Tag / Graceland

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Travelling The 50 States – Tennessee

Over my 48 years, I’ve done my fair share of travelling across these United States.  I thought it would be an interesting experiment go look back at those trips to each of the 31 states I have visited (62% isn’t bad, is it?) and see if, and when, I may be returning.  Working in alphabetical order, we continue today with the 16th state to be added to the Union: Tennessee.

State: Tennessee
Joined the Union: 1796
Visits: 3

I’ve made three visits to the Volunteer State, once for fun and twice to charge while heading somewhere else.

My first visit to Tennessee came in June of 2015 as part of a Mother’s Day gift of an Elvis-themed trip.  Things got off to an early start on Saturday morning as we left home around 5 AM and headed south, rolling into Memphis around 2:00.  Our first stop was the Memphis Zoo, where we ran into some pandas and other animals.  After the zoo, we headed to our hotel for some relaxing in the pool, followed by dinner at a charming BBQ joint known as Corky’s, winners of multiple best BBQ awards.  After a long day, it was time to call it a night.

Sunday morning got off to an early, if wet, start at Graceland, home, and eternal resting place, of Elvis Presley.  Aside from the mansion, which is strangely small for what would be considered a mansion, there were a few other attractions to see, including a car museum and his 2 planes.

After lunch at Graceland (a fried peanut butter/banana sandwich, natch), it was time to visit Sun Studios, where Elvis made his first recordings.  While waiting for our tour, we made a quick trip over to the Peabody Hotel, where they have trained ducks hanging out in the lobby, which is supposedly a thing.  Back to Sun for the tour, which included the actual recording studio space, which is still in use at night.  Following the tour, we headed across the border to Arkansas for dinner and the rest of the trip.

My next two stops in Tennessee came in 2021, when I needed to charge my car on the way to and back from Florida.  Both times I was directed to the Dunkin’ Donuts in Manchester, Tennessee, where I was able to make use of the Superchargers while enjoying a nice treat.

Will I return?  I would think so.  At some point, I’d like to make it to Nashville and see what the vibe there is like.

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Top 200 Albums – #101 – 109

itunes_imageNearly 4 years ago, we first counted down the Top 200 albums in my iTunes library. Since that time, I’ve successfully managed to migrate my music collection to a new PC with the stats intact. So, I figured it was time to take another look, based on number of plays from late 2007 through January 1, 2018.

We wrap up the first half with the next batch of 10 albums ranked between #101 and 109, including 6 studio recordings, 2 live performances, and 2 greatest hit packages.

#109: Eminem – The Eminem Show
iTunes stats: 65 plays
Previous Ranking: 74

The fourth studio album from Eminem uses 5 tracks to make up this total.

#109: The Beatles – Abbey Road
iTunes stats: 65 plays
Previous Ranking: 100

7 songs make up this total for the remastered version of the last Beatles album ever recorded.

#108: Bush – Sixteen Stone
iTunes stats: 66 plays
Previous Ranking: 80

5 tracks from Bush’s debut album place it on the list, with only 24 additional plays.

#106: Offspring – Smash
iTunes stats: 67 plays
Previous Ranking: 100

4 tunes, and an increase of 30 listens, from this debut album from the California punk band make up this total.

#106: Cracker – Kerosene Hat
iTunes stats: 67 plays
Previous Ranking: 80

The second album from the Georgia rockers makes the list thanks to 3 songs.

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iTunes Top 200 Artists: #11-20

3 years ago, we first counted down the then Top 100 artists in my iTunes library.  Since that time, I’ve successfully managed to migrate my music collection to a new PC with the stats intact.  So, I figured it was time to take another look, expanding out the field to the top 200 artists, based on number of plays from late 2007 through January 1, 2017.

In our penultimate trip through the chart, we crack the top 20 and hit some of the more popular bands and musicians on my phone..

#20: Nirvana
iTunes stats: 211 plays
Previous ranking: #20

97 new listens to the same 19 songs from the grunge masters enable them to stay even at #20.

#19: Bon Jovi
iTunes stats: 214 plays
Previous ranking: #21

The boys from New Jersey have racked up 101 new listens, including 5 new songs, to raise 2 slots in the rankings.

#18: Eminem
iTunes stats: 215 plays
Previous ranking: #14

The same 16 tunes provided only 79 new listens, causing the Detroit rapper to fall 4 slots from 3 years ago.

#17: Elvis Presley
iTunes stats: 226 plays
Previous ranking: #27

One additional song, plus a trip to Graceland, helped the King of Rock & Roll more than double his total from 3 years ago and leap 10 spots in the rankings.

#16: Poison
iTunes stats: 243 plays
Previous ranking: #13

30 tracks, 2 more than 3 years ago, accounted for their 99 additional listens, causing the quintessential glam rock band to drop 3 slots.

#15: Def Leppard
iTunes stats: 255 plays
Previous ranking: #15

The troubled band from Sheffield used 36 songs to increase their total by 122, enabling them to retain their ranking from 3 years ago.

#14: The Lonely Island
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Historical iTunes Top 10 Albums

itunes_imageI recently came across an iTunes Music Library XML file from an old computer that covered some time frame between 2003 and 2007.  I thought it would be interesting to take a look at the 785 songs I had listened to in that timeframe and, eventually, incorporate some of those numbers into my current library.

