andrew dodson

I just received word that Dr. Peter LaRue, band director at Georgetown College – and a great influence on my life – was awarded the 2005 Cawthorne Excellence in Teaching Award at Georgetown’s graduation ceremony this morning. This is the highest honor given to faculty members at the College. In Dr. Pete’s case, it’s been long overdue and much deserved.

I received notice via an email from Dr. Pete expressing his gratitude to the many people that have been a part of his life. Here’s part of what he had to say:

My life has always been and remains filled with undeserved blessings – and this is surely one of them. In many ways, I accept this singular honor, not personally, but as representative of the incredible teaching which goes on, and excellence which is present at Georgetown College, day after day, semester after semester – and has been for over two hundred years.

While he was hesitant to mention names while giving his thanks, I was lucky enough to be mentioned in the Gem Alumni category (as “BAD”). I’m honored to be a part of this group and I’m fortunate to have someone like Dr. Pete in my life that has taught me so much.

This one’s for you, Dr. Pete. Grr…

I just found a pretty cool Bible site. Includes Bible studies, devotionals – all sorts of fun stuff. Check it out:

BibleMaster.com

I’ve been doing a bit of wheelin’ and dealin’ with Dwayne.

I traded my Sony earbuds (don’t need ‘em now that I have my Shure E3’s) and my Western Digital 80GB external FireWire drive (haven’t used it in months) for an Iomega 40GB portable FireWire drive – powered by the computer’s FireWire port. Dwayne may’ve gotten the better end of the deal, but I now have something that I’ll actually use for what it’s worth. Here it is:

Tomorrow is Tuesday, May 10th, 2005. That doesn’t bear a lot of significance with most people. Unless, of course, it’s your birthday, or some sort of anniversary. However, in a Dave Matthews Band fan’s mind, tomorrow is a big day. Tomorrow, the DMB will release their newest album, Stand Up. It’s essentially been close to five years since we’ve had a “new” DMB album (2000’s Everyday was filled with all-new songs, as opposed to 2002’s Busted Stuff which featured songs that were leaked from the Lillywhite Sessions, also in 2000).

I’ve been listening to the album off-and-on for the past several days – VH1.com has been streaming the album in its entirety. Quite frankly, I’m not at all impressed, and in my opinion, it may be their worst release yet. But – I’m a sucker, and I’ll do the same thing I do everytime a DMB album is released – buy it as soon as possible. I’ll be heading to the Frankfort Wal-Mart shortly after midnight tonight to buy the CD.

The past 24 hours have been somewhat of a whirlwind. Here’s the run-down:

1. Friday night – Vertex. I was at the church until very, very late.
2. Saturday, 10 a.m. – praise band rehearsal. Following rehearsal, I tore down my drumset (mics and everything) for a Josh Martin Band gig in Pleasureville.
3. Arrived in Pleasureville around 3:00 and started setting up for the gig. Soundchecked and ran through most of the set.
4. The gig started a little after 7 p.m. and went very well. I’m very excited to start working on mixing the tracks for the live CD.
5. After the gig, Josh’s mother-in-law invited the band to her house for hamburgers. It was a very nice gesture, and it hit the spot. None of us had a chance to eat dinner before the show, so we ate very well.
6. Went back to the church around 10 p.m. to start tearing down all the equipment. I started heading home at 11:20 p.m.
7. Midnight – arrived back at Crestwood and loaded all my gear back into the church. I set everything back up and was home by 1:30 a.m.
8. Sunday, 7:45 a.m. – back to Crestwood for the Sunday early service.
9. I was back at my apartment shortly after 11 a.m. today, and that wrapped up my commitments for the weekend. I spent a couple of hours mixing the Vertex recording from Friday night and burning some CDs.

I came home this afternoon, and the weekend has caught up with me. Mom and dad are gone to visit my grandparents, so Bailey and me have been lazy all afternoon and evening.

A few members of Crestwood’s praise band are slowly transitioning to in-ear monitors. We placed an order for Shure E3 earbuds for now, and they arrived yesterday. I tried them out at last night’s Josh Martin Band rehearsal. I had been using my Sony earbuds that I purchased a week ago (see post below).

Overall, there’s positives and negatives about both. The Sony’s provide a better listening experience, with a better frequency response. This is a good thing since they’re designed for listening to music, and not monitoring live sound. However, the cable is a little awkward, and isn’t very discreet. The E3’s are supposed to have a good bass response, but I’m not hearing it. They come with more rubber sleeves than the Sony’s, which enables for more of a custom fit to any size ear. The cable is designed to run to the back of your neck and down your back to be discreet. It also comes with an adjustable sleeve to tighten the cable around the back of your head or neck (prevents a loose cable from getting caught on something, and helps hide the cable better).

I’ve decided to keep the Shure E3’s and sell or return the Sony’s. If you’re needing in-ear monitors for live sound, I’m not sure I’d recommend the E3’s or not. I’m sure there’s better earbuds out there, but you’re also going to pay for it. We were lucky and found these $50 under retail (brand new). If you’re just searching for a good set of earbuds for an MP3 or CD player, I highly recommend the Sony’s (a steal at $50).

A picture of the Shure E3’s

Since leaving state government, I’ve said I’d never return to state government. That was until I discovered the Office of Creative Services. Hmm…

Kentucky: Office of Creative Services – Home

Since moving into my apartment, I’ve been in a war. Like the current (real) war, I thought it would be a short-term problem that would take care of itself quickly. I thought my offensive and defensive schemes were far superior to that of my opponent. Like the insurgents, my opponent has stuck around. Still not powerful enough to win the war, but just strong enough to sting every once in a while. Strong enough to decrease my morale in regards to this war.

My opponent? Lint. Yep – I said lint. This isn’t your ordinary lint though. This is a nasty black lint that comes from my bathroom towels and wash cloths. To this day, they still shed their pesky lint, which covers my bathroom. I’ve washed & dried them over and over again. I wipe out my tub, wipe off the toilet and sink regularly. I sweep the floor. Still, I have lint in my bathroom.

I think I’m at my wit’s end. I might head to a good, quality retail establishment very soon (i.e., NOT Wal-Mart) and pick up some good towels and wash cloths. Maybe they’ll work FOR me, as opposed to AGAINST me.