B R P profile picture

B R P

You're only as old as you act.

About Me


............summer camp....thu may 22nd thru sun may 25th at three sisters park near peoria..........35th telluride bluegrass festival....thu june 19th thru sun june 22nd...........b.b. king at the siu arena....sat october 4th.........
I like nothing more than to watch fine musicians ply their trade. Watching live music brings me the most joy. I feel lucky to live in a place that has an incredible local music scene with bands of a wide range of genres. Southern Illinois is also home to the Shawnee National Forest, which has an abundance of beautiful locations for hiking, camping, swimming and general frolicking. So I love where I live and I absolutely love what I do! I like to describe my job by saying that I have 125 people that work for me, none of them get paid, and they all love it so much that that's OK. I'm the manager at WDBX, the community radio station in Carbondale, Illinois. It is the highest honor of my life to serve in this position and to be able to empower so many great people to have a forum to express themselves.
Please check us out! Live streaming at www.wdbx.org . Tune in for my show "The Brain is a Ripening Plant" Mondays noon-2pm central.
I've got a pretty cool second job as well, as a union stagehand, IATSE local 421. We work mostly at the Carson Center in Paducah, which brings in a lot of traveling Broadway shows and other events.
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My Interests

Live music, festivating (especially the Telluride Bluegrass Festival, next one's my 11th), SIU Saluki basketball, Saluki baseball, St. Louis Cardinal baseball, Chicago Bears, shooting pool and a well-made Long Island Iced Tea

I'm blessed to be part of a big group of music-loving friends known as "The Herd". We're all horses in disguise and have become scattered throughout the country from Seattle to Florida. Some of us even have horse names. These include Sugarfoot, Knothead, Buttercup, Mr. Greenbottles, Spooky, Wildfire, Lightning, Dub, Lady Luck, Snapdragon, Mud King, Tornado and Peaches to name a few.
I'm Sea Basket.

I'd like to meet:

Jerry Garcia, Bobby Kennedy, Martin Luther King Jr., Sacajawea, Carl Sagan, Timothy Leary, Hunter S. Thompson, Janis Joplin, John Lennon, Bob Marley, Gus Grissom, Gene Roddenberry, Johnny Carson, John Belushi, Bill Hicks and Lew Hill .
Guess I'll have to wait a little bit...

The live person I'd really like to meet is Henry Rollins, who has so many great quotes about stuff, my favorite being:

"Listen to the stage manager and get on stage when they tell you to. No one has time for the rockstar bullshit. None of the techs backstage care if you're David Bowie or the milkman. When you act like a jerk, they are completely unimpressed with the infantile display that you might think comes with your dubious status. They were there hours before you building the stage and they will be there hours after you tearing it down. They should get your salary and you should get theirs."

Music:

Yonder Mountain String Band, Railroad Earth, Cornmeal, Leftover Salmon, Emmitt-Nershi Band, Bela Fleck, Sam Bush, Tim O'Brien, Junior Brown, New Monsoon, The Hackensaw Boys, Drive By Truckers, The Del McCoury Band, David Grisman, Sarah Jarosz, The Horse Flies, Blueground Undergrass, Uncle Earl, Hot Buttered Rum String Band, Jason Ringenberg, Split Lip Rayfield, Keller Williams, Medeski Martin and Wood, STS9, Laurie McClain, Anais Mitchell, Sarah McLachlan, Natalie Merchant, Kasey Chambers, Kate Bush, Tori Amos, and a slew of Carbondale and other regional bands like, The Woodbox Gang, Bosco and Whiteford, Defined Perception, The Bourbon Knights, Skinny Jim & the No.9 Blacktops, Moon Buggy Kids, Slappin' Henry Blue w/Tawl Paul, SIWADE (So.Ill. West African Drum Ensemble), Alan Vasquez, Spare Parts, Tiffany Christopher, Randy Crouch, oh yeah The Grateful Dead, Widespread Panic and a ton more.

Woodbox Gang "Born With a Tail"

Woodbox Gang "The Hanging of Charlie Birger"

Movies:

2001, All That Jazz, O Brother Where Art Thou?, Swimming to Cambodia, The Blues Brothers, The Big Lebowski, Pootie Tang, Super Troopers, Contact, Blade Runner, Brazil, Fight Club, The Day the Earth Stood Still, Spinal Tap, Pulp Fiction, Last Tango in Paris, Boogie Nights, Almost Famous, Different Drummer: the Story of Jesco White pts. 1 & 2, anything with Claire Danes, Julia Stiles or Alison Lohman, anything with Godzilla

An Inconvenient Truth should be seen by every citizen.

