The author often neglects to cite any source at all for his information, leaving me to wonder exactly where he's getting it and how reliable it is. I have to wonder, for example, about the few women he cites in the book who had illicit relationships with John. I have little respect for, and even less trust in, women who kiss and tell in regards to the Beatles. Think about it -- how many hundreds of women have stories about encounters with the Beatles? But how many do you actually hear talking about it? Most, it seems, are content to treasure their memories in private. So I do wonder about the legitimacy of the very few who have let details slip. In fact, the author seems especially fond of the more sordid or scandalous details, most of which are gleefully relayed free of cumbersome details such as source citation. It makes me wonder about his motivation, certainly.

Not only that but he has gotten several facts just plain wrong; facts that should've been easy to check for accuracy, or even things he would've already known before beginning were he even a moderately ardent fan. For example, he continually refers to "Norm" in A Hard Day's Night as the Beatles' "roadie." "Norm" is absolutely NOT their roadie; he is their manager, based (in position, not personality) on Brian Epstein! That is a very elementary fact and yet he misses it entirely, leading me to wonder if he has even seen the movie at all.

Lastly he has a very irritating fascination with a series of British books featuring a character called William. According to the author, John read these books avidly as a child, and, for some reason, Phillip Norman is obsessed with drawing parallels between John and this William character even though the connection is tenuous, at best. I am only halfway through the book but if I have to read the phrase "Richmal Crompton's William" one more time I may throw my Kindle out the window.

So, bottom line: I'm taking this one with a big ol' grain of salt. There have been some interesting tidbits that I feel are substantiated enough as to be generally believable. And I've been interested to read quotes from some of the players from whom I haven't heard much. But as for whether I buy it all as gospel? Heck no. It's certainly not a threat to become the new definitive biography of John, that's certain.

Digital Mystery Tour: The Beatles' First Video Game

If you’ve always bragged that you could play the drum part in “Helter Skelter” better than Ringo Starr, you may soon get your chance to prove it in a video game based on the music of the Beatles. The game developer Harmonix and the publisher MTV Games, creators of the music game Rock Band, announced in a conference call on Thursday that they had entered into a partnership with the Beatles’ Apple Corps Ltd. to produce an interactive game that would offer players “an experiential journey” through the Fab Four’s music and history, according to Alex Rigopulos, chief executive of Harmonix. Paul McCartney and Mr. Starr, as well as Olivia Harrison and Yoko Ono, have all approved the as-yet-untitled game. Giles Martin, son of the Beatles’ producer, George Martin, will serve as the project’s music producer.

If anything could make me by a video game console, this would be it.

As an added bonus this year, I have decided to take Madalyn with me. She has wanted to go for a couple of years now but I have staved her off, partly because of her age and partly because I wasn't willing to relinquish my "me time." But after being lonely for the entire weekend this past trip, I realized that the novelty of attending alone may be wearing off and I may be ready for some company. She will be 8.5 by trip time, and acts older. She's also really good with staying up late, which is an essential part of the weekend. I think she'll enjoy a lot of it. And, being that I don't have my head completely in the clouds, I plan to procure some portable entertainment devices between now and then which she can bring with her in case she finds she simply can't listen to music for another minute. It never hurts to have backup.

At any rate, sometime in the next week or so I will be putting down a deposit for my weekend pass (Madalyn will be free). The deposit will enable me to then reserve our room at the special AROTR rate. Rooms are limited this year as there are other conventions going on in Louisville that weekend, so I plan to get this all locked in right away.

Only 9 months to go!

Now, THERE'S a surprise. NOOOOOOOOOOOT.

I'd say what I really think of this woman but I'm afraid my mother might surf in here from my regular blog. I'll just include this link again: Suck it, Stumpy. (Please wait for a moment for the entire animation to load. It's worth it. Trust me.)

P.S. in regards to the "Stumpy" comment: I would never make fun of your average amputee. I make a special exception for gold-digging, horse-faced amputees who screw over people about whom I care.

(Thanks to my friend Dave for the link!)

Last year, in emailing back and forth with (promoter) Gary Jacob, he made several comments that lead me to believe last year might be the end, including saying something along the lines of "IF we have one next year...." and a couple other things that made it clear he doubted there would be one. Then, when months and months went by with no update to the AROTR site (in previous years the following year's dates and info had been put up within a week of the festival ending) I thought, for sure, it was D.O.A. So I was pleasantly surprised and thrilled when I found it was going on this year, after all.

