought me the ticket, so I'm already a winner.

Christmas was good. The music was especially fine. Alex and Bob and Joreen and I so totally pwned the traditional Christmas Prelude that Joreen arranged. I did something out of character and actually practiced the darn thing this year. What a concept. The outdoor decorations were as lame as the music was good, but on the bright* side it will take less than five minutes and no ladder to take them down. Next year I'm going Griswold. You'll need welder's glasses to drive by the place. (*That was unintentional, but I'm leaving it in on purpose.)

New Year's was a little difficult, I can't lie. Once again the band sat home due to a lack of an appropriate venue, and a last-minute miracle did not drop out of the sky. Oh, well, as the Chicago Cubs fan sign used to say on opening day, "Wait till next year." Most of you have seen the videos that Joreen made at Dillsburg, but here's a link for those who have not. We're working on our sound and also contingency plans for our drummer's knee surgery hiatus. We're confident that this year will be better. I've got this fantasy of having an event featuring Element 22, Laredo and Just Friends. That would be worth taking a swing at. Stay tuned for details. Meanwhile, we did have a little fun at midnight, crashing the next door neighbors' celebration. They gave the kids sparklers and let them run around yelling. Very old school, and very appreciated, especially the scaring away bad fortune part. We'll take all the help we can get.

The past year was a lot of things, good and bad, but now it's passed, and it's time to look forward. Challenges ahead, sure, but the song that comes to mind to start the year is from Dylan's son Jakob: Something Good This Way Comes. "Got my window open wide... got a good woman by my side... I know something good this way comes."