Television:

Family Guy, Survivorman, Venture Bros, Futurama, The Daily Show, Breaking Bad, House, Nova, any poker tournament, sports and CNN. Mostly I watch all the Discovery, History and Science channels.
I miss The West Wing!
Bill O'Reilly, Jerry Springer and Martha Stewart can all kiss my pale white ass!
I despise so-called reality television, which is neither reality or television.

Books:

The Celestine Prophecy, Stranger in a Strange Land, Men are From Mars Women are From Venus, Hitchhikers Guide to the Galaxy, The Stand
I really should read more books (too much damn television).

Heroes:

Bobby Kennedy, Edward R. Murrow, US Senator Paul Simon, the guy that stood in front of the tank in Tianemen Square, all the responders on 9-11, all the men and women who serve or have served in the United States Military, even if their Commander-in-Chief is a moron.
Events by Eventful
Name: brian, BRP, fuzzy, sea basket
Birthdate: june 17, the same day as OJ's slow speed chase and the break-in at watergate
Birthplace: landstuhl germany. dad was in the army corps of engineers stationed near there. we left when i was 6 mos. old, so i have no memories of it. love to go someday
Current Location: i live by the boro, work and party in the dale in beautiful so ill
Eye Color: blue
Hair Color: the only part not grey now is a bit of my mustache. i didn't get my college nickname "fuzzy" by accident, however i'm done having long hair. short from now on. real short. i got sick of peeps hollerin' "hey jerry garcia!" and if you must know, i now shave several areas of my body including my back, shoulders and arms which all would resemble bigfoot if left unattended. i'll be keeping the chest smoothly mowed
Height: 6 foot even
Weight: 265, which is about 50 lbs too much
Piercings: just 1, the left ear, but i got it in 1978 when it was really radical
Tatoos: none yet
Boyfriend/Girlfriend: nope
FAVORITES
Food: chinese
Candy: reese's peanut butter cups
Number: 8, i grew up at 888 westgate
Color: blue
Animal: horse
Drink: cola
Alcohol Drink: dank beer or long island ice tea or whiskey or when in telluride, the russian qualuude
Bagel: must be winston's bagel man here in carbondale, right after a show, toasted with lots of cream cheese, veggies, raisins and sunflower seeds. they should have hot bagel stands outside every concert venue in the country!
Letter: anything with a check in it! oh you mean letter of the alphabet...how stupid is that?
Body Part on Opposite sex: lips
This or That
Pepsi or Coke: coke
McDonalds or BurgerKing: or wendys or taco bell or kfc or arbys or subway
Strawberry or Watermelon: strawberry and don't forget the cool whip
Hot tea or Ice tea: ice tea with lemon and no sugar
Chocolate or Vanilla chocolate
Hot Chocolate or Coffee: i don't drink coffee, does that make me weird?
Kiss or Hug: i'm told i'm a very good hugger, but nuthin' beats kissing! (oh wait, something DOES beat kissing)
Dog or Cat: dog, cats are for punting (no lena, not really)
Rap or Punk: do you know why they call it freestyle?
....'cause you get what you pay for!

Summer or Winter: summer
Scary Movies or Funny Movies: funny
Love or Money: wish i had either
YOUR...
Bedtime: ideally, i like to nap from 8-10pm, then stay up til 5am. if i don't get my nap then i'm down by 2am. rise and shine by the crack of noon. however each of my jobs sometimes requires a goofy sleep schedule
Most Missed Memory: mom
Best physical feature: i have strong legs, since i have to haul my large self around. somehow i was voted among the "prettiest eyes" on facebook, but i don't know how
First Thought Waking Up: turn on CNN, then take a piss
Goal for this year: i'd like to lose 15 more pounds so i can qualify for health insurance. it's about time for all those extended warranty checkups
Heritage: pretty good long story. the nutshell is dad's family was forced to flee nazi germany just before ww2. before they left grandma helped smuggle friends belongings across the border, plus more drama to keep aunt out of hitler youth. got out and joined grandpa just in time, settled in chicago
Longest relationship: 2 years, but it's been 29 since i've had one so i'm probably ruined. i mean who could learn to compromise after being single that long? i'm sure i'd be some psycho jealous control freak! but who knows. hope springs eternal
HAVE YOU...
Ever Drank: duh
Ever Smoked: no cigarettes, but i do like a good cigar once in a while
Pot: don't smoke nuthin' that don't smoke you back!
Ever been Drunk: well yeah, but nowadays i never get too smashed because i have to drive home. i follow the 5 rules! rule #1: drive the speed limit! rule #2: don't swerve! rule #3: signal every turn & lane change! rule #4: come to a full & complete stop at every stop sign! rule #5: assume every other car is a cop until proven otherwise!
Ever been beaten up: the only time i was ever beaten up was as a 7th grade transfer student to an all latino school in inner-city chicago. i was a patrol boy and the other patrol boys jumped me in the bathroom. it was like an initiation. we were all cool after that. my one and only gang membership
Ever beaten someone up: no, but i've broken up a few fights. it's kinda fun. i usually outweigh any combatants by 80 lbs or so
Ever Shoplifted: yes, but not in a very very long time. who wants to be on candid camera?
Ever Skinny Dipped: whenever possible. see daryl hannah naked blog
Ever Kissed Opposite sex: wtf!...is this survey for a 14 year-old???
Been Dumped Lately: ah no, i've only dumped myself
IN A GUY/GIRL
Favorite Eye Color: anything but red
Favorite Hair Color: anything but bleached
Short or Long: couldn't care less
Height: couldn't care less
Style: clean
Looks or Personality: both
Hot or Cute theres a difference?
Drugs and Alcohol: a must (although no heroin, crack, meth or tobacco please)
Muscular or Really Skinny: or rubenesque or petite or tall or any other kind
RANDOMS
Number of Regrets in the Past: plenty...i'm beginning to regret taking this survey!
What country do you want to Visit: australia and germany
How do you want to Die: in the arms of my love if i ever have one, otherwise let it be a mystery
Been to the Mall Lately: nope
Do you like Thunderstorms: i love 'em! i live on top of a hill in a house with a tin roof!
Get along with your Parents: absolutely. mom passed in 1999 and dad's remarried a great lady
Health Freak: no, just a freak
Do you think your Attractive: naw...too fat
Believe in Yourself: most of the time, but first i believe i'll have another drink