However, I've just been reading the guest book at the AROTR site and I have seen another not-so-veiled comment from Gary that makes it fairly clear (to me, anyway) that 2008 will be the final year for AROTR. What's strange is, conversation on the guest book has continued as though nobody has grasped the significance of Gary's response.

This is part of the initial comment, left by an AROTR attendee:

Here is something to ponder. What if it didn't come back? For instance what if next year there wasn't an AROTR in Louisvlle? As John Lennon said..."you don't know what you got until you lose it."

And here is Gary's editorial note, placed just below:

Editor: pretty intuitive post...I would enjoy the event this year, too.

Now, is it just me, or is is pretty bloody obvious he's sounding the death knell for the festival? I wonder if people really didn't catch the meaning behind it, or whether they are just in denial.

At any rate, it's very sad. It will be very much missed. I will have to find a new annual "me trip" and nothing is going to quite capture the flavor of AROTR.

I love finding random little nods to the boys like that, when I'm least expecting it.

The last time I mentioned it on this blog it was still my intention to attend AROTR '07 with a then-eight-week-old Eliza in tow. Once she was born, though, and I realize she is demon spawn I decided that the trip most certainly fell under the category of "More Trouble Than it's Worth". So my plans were scrapped and I pinned my hopes on AROTR '08, and now my patience will be rewarded. Gary, the head of AROTR, has promised to exchange my unused '07 pass for an '08 pass and my hotel room is already reserved. All I'm lacking is my plane ticket, which shouldn't be a problem.

The only bummer is that Madalyn has asked to go with me and I'm going to have to turn her down, I think. I was considering it; I have always thought I might like to take her at some point in the future. I just don't think this is that point. As mature as she is, she's still only seven years old. It's not like I go there to party and raise hell and do things she shouldn't be allowed to see. But I do keep pretty late hours there (there's a midnight concert series, for example) and one of the perks of the trip is being able to sleep late every morning, which I couldn't do if she was along (the child is up by 8 a.m. no matter how late she goes to bed). Also, I know she loves the Beatles, but how much could a second-grader really take before she got antsy and wanted to do other things? There are no "other things" for me while I'm there. It's all Beatles, all the time, from Thursday afternoon through Monday morning. If I travel all that way I'm sure going to see as much of the festival as I can. It seems to me to defeat the purpose to go there if I'm going to be spending most of the day doing non-festival activities.

And then there's the fact that this trip has always been about "me time". On a practical level I have to admit that I go alone because I have no one to go with me, even if I wanted company. Robert isn't a huge fan of the Beatles and any friends who'd consider going can't afford to do so. But, on a more personal level, the truth is I LIKE going by myself. If I didn't I wouldn't have gone a second time and tried to go a third last year. It is damned near heavenly to get away for five days and do whatever I want, whenever I want, without having to think about anyone else. And the silence.....dear God, the silence.....I've never heard anything so lovely. I'm not just talking about escaping my kids, either. It's nice to be there without anyone else, big or small. I can come and go as I please without feeling like I have to spend X amount of time or see any concerts I don't really feel like seeing. I don't have to mesh my schedule or preferences with anyone else's. It's just a refreshing change of pace for me and will be doubly special this year as it will be my first getaway since Robert started being gone for work so much. Heck, I don't even mind the trip there when I'm by myself. I rather look forward to boarding the plane with my one little bag in hand and getting caught up on some reading.

Anyway, the bottom line is I just don't think this is Madalyn's year, partly for selfish reasons but partly for her own good. I don't think she'd have nearly as much fun as she thinks she'd have and would probably have had her fill by Friday night. I am thinking that 2010 is what I'll be shooting for in terms of taking her along. I really hope they are still having AROTR then because I do think it's something we could enjoy together if she were a bit older.

Help!

I still have my DVD from when it was available about ten years ago but it's just the movie. This has extras! And it's remastered! And it has a deluxe edition!

I may buy two, just because I can.

Thank you, oh Apple gods. Now, would it be too frigging much to ask to get that "Let it Be" DVD we've been promised for about a kajillion years now?

