This is the perfect weather to clean the house!  I started working on it last weekend and now this weekend I'm hauling old stuff/clothes over to Savers.  I love getting rid of things that we no longer use.  It's going to be so awesome to get rid of some of the clutter!!  It may sound strange to be excited about cleaning (which I generally dislike) but I guess I'm just in the mood to get 'er done!   PS - if anyone knows how I would go about getting rid of (a lot) of old pieces of wood that are in my basement, drop me an email.   Mary 

Today and tomorrow you can see Rissi Palmer perform for FREE at the Minnesota State Fair!   She has a new song that we are playing on K102 called "No Air".  She also has her own mycountry page, so look her up!  Her shows are today at NOON and 3:30pm and tomorrow (Friday) again at NOON and 3:30pm.  She is performing in the Leinie Lodge Bandshell.  Also, check out the band Kingbilly after Rissi's shows.  I saw them play in Nashville and they are cool up and coming group!

Hey!

Join K102 tonight for Crystal Shawanda's CD Release party at the Cabooze!  $10 gets you a copy of her new CD "Dawn Of A New Day" and the (full band) live performance.  If you've seen Crystal's shows before (she played at the Lightening Run) you already know it's a high energy fun show.  She will also stay and sign autographs afterwords.  Hope to see you there!  It's and 18 plus show.  Doors open at 6pm and the concert is at 8pm.  PS - The CD is absolutely awesome! 

Here's a review of the album I just found online from the Associated Press:

The Associated Press State & Local Wire

August 18, 2008 Monday 8:06 PM GMT

Music Review: Shawanda shows power on debut

BYLINE: By MICHAEL McCALL, For The Associated Press


Crystal Shawanda, "Dawn Of A New Day" (RCA Nashville)

A Native American raised on a reservation in Ontario, Canada, Crystal Shawanda owns an amped-up voice and a professed love for old-school country, shouting out to Patsy Cline in her lyrics and covering the Hank Williams' classic "Your Cheatin' Heart."

But the rest of "Dawn Of A New Day," the 27-year-old's debut album, rocks as aggressively as any contemporary country album of 2008. Her bluesy, in-your-face style crosses the vocal pyrotechnics of Carrie Underwood with the uncompromising soul power of Mary J. Blige. This is country music flexed and fueled to connect with those who listen to modern rock and Alicia Keys-style urban pop.

Lyrically, Shawanda focuses on autobiographical tunes describing where she comes from ("Evolution"), where she's going (the title cut) and what a man should realize about her ("My Roots Are Showing"). She falters when she stifles her individuality for generic Nashville sentimentality, as in the ballad "You Can Let Go." She's much better when slow songs include a sweet- soul sway, as in "Tender Side."

Fortunately, most of "Dawn Of A New Day" suggests Nashville has discovered another strong female vocalist capable of establishing her own point of view.

CHECK THIS OUT: "I Need A Man," set to Midwestern roots-rock guitar crunch, shows an unfettered lustfulness that other female country singers don't dare reveal.

Two Bigfoot hunters claim they have the body of one and plan to release a photo and what they claim is DNA evidence at a news conference in Palo Alto on Friday.

The Bigfoot is claimed to have been found in the woods of northern Georgia by Matthew Whitton and Rick Dyer, and the claim is being supported by a Bay Area Bigfoot researcher Tom Biscardi, a multiple local Democratic candidate.

The press release as follows. A site claiming to have the first pics is down, but here's the link in case it comes back up, although the pic top right is said to be one of the shots currently available. Other sites are suggesting this could be the "real deal;" who knows, we'll have to wait for the press conference and the proof.  Read below because they post the specs on the big foot too!

Here's the picture.  Don't freak out.

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
August 12, 2008
BIGFOOT BODY FOUND
DNA evidence and photo evidence to be presented at a
PRESS CONFERENCE
to be held on
Date: Friday, August 15, 2008
Time: From 12Noon-1:00pm
Place: Cabana Hotel-Palo Alto (A Crown Plaza Resort) 4290 El Camino Real, Palo Alto, California 94306

Searching for Bigfoot, Inc. Menlo Park, California
Tom Biscardi, CEO

BIGFOOT BODY FOUND - EVIDENCE AND DNA DETAILS TO BE PRESENTED AT A PRESS CONFERENCE ON FRIDAY, AUGUST 15th

FROM 12 N00N TO 1:00PM AT THE CABANA HOTEL-PALO ALTO IN PALO ALTO, CALIFORNIA

A body that may very well be the body of the creature commonly known as "Bigfoot" has been found in the woods in northern Georgia.

DNA evidence and photo evidence of the creature will be presented in a press conference on Friday, August 15th from 12 Noon to 1:00pm at the Cabana Hotel-Palo Alto at 4290 El Camino Real in Palo Alto, California, 94306. The press conference will not be open to the public. It will only be open to credentialed members of the press.
Here are some of the vital statistics on the "Bigfoot" body:
*The creature is seven feet seven inches tall.
*It weighs over five hundred pounds.
*The creature looks like it is part human and part ape-like.
*It is male.
*It has reddish hair and blackish-grey eyes.
*It has two arms and two legs, and five fingers on each hand and
five toes on each foot.
*The feet are flat and similar to human feet.
*Its footprint is sixteen and three-quarters inches long and five and three-quarters inches wide at the heel.
*From the palm of the hand to the tip of the middle finger, its hands are
eleven and three-quarters inches long and six and one-quarter inches wide.
*The creatures walk upright. (Several of them were sighted on the same day that the body was found.)
*The teeth are more human-like than ape-like.
*DNA tests are currently being done and the current DNA and photo evidence will be presented at the press conference on Friday, August 15th.

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Jewel Marries Longtime Boyfriend

Friday, August 08, 2008

Jewel and her longtime boyfriend, rodeo champion Ty Murray, eloped to the Bahamas and exchanged vows in a private ceremony on Thursday night, her rep told People magazine.

"She wore a traditional wedding gown, while Ty wore his favorite blue jeans, white shirt and cowboy hat," said Jewel's rep. "The couple is very happy and look forward to enjoying their honeymoon."

The pair, who never announced an engagement, have been together for 10 years and share a 2,200-acre ranch in Stephenville, Texas.

Murray, 38, who hosted Ty Murray's Celebrity Bull-Riding Challenge on CMT last year, currently stars in the video for his wife's new country single, "I Do."

At a charity event in Nashville days before the wedding, Jewel, 34, said of marriage, "It's something that needs to be taken seriously."

 AP