Ah, it was a year.
Covid finally came for my ass. Twice. After evading this thing for so long, I caught the crud while out in LA during February, and then on Christmas Day. Should you catch the dang thing, get your hands on the antiviral drugs (Paxlovid, molnupravir). My first time around was a nightmare and it took me 10 days to test negative. With the antivirals, it was 5.
Obviously, the best advice I can give you is to NOT CATCH IT, but that would involve all of us doing things like making sure we’re vaxxed and boosted, as well as masking up and testing on the regular. Instead we’ve completely normalized this awful virus, which is devastating. But you don’t need me to talk about this, just have a listen to Death Panel’s annual “Year In Covid” episode.
Monty had a bunch of surgery. I discovered the stairs in my house were structurally unsound and had to be replaced. I had some weird health shit going on. My beloved porch cat unexpectedly died. The student loans started back up. I got promoted at work, again, but felt more burnt out than ever. I didn’t get a chance to make as much music as I wanted.
It could have been a lot worse, and I’m glad I managed to weather it. But thank god for music, being able to move my body, and having truly wonderful people in my life. I don’t know how I would have coped otherwise.
Your pal,
Maria T
Music
Here’s the thing, I bought a lot of stuff this year, mostly from friends, nearly all of it from record shops, direct from the artist, at shows, and as a person that doesn’t keep track of this shit, please do not take your exclusion from this list as a knock or dislike—I truly enjoyed it all.
Bill Orcutt, Ava Mendoza, Wendy Eisenberg, Shane Parish “Music for Four Guitars” at Solar Myth (3/26/23). There are some very distinct moments in my life where watching music made me feel like the universe has been split open, and this performance joins that list. Like a bluesy Die Donnergotter, it did not disappoint. I held my breath for the whole goddamn thing and never wanted it to end.
The Hated at Earleigh Heights Volunteer Fire Company (Severna Park, MD – 1/15/23) and at Numero Twenty (Los Angeles, CA – 2/19/23). Some of the bands that reunited at Numero Twenty did not put in the mileage before their performances, and then there was the Hated, who clearly clocked in a lot of hours between that first performance in MD where the PA blew up and hitting the stage in LA. Well done, sirs.
Unwound at Numero Twenty (Los Angeles, CA – 2/18/23) and Union Transfer (3/15/23). Pretty wild to see so many young kids at these reunion shows, but they’re all the same exact age I was when I saw the band in their prime and it was like they never stopped touring. I don’t even know what to say except that this was SO GOOD and I would see them a million times more if I could.
Quasi at Johnny Brenda’s (3/17/23). Janet Fucking Weiss. What more do I even need to say?
We Are Fugazi From Washington D.C. at AFI Silver (Silver Spring, MD – 2/11/23) and PhilaMOCA (6/11/23). You wouldn’t think a film that consists solely of live performances of Fugazi and very little in the way of talking heads would be very interesting, but this project from Jeff Krulik, Joseph Pattisall, and Joe Gross proves you dead wrong. Many of the selections are available online but there is a world of difference when you’re watching them on your iPhone at 2PM and when they’re projected on a giant screen with quality sound. I only got to see Fugazi exactly once despite being a longtime fan, so this was a treat for me, in particular the 1991 performance of “Suggestion” featuring Amy Pickering on vocals. I had only heard stories about this show, so to finally see it continues to send chills down my spine.
Mdou Moctar at Central Park Summerstage (7/29/23). Yeah that was absolutely worth getting drenched in a rainstorm while wearing a white dress for. To give that performance in the midst of all that was happening in Mdou’s home was a reminder of how good we have it here, even when everything is still pretty fucking terrible. May 2024 see an end to all the pain and destruction happening throughout the world.
Tom Verlaine’s Book Sale somewhere in Brooklyn, NY (8/27/23). The stupidest line and the stupidest wait to buy a dead rock legend’s books. But I’d do it all over again.
High Bias Book Event with Marc Masters at Partner & Son (10/27/23). I don’t care if I joined Marc for this conversation, this is my blog and this book is great. I am beyond humbled that Marc invited me along for a tour stop, because this kind of thing is completely out of my wheelhouse. I hope everyone had a good time and learned something about this great book.
Velocity Girl at the Black Cat 30th Anniversary Party (DC – 9/9/23). Thank you for playing your la-la shit. This was perfect and my request is this: Can you guys please reissue all the Sub Pop albums because the prices for copies on Discogs is fucking outrageous.
Lewsberg at Jerry’s (9/22/23). I don’t really get too amped up about shows but all I could think about for a solid month before this was how I was going to finally see Lewsberg, and then for a solid month after I was like, “Oh fuck, I got to see Lewsberg and my life is complete now.” I fell hard for their jangly John Cale half-spoken twee nonsense in the earliest days of the pandemic and never looked back. They make it look so fucking easy. It’s not. Dutch rock is alive and well.
Moving About
I ran a 5K. Now, you might think someone who has figure skated their entire life would be good at running, but no. I started going on a weekly run during the pandemic and it seems to be pretty OK? I didn’t follow “Couch to 5K” plan, and during most of my runs, I walk a lot of it. I signed up for the Gritty 5K literally days before, with no real plan, and mostly I was shocked that a) I ran the distance in 43 minutes and b) I actually ran the entirety of it. First timer’s luck, I suppose, which I’ll probably never replicate.
I did more surfing. I took a few more lessons this year (thanks Primal Surf in Brigantine!) and muddled through. I’m slowly getting the hang of catching the wave, popping up, and standing up (for 5 seconds). But the majority of my time spent in the water was really just learning how to read it and understanding what conditions are most comfortable for my skill level, as I discovered what happens when that’s not the case (ouch). Keeping my fingers crossed that this year I can buy my own board, although I have no idea where I could possibly stash it in the house, and get to do some surfing with friends.
I bought an ebike (and then it was stolen). After a year of researching ebikes I sprung for an Aventon Abound as a birthday gift to myself. I always wanted a moped, so having a cargo ebike was the best of both worlds. A month later it was stolen while seeing the Breeders at the Fillmore. To add insult to injury, they took my fucking bike helmet. Come on. I’m still trying to wrangle my insurance to cover the loss as I write this. But let me tell you, that whole month together was a dream, especially on those West Philly hills.
Skating continued, as always. After 6 years of competiting and whatnot, I made the intentional choice to cut back my skating. The pandemic, work, my finances, my skills/progress, and the culture of the adult skating community factored into it. Now I skate once a week on a public session or a paid freestyle (if it’s available), and because I’ve diversified my exercise, I’ve become a better skater in some respects. My speed and power have increased (strength training, who knew?), and so have my general skating skills. I really enjoyed taking Ashley Wagner’s Skate & Sculpt classes when they made their way down to Philly, and drove up to Boston for seminar portion of the Dick Button Artistic Skating Festival.