(Keep watching this space. I have decided my next project is to rank the songs on each individual album from favorite to least favorite. It's the closest I'll ever come to picking my favorite Beatles songs.)

Also I have looked up the info on a Louisville car company. A week or two before I leave I am going to call and inquire about rates. If it's not too outrageous I may reserve a car to come and pick us up at the airport. Much cleaner and nicer to ride in than a crummy taxi and I will have baby girl's car seat to strap in and I think I'd have better luck in a Towncar or something than in a taxi. I may even really splurge and hire a limo. That will depend on pricing, though. It depends how much more it is than a cab. Mad had her first limo ride at a few months old and Johnny was only five weeks so the newbie will be about due for her first. ;)

This leaves me with a bit of a dilemma. Do I watch, or not? Do I boycott the show in protest over, number one, that woman being called a "star", and, two, the fact that the only reason she's been asked to be on is because she was married to someone famous and is now leveling false accusations at him? Or do I just watch, as planned? Because if I do watch, it won't be because she's on. I am a Dancing with the Stars fan. I love the show and have been watching it since the beginning. So I wouldn't be supporting their apparent determination to embrace sordidness -- I'd have been watching no matter who was on.

I just really resent that this has happened. I know what they are going to do -- they will play up the whole amputee angle of it but when it comes down to brass tacks the bottom line is the producers wouldn't have given her the time of day if she wasn't embroiled in a bitter divorce battle with one of the world's greatest musicians. It's very unfortunate that the powers that be have chosen to take this route. It cheapens the entire show; a show which, I'll admit, though I love, was a bit on the cheesy side to begin with.

It would be much easier if I hated the show; then I could just wish the entire series ill and be done with it.

It did just occur to me, however, that I have the DVD of the last tour in my cabinet and I have not watched it yet. It's a poor substitute but better than none at all. I guess I will have to haul it out tomorrow and take a walk down memory lane.

To some that might sound ill-advised or, at the very least, more trouble than it's worth. However, I should point out I do have experience traveling with infants. Madalyn's first plane trip was at 8 weeks. John-Zachary's? 5 weeks. I was accompanied by Robert both of those times but I have to say that after dealing with a six-year-old and a three-year-old all day, every day, having only a two-month-old to worry about will be like a walk in the park, by comparison.

As for the actual festival I think it's very conducive to bringing small children. A lot of the concerts are outdoors, which means a crying baby would be less noticeable and which also means you can remove yourself from the immediate area so as not to bother people, but still be within range to hear the music. The weather the past two years has been very mild. Heat shouldn't be a problem. There are indoor concerts, most of which I attend. These have assigned seating so leaving and returning mid-concert is simple. I won't lose my seat if I have to leave for a little while. Additionally the hotel is on the actual grounds of the festival. I simply ride the elevator downstairs and walk out the back door and I'm there. This makes it easy to take multiple breaks throughout the day. I think if the hotel was at another location I probably wouldn't consider going because it wouldn't be logistically feasible.

At the end of May the baby will still be in the "lump" stage and therefore will be very portable. I intend to take both the stroller and the sling; the stroller being for leaving the hotel area to go eat or shop and the sling being for wear at the festival. At eight weeks old she should still be content to spend most of her time in the sling and really all I will need to have on hand for her will be a few extra diapers thrown into my bag, as her meals will be "on tap", so to speak. I always take either a backpack or a large-ish bag with a long handle that I can hang on my person, anyway, and her itty-bitty diapers and maybe a burp cloth and a bib won't require much extra room.

So, as of right now, I am going to forge ahead with the plans on the assumption I will definitely be going. The first order of business is to buy my weekend pass, upon which I will be sent a special confirmation code to get the festival rate for the hotel room, which I will then book. Then all that will remain is to book the airline tickets. Depending on how finances look I will need to decide if I want to get only myself a ticket and hold her the whole way there or whether I want to splurge and buy her her own seat. That would be my preference. It is SO nice to have somewhere to set the baby down, especially if she actually falls asleep. Then mommy gets a little reading time or time for a snack. We'll just have to play it by ear, though. The ticket would be half-price so if I can book early enough to get a good deal it won't be totally outrageous. Also depending on finances I may hire a car to come get us at the airport rather than going the taxi cab route, but that's last on the priority list.

Four months to go!

I miss you, John.