Ever heard of Brimstone?

Hi Stephen,

How's your TGIF going so far?  Mine is going well, just putzing around the house, giving the dog a bath, cleaning the kitty litter box, cleaning, vacuuming, and finishing packing for the 9 day trip ahead.

One of the events that we are going to is called Brimstone.  Ever heard of it?

www.brimstonenj.com

I just signed up to attend the formal tea party...I love those...we wear formal attire (fetish wear, etc)., sit at fancy tables, drink fancy tea's and have petit fours, tiny sandwiches, and chit-chat or play games to win certain items that are on the tables as decoration.  Rather fun, actually.  There is a place here in Pittsburgh called Antiqui-tea's that hosts such parties.  I guess that is the latest "thing," in addition to "steampunk," so it's a popular thing to do.

Anyway, it should be interesting. The only NJ event I have been to before this is Floating World, and that was AWESOME.  We might go again next year.  Definitely looking forward to going back to camp again, though.  In fact, since everybody is anticipating camp and loves it so much, the staff is offering a "Camp Reunion" party in January, in DC.  I am looking forward to that!!

Well, so that's the big "thrill" of our 9 day adventure.  First we're going to an event in DC (volunteer appreciation party...we volunteered at Black Rose), and then driving to Baltimore to visit my friend Barbara and watch the Steelers/Ravens football game....with Ben injured and out indefinitely, though, we may just lose this one.....and then we'll be driving up to New York City, and will be staying about a mile away from where that building's entire wall fell off during Hurricane Sandy.  We're staying with a friend of Pete's who lives there in Manhattan.  She said she could see it from her window!  Then we'll stay with some other friends we have there for a night too, before we head over to Brimstone for the weekend.

So that's the scoop, my sexy poop.

Hope you have a nice weekend.  I know I said I would post some Who concert footage, but until I find a better way to do it, I'm kinda stuck.  I'll have to get Pete to work on it for me.  I just know that 30 seconds of a song just isn't enough to really enjoy, so why bother.

Oh, today the Journey web site announced that "if you buy $50 worth of Journey merchandise, you'll get the CD "Eclipse" absolutely FREE."  Yeah, they are GIVING AWAY their latest CD, and putting items on sale on their web site....I guess Arnel's hospital stay is costing the band too much insurance money.  Since they had to cancel a bunch of shows, this was the only thing they could come up with.

Am I right?!  Journey's days are numbered, and the evidence of my theory just keeps adding up.

The ONLY potentially viable replacement for Arnel Pineda as lead singer, (in my opinion), would be Kevin Chalfant. He tours around singing Journey songs right now too, you know.  He calls it "the Journey experience."  He's also an avid (rabid?) tea party member who sends me political BS all the time on Facebook that we then argue and debate about on a regular basis.  Wish I could smack him upside the head to get him to see the enlightened side of life, rather than remaining stuck living in fear like they do over there in tinfoil hat land.   I can see why his older sister Melva said he bugs her sometimes.  She was more liberal than I am!!!  I really miss her a lot.

BUT.......that would be ONLY other real strategy that I can come up with for Journey if they had to replace Arnel...and even THAT may make the fans totally peeved all over again...so it's hard to say if they would welcome Kevin or not, in that role.  If Neal plans on touring for the next 50 years, though, he'll have to find someone of that calibre to fill the position, and that would be f----ing hard to do.

So, my sweet sexy Stephen, regarding my theory:  I think you are BRILLIANT for the marketing strategy of waiting until they call it quits, because then YOU would become the only Journey-ish game in town, and YOU will be the one every fan will flock to see after they are retired.  No competition anymore, and no control-freak guitarist trying to run your life.

Very very smart, my friend.  I bow and shake your hand and kiss your toes.

Ya know, I really love how, in life, when you name a person's game, they just can't play it anymore. The boys of Journey hurt YOU with the one thing you loved most in the world, and that was being such a huge part of Journey for so long......so now YOU can pay them back for that, by doing the very same thing to THEM after they disband.  And there is nothing they can do about it.  Take all those classic Journey songs, write new ones even, and make them ALL YOURS again, perform them on stage with the FTLOSM band, and when you do these things my sweet sexy troubadour-dujoir-rowr-rowr-rowr, you will be kicking their sorry retired butts all over the place.

Talk about a very sweet revenge...and one that makes you come out smelling like a ROSE.  Nothing wrong with wanting to take over where they left off, is there?!  It's perfect common sense.  Nobody can point any fingers or badmouth you for doing it either.  You will be victorious, performing for another 5 or 10 years, while they snivel and cower in the corner from their bloody (figurative) ass-whoopin,' fading from the fans' minds, fading from the dinosaur band into musical worm food.....

YESSSSSSSSS!!!!!  Oh my great googa mooga, Stephen, I totally get you.......

At least, how about you just humor me and nod and smile, even if I'm wrong.  That works for me!!

Maybe that's EXACTLY the thing Neal is most afraid of?  Because you definitely COULD kick him to the curb, HARD, without saying a word to him at all.

You're just waiting patiently, like the song says, aren't you.

Mmm-hmmm.  I can see how that type of revenge would scare the bejeezus outta him.  All that he's worked for all these years, could become just a blurred memory as the fans flock to see YOU from now on.  His solo albums nobody will buy anymore, his reputation of being a control-freak jerk will linger on but musically, he'll fade into oblivion, take the backseat, and watch you drive on into the sunset all by yourself, erasing all the things he tried to mark on everyone's memory by showing him that YOU ARE BETTER---as a person, and as a performer----and always will be.

That would kill Neal Schon.  Wouldn't it.   It would, at least, scar his ruthless soul a little bit.

Amazingly brilliant. You, dear Sir, absolutely rock my world.  GAWD how I love you dearly.

Well, bye for now.

Love, Rebecca