2010-02-22: New York City

And I am here to tell you all that the other side of 50 feels fine, just fine. Maybe part of the reason for the easy transition (it's just a number, just a number they say, but oh what a number) might be that the bridge to 50 was laid at the Lakeside Lounge, a place where I have made many transitions over the years. Since I was the center of the festivities I chose a bunch of songs that we rarely play. We had to play "Older," a song I wrote at 32 about staring down the evidence and ravages of age. 32! Imagine that! I'll have to play it at my 80th birthday bash. We also tackled "Some Kinda Itch," "Melting In The Dark," "Out of This World" and "The Side I'll Never Show," all songs that haven't been in many set lists recently. Heck, I even took the liberty of calling out "Let It Rain," a song often covered by The Dream Syndicate but never played by the Miracle 3. Jason and Linda and Dave handled it with grace and expertise. Naturally.

I believe you can find the show up at Dimeadozen but you'll have to be a little more adept at this whole World Of Torrents than I am. Good luck.

Thanks to all of you who wrote such kind words on the website, the various Facebook and MySpace pages and by email. I've had the chance to thank some of you directly but know that all of the messages were gratefully received.

And have a good look at the WynnWeb site because it's going to be going through some changes in the coming months. This gives me a good chance to thank Daneane Gallardo who revamped and restructured the site a few years back and has been holding my cyberspace hand as I pull myself into the second decade of this still new century. Check out her website at RexRuff.com and check out her fine work. I mean, she does the websites for Bob Marley and the rest of his family. Such company! I am humbled and honored.

And last but most certainly not least, all of the festivities of my birthday and the first Miracle 3 gig of the year were tempered by the sadness of losing my dear and longtime friend Mary Herczog last week after her long, dignified and courageous battle with cancer. I could tell you about all the fun times we've had together, I could tell you that she was there all the way back to the earliest Dream Syndicate days, I could tell you what a cool person she was and that you should check (as I have done) buy her New Orleans travel guide and then use her literary voice to guide you around her favorite city. I could tell you so many things-especially how much she'll be missed by me and so many others-but I think the best thing to do is to direct you to her incredible website Cancerchick.com for a good glimpse at her writing, her history and to see how much she meant to so many. Mary, you are in our hearts forever.

Here's to a long and happy life to all of you. Or as Warren Zevon said, "Enjoy every sandwich."

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Updates:To listen to show: click hereTo see pics: click here