Today, we will look at the top 10 albums, in terms of total listens, from this iTunes library.  My initial observations are, again, that these totals are completely out of whack.  When I last looked at the album totals for my current library, Bon Jovi’s greatest hits collection came in at #60, with only 6 more plays than they have here, where they are by far the leaders.  So, without further ado:

#1: Bon Jovi – Cross Road
iTunes stats: 48 plays
An abnormally large total for the first greatest hits package from the boys from New Jersey

#2: The Cast of Buffy The Vampire Slayer – Once More, With Feeling
iTunes stats: 39 plays
The soundtrack album to the musical episode of Buffy The Vampire Slayer, which took home the top spot last year in my current library, has a strong showing here.

#3: The Cast of Sesame Street – Sesame Street Platinum: All-Time Favorites
iTunes stats: 35 plays
The best tunes from Sesame Street got a lot of plays back when Angelina and Danny were younger, enough to take the third slot here.

#4: Bon Jovi – VH1 Storytellers
iTunes stats: 25 plays
A bootleg album of the band’s performance on the afore-mentioned VH1 Storytellers.

#5: Various Artists – Buffy The Vampire Slayer: The Album
iTunes stats: 18 plays
The soundtrack album to Buffy The Vampire Slayer proper makes the top 5 after finishing tied for 34th in my current library.

#6: Avril Lavigne – Avril Live: Try To Shut Me Up
iTunes stats: 15 plays
Live versions of Avril’s hits, including a cover of Green Day’s Basket Case, place her in the top 10.

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Vacation Recap: Tupelo

When we left off last time, our group of intrepid travelers had arrived in Tupelo, Mississippi on a Sunday night after having spent the day in Memphis taking in the Elvis sights, including Graceland and Sun Studios.

birthplace

Monday morning started with a trip to Tupelo Hardware Store, a present day Ace Hardware where a 11 year old Elvis, in 1946, purchased his first guitar.  From there, we headed to the 2 room house where Elvis was born and lived until his family moved to Memphis in search of a better life in 1948.  Also on the site are the Assembly of God church, where the Presley’s worshipped while living in Tupelo.

supermanstatueAfter leaving Mississippi, we headed north towards home, but decided to make a detour towards Metropolis, IL, which has made itself the symbolic home of Superman and, at least according to the travel guide, home to the world’s largest Dippin’ Dots store.  Sadly, the Dippin’ Dots store had closed and was replaced by a gift shop filled with DC merchandise and a cooler in the corner that did supply said Dippin’ Dots.  In the center of town is a giant Superman statue and a museum, which we decided against going through.

After that, it was time to head home.  After a few stops for dinner and gas, we arrived home around 10 PM.  Overall, we visited 5 states, 3 of which were new for Michael.  Now I’m looking forward to my next trip, which, sadly, hasn’t been planned yet.

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Vacation Recap: Memphis

This past January, as my mom’s birthday was rolling around, I thought about taking her to Graceland so she could see the former home of her favorite performer, Elvis Presley.  I ended up going in a different direction (literally), but my sister came up with the same idea for Mother’s Day.  So, as May was drawing to a close, (nearly) the whole family loaded into the minivan and headed down to Tennessee and Mississippi to see the Elvis-related sights.

panda

Things got off to an early start on Saturday morning as we left around 5 AM and headed south.  After a brief stop in Missouri for lunch at Lambert’s Cafe, where they throw dinner rolls at you, and so Michael could cross another state off his list, we rolled into Memphis around 2:00.  Our first stop was the Memphis Zoo, where we ran into some pandas and other animals.  After the zoo, we headed to our hotel for some relaxing in the pool, followed by dinner at a charming BBQ joint known as Corky’s, winners of multiple best BBQ awards.  After a long day, it was time to call it a night.
graceland

Sunday morning got off to an early, if wet, start at Graceland, home, and eternal resting place, of Elvis Presley.  Aside from the mansion, which is strangely small for what would be considered a mansion, there were a few other attractions to see, including a car museum and his 2 planes.

After lunch at Graceland (a fried peanut butter/banana sandwich, natch), it was time to visit Sun Studios, where Elvis made his first recordings.  While waiting for our tour, we made a quick trip over to the Peabody Hotel, where they have trained ducks hanging out in the lobby, which is supposedly a thing.  Back to Sun for the tour, which included the actual recording studio space, which is still in use at night.

Following the tour, we headed across the border to Arkansas for dinner, and another chance for Michael to add a state to his tally.  After dinner, it was on to Tupelo, Mississippi, where we would spend the night before finishing off the Elvis tour on Monday.  But more about that next time.

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Fitbit Week 18

Week18_FBAnother good week, my fourth straight over 50,000 steps and with at least one 10,000 step day.  Things got off to a good start in Memphis on Sunday, where I spent the day visiting Elvis related sights, including Graceland and Sun Studios.  Monday continued the Elvis extravaganza, exploring his birthplace in Tupelo, Mississippi, before spending the majority of the day driving home, with a small detour to stop and see Superman in Metropolis, Illinois.  Tuesday and Wednesday was back to the normal work grind, with the afternoon coffee run playing into the day’s total.

Thursday and Friday benefited from my leaving work on time and getting home at a reasonable hour, thus being able to explore the neighborhood, with Thursday just falling short of 10,000 steps and Friday surpassing it.  Saturday looked to be a bust early, but the evening’s trip to US Cellular Field, and a walk down the ramps thanks to a closed Fundamentals area, helped pull up the day’s total.

Total steps: 53,227

Daily average: 7603.9