Happy Old Year's Highs

Happy OLD Year by Karen Cohen  Eight Miles Highlights of 2011                   Live Shows: Anthony Bordain and Eric Ripart: Good vs. Evil tour So who was the evil one? Eric is patient and calm. When he talks, I can hardly understand a word he says due to his French accent. Mon dieu!  Is that considered good? Tony, completely the opposite, fidgets with his fingers, reads off note cards, and paces back and forth. Profanity is his trademark. Is that considered bad? Both are amusing and entertaining but I paid the extra bucks to meet and greet the two gents post show. I narrowed down one "Tony" question as I waited on line at the restaurant where the two hosted book signings and photo opts. "Who is your favorite Ramone?"  When I asked, Tony answered, "Well Marky, I guess, cause the rest of them are dead. " No joke, really. "But I'd say Johnny was my favorite." Ah, just  the answer I wanted to hear. Why? In 2007 I visited the gravesite of John William Cummings, aka Johnny Ramone, at the Hollywood Forever Cemetery in LA.  I took an awesome photo of the bronze life-size statue of Johnny with his guitar and I will now mail it to Tony.  Who was my favorite? Johnny packed  the most action on stage. Joey hardly moved. Dee Dee stared blankly into space most of the time and the various drummers, well, drummed. I'd have to say Johnny, also, though I  read he was a bit of a snot.  The Good vs Evil tour continues into Feb. 2012 in Indiana and Michigan, check ticketmaster for more information. Live Concerts: Ray Davies Did I know I would be singing out loud all the words to all the songs that Ray Davies sang? No. I don't normally sing in public!  But I had listened to the Kinks since their inception in 1964 (when I was just a tadpole!), yes, I knew and loved their music. "You really got me", of course, was a radio sensation and nothing like it had been heard before. Maybe "Love that dirty water" by the Standells or "Louie Louie" by the Kingsmen but come on, what a rocking beat! http://youtu.be/dvyDWGF290M In concert, 65 + year old Ray was perky, jubillant, and animated. He was genuinely happy to have the audience sing along to all the old time favs, "L-O-L-A-lola"! "Well respected man"," Superman". I bet some of you know the words too! Scraps: You all know Ray fathered a child with Pretenders' Chrissie Hynde, right, RIGHT? Well, did you know the song, "Stop your Sobbing", was penned and sung by Davies and the Kinks on their 1965 album? Holy Sh__! Yeah, the Pretenders put that song on the map. What I didn't know was that last year, Chrissie and her X-amore, Ray, recorded a song and shot a video called "Postcards from London". Ray Davies says his new duet with former lover Chrissie Hynde, 'Postcards From London,' was the work of their 26-year-old daughter, Natalie Ray Hynde. The Kinks frontman says his relationship with the Pretenders singer is still estranged -- they recorded their studio parts and evidently shot their appearances for the song's video separately. Hey, whatever works! http://youtu.be/oqa_jiSW7tA QUICKIE (Charlotte): For pre-concert quick bites try Growlers Pourhouse in NODA-great oysters and Draft Magazine voted this place as  America's 100 Best  Beer Bars in 2011. Wow. Cool dark atmosphere inside, check it out. AND if you love raw oysters like I do, go to this site to order yours fresh from the oyster farm/waters of Cape Cod: www.DennisOysters.com If you are in uptown Charlotte for lunch, check out this WOO-HOO $18.00 winter three course lunch special at the Capital Grille; you can go online to reserve your spot. I dined there the other day and the food is MAH-ve-las! Yum. Try the crab/lobster salad sandwich or the three course special: roasted pepper soup, Wagyu cheeseburger (Kobe beef), with a fried egg and crisp onions on top with a side of truffle fries. Heaven=truffle oil! The Capital Grille Lunch | TheCapitalGrille.com www.thecapitalgrille.com/Lunch A Salad, Sandwich & Side For $18 At The Capital Grille in Charlotte. Rea-tail HIGH: Missoni comes to Target Sept. 13, 2011 I had this slated on my desk calendar as a MUST DO event. I got there the day after and found some picked over goods but came out with Missoni rubber striped boots, zig zag slip on flats, sweater and socks for my man and a very cool, Missoni-lined trenchy type of coat for moi! Gotta love it. When I entered the store, women were already exiting with large packed bags in hand, smiling. I quickly dashed up to the first salesperson and asked where the Missoni was! He said in a slow drawl, "Miss who?" I don't know where that lady is." Nevermind! I have a nose for tracking so I just hit all the end isles and found the Missoni displays and threw whatever was left in my size in the shopping cart. Paying for my booty, the check-out woman said, "What is this Missas-sony stuff? I heard it's real big." Ummmm...has been since before she was born but that's okay! The less people down in my neck of the woods know about Missoni, the better my chances are of scoring. When I got home, I laid out my stash on the floor and took a picture of it. On TV that morning the Today show featured all the sold out stores in NYC where people had waited overnight in line to buy the designer line. Hey folks, these things only come around once and no, they don't restock or reorder. When the headlines read:  Retailer's largest limited time designer collection spans more than 400 items, you better get your butt in gear friend. Checking online today, many Missoni items are sold out completely and a few left, mostly in little girls' sizes. Do you have your sneakers on right now? Good, remember how I advised you a few sentences ago that you better get your butt in gear? WOO-HOO: Run down to Target and get some cool p.j.'s or bras before they sell out. Ok, if you live around me, you don't really have to run but your size could sell out, especially the smaller sizes though  I do find that TARGET runs small, very small (go up a size or TWO!). The newest designer collection is by Josie Natori. She's an Asian designer from the Phillipines who creates loungewear and innerwear (fancy word for underwear!). On the Target website she says, "I am honored to be the first limited edition lingerie and loungewear  designer at Taget." Her collection came out last year in December and now again until Feb. 23, 2012. Go on Target and see her stuff. Very feminine without the frills.  LOVE IT! Especially the Captivate ME robe! http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Josie_Natori ON THE ROAD AGAIN: New Orleans  I practically live in my car ( pronounced in the this neck of the woods "VEE-HEE-COAL"). Digging exploration and a smooth ride,  I tootle around. My niece and I shared our first road trip together in 2011.  She picked the destination: NAWLINS. Oh yeah, how cool is that? Been there, done that but a redux is absolutely on order for many years to come. If I could have a vacation condo share, it would be there.  If you haven't been to New Orleans, GO! It is relaxed yet high energy! There's the jazz fest coming up and wouldn't that be the place to be! Jazz & Heritage Festival runs April 27-May 6, for info and band lineups:Jazz& Heritage Festival // April 27 - May 6, 2012 www.nojazzfest.com Po'boys, Cafe du Monde, street performers, tattoo parlors, Tipitinas, fresh oysters, House of Blues, Jackson Square, French Quarters,  Meyers Hat Company (get a very cool hat there!), Antoines for Sunday brunch, Commander's Palace for dinner. OMG. What else is needed in life? I could live and die here.     Meyers Hat Company, New Orleans smART: Ending soon-Jan. 22 at the Knight Gallery sponsored by the Light Factory of Charlotte, NC is the last day to see this stunning black and white photography  exhibit that features the true master photographers of the 60's: Diane Arbus, Robert Frank, Bruce Davidson and others. Understand more about that time in history  and go see  this exhibit at the Light Factory. "Streetwise: Masters of 60's Photography", organized by the Museum of Photographic Arts, Sand Diego, CA. www.lightfactory.org/streetwise. MORE *WOO-HOO's coming next time...now get out and sample your world! *Woo-Hoo's are events that come and go in the blink of an eye! STAY TUNED for more about: http://www.jasonwustudio.com/news/