Do you Drink: what is all this preoccupation about drinking???
Shower Daily: usually every other day, save water
Been in Love: no, just long term unrequited loves and a never-ending series of crushes
Do you Sing: i know 5 songs i can sing: el paso, monkey and the engineer, promised land, long-haired country boy and the canadian national anthem
Want to get Married: no
Do you want Children: i have 1 daughter grown already
Have your future kids names planned out: if somehow i was to ever have a boy his name would be eric reinhard
Age you wanna lose your Virginity: i WAS 16....yes this survey IS for 14 year-olds! btw it was to the song "you are the sunshine of my life" by stevie wonder
Hate anyone: no, but i have a strong distain for about half-a-dozen
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My Blog

so ill a rollin

It was like a butt massage from Mother Nature. I swear it really did feel like fingers rubbin' my butt.  We've just had a earthquake at 4:37am and the only reason I was up to feel it was I was sc...
Posted by B R P on Fri, 18 Apr 2008 04:55:00 PST

silver chariot from heaven

"Just when life looks like Easy Street, there is danger at your door" says the Grateful Dead.  They outta know.   So I parked my trusty 1989 Toyota Corolla Wagon with 272,000 miles on it in ...
Posted by B R P on Fri, 11 Apr 2008 01:47:00 PST

i bleed maroon

Good things always end too soon.  This year’s Saluki basketball season is over after a second-round exit in the NIT at the hands of Arizona State.  Our beloved Dawgs were undermanned a...
Posted by B R P on Sat, 22 Mar 2008 10:53:00 PST

words never spoken by jim morrison

Come on people, let's get this straight. Never did Jim Morrison ever sing the line, "I woke up this morning and I got myself a beer."  He sings, "I woke up IN MOURNING and I got myself a beer. Th...
Posted by B R P on Sun, 09 Mar 2008 12:09:00 PST

the bell

OK, time to tell another classic story from back in the day.  My dad is in the Boy Scouts.  Still, to this day.  A few years ago he actually received an award for 50 years of service to...
Posted by B R P on Sat, 05 Jan 2008 10:11:00 PST

2972 miles

The short version:  Telluride was great!  The weather was wonderful, only a few spats of piddle, barely enough to keep the dust down.  As always the music was incredible, and this time ...
Posted by B R P on Tue, 03 Jul 2007 07:03:00 PST

i despise me

I have become the thing I despise.  Recently I got a cell phone, because well it was time for me to have one to properly do my job.  I swore on the air I'd never become one of those "cell ph...
Posted by B R P on Tue, 08 May 2007 04:57:00 PST

goodbye mary lou

Mary Lou Trammel has passed away at the age of 72 after a battle with cancer.  One of Carbondale's most original personalities has gone.  I have so many memories of Mary Lou, from my very fi...
Posted by B R P on Fri, 15 Dec 2006 12:10:00 PST

hairspray

I should have posted this right after the show, but hey, I’m the world’s biggest procrastinator!  As you know if you’ve read my other blogs, I do stagehand work on the side.&nbs...
Posted by B R P on Wed, 22 Nov 2006 03:17:00 PST

daryl hannah naked

I figure it's a good idea to tell a few old classic stories of my life from time to time.  Back in June 1999, in my second year at Telluride I had the pleasure of being naked with Daryl Hannah.&n...
Posted by B R P on Thu, 05 Oct 2006 02:26:00 PST