Blues band and San Diego favorites Lady Dottie and the Diamonds were on These Days this morning,  doing their best to get Tom Fudge to stand up and pull out some James Brown moves in the studio. Though the band brought their trademark raw bluesy sound, Tom remained seated.  He did, however, have a big smile on his face.  It would take a lot to get Tom to dance, but I swear Lady Dottie almost made him testify!  The band has a new, self-titled album out which you can buy here.  if you haven't seen the Lady and her diamond boys before, you have plenty of opportunity.  They play all over town, including a show on Wednesday, November 12th at the New Children's Museum as part of  San Diego City Beat's "Best Of" Party.  All proceeds go to support the New Children's Museum. 

The band also has regular gigs every Monday night at U-31 in North Park, and Wednesdays at Henry's Pub and Thursdays at The Harp.  Block off the entire evening since they are known to play four-hour sets.  If heaven's a juke joint with whisky, gambling, and all-night dancing, Lady Dottie and the Diamonds are surely on the bill.  

Above: Imagery from earlier today at an Encanto polling site. Angela Carone / KPBS. [View full-screen]

I couldn't be happier about how I spent my morning on this historic election day.  I awoke at 4:30am (miserable until coffee) in order to walk the pup and get over to Encanto by 6am.  I then spent the next three hours at the home of Mrs. Johnnie Byrd, an 86-year-old African-American woman who has hosted a polling location in her garage for over 40 years.  Mrs. Byrd was adorable, all decked out in her patriotic finery (see slideshow), including different colored red and blue keds sneakers!  Her children, grandchildren and great-grandchildren work the polling site for her now, but that doesn't stop her from handing out the "I Voted" stickers and cooking for her workers all day long.  She made eggs, bacon, sausage and grits for breakfast.  I saw a peach cobbler for later in the day and it took all I had not to sneak a bite. 

I also talked with a lot of voters in this diverse neighborhood of north Encanto.  Many of them talked about the historic nature of this election and how proud they were to be voting.  It seemed to me that the neighborhood tilted heavily democratic, which has historically been the case in this area.  However, all of the folks I talked with said that Prop 8 was an important issue for them as they voted.  I met folks from both sides, and it was evident how emotional people are about this issue. It's interesting to me that some of the minorities I spoke with, who were staunch Democrats, don't see Prop 8 as a civil rights issue.  I talked about this polling site and community of voters on These Days this morning with Tom Fudge. 

After I left Mrs. Byrd's house, I went to vote in South Park where I live.  I didn't wait in any lines (though I would have waited for hours to vote in this election), cast my ballot, and though I walked home, it felt like I was flying along the crest of change. 

Regardless of who you're voting for, please just vote. 

Are you going to your neighborhood watering hole?  Hosting a themed party?  Streaking naked through North Park if your candidate wins?  I actually know people who are doing this so if you live in North Park, you might want to move your TV onto the front porch for prime viewing.  Whatever you have planned, we want to know about it!

On Tuesday, These Days will talk wit local food and restaurant critics about which bars and restaurants are hosting election night parties.  They'll also talk about yummy treats you can serve if you're hosting a party.  Tell us what you're doing on election night and we may read your comment on the air.  Let us know any or all of the following:

Where are you going to be on election night and why?

Know of any other good bars or restaurants hosting election parties?

If you're hosting, what are you serving?

Did you invent a special themed drink? 

Playing any themed games?

Any required attire?

Are you streaking in another neighborhood we don't know about?

Let us know what you know and we'll spread the word.  Make sure to include your first name and location in case we read your comment on the air. 

Take a picture of your party or gathering and send it to our Flickr election group so we can check you out! Unfortunately, we can't show your streaking photos but that shouldn't stop you from posting the whole thing on YouTube!

Ok, y'all, holla at us now...

Chhom Nimol, Senon Williams and Zak Holtzman of Dengue Fever.

Dengue Fever played The Loft Saturday night and were a hit with a small but appreciative crowd. The band is made up of LA-based musicians, all American save the lead singer who is Cambodian.  They perform mostly Cambodian pop covers from the 1960's, leaving the melodies bouncing around in your head for hours after you hear them.  The crowd ate it up, dancing throughout the two sets.  There was a woman next to me who did not stop hopping the entire time - she knew all the Cambodian lyrics too. 

If you're in to Campodian pop psychedelic rock and, you know, who isn't, then you'll want to see Dengue Fever this Saturday night.  If you don't know who they are, be careful of the wanton googling, you may end up seeing some really disgusting pictures of the actual malaria-like disease the band is named after.  Downer pics are a total contrast to the music which is poppy and happy, even if you can't understand the lyrics, most of which are in Cambodian.  

Ethan Holtzman formed the band after an apparently inspirational trip to Cambodia. The band's female lead singer was discovered in Long Beach's Little Phnom Penh, where she moved after leaving Cambodia where she was a karaoke singer.

They're playing at the new UCSD ArtPower space called The Loft.  Check out the pics of this über design-y space, which was actually designed by bells&whistles, the team behind Starlite.  Note to self:  do not wear green.  There will also be a screening of the documentary Sleepwalking Through the Mekong, which follows the band on their first tour of Cambodia in 2005.  I'll report back on Monday, with pics!

http://view.break.com/592648 - Watch more free videos

So, this is totally partisan, but I don't care.  It's funny.  Fellow producer and daily taunter of all things Angela, Nick Stoffel, sent it to me this morning.  You can customize and pass on if you are so inclined.  Save the goats!  You can make your own by going here.

David and Nic Sheff, authors of Beautiful Boy and Tweak, respectively.

I have spent the last three days looking for breaks in my daily routine - little cracks and crevices in my work, personal life, and sleep to read the book Beautiful Boy:  A Father's Journey Through His Son's Addiction.  Once I read the first 20 pages of David Sheff's account of coping with his son's methamphetamine addiction, I was consumed by their story. David is a veteran journalist and a generous writer.  He shares the love and admiration he feels for his son Nic, but also the anger, fear, and the crushing sense of loss.  He can shift between these various states in the course of a week and a page.  Welcome to life when you love an addict.  David also describes the bottomless well of guilt he feels over Nic's addiction.

I rode the emotional rollercoaster of this book over the last 72 hours, apparently showing the effects of my ride.  A colleauge said to me first thing this morning, "Are you really tired or something?"   Oh, no.  I'm fine.  I'm just exhausted from crying and reading faster and faster in the hopes that the next page is going to have Nic going into rehab instead of looking to score and hoping this rehab will take and he won't relapse and....(Colleague backs away...slowly.)  

Obviously, I found the book very effective.  I felt David's anxiety of not knowing if his child is alive for weeks at a time, wondering what he is doing on the streets where he lives when he's using, searching for the next fix.  I felt David's shock when he first realized that Nic was actually shooting up and that his beautiful boy had tracks going up and down his arm.  I mean, imagine being a parent and seeing your son's physical transformation, the weight loss, the discolored skin, the hollow eyes, the tracks.  David gives you a clear window to see what that would be like.  I was angry when Nic started stealing from his family and friends.  I was hopeful each time he went into rehab and crushed when he would relapse and start using again.  It's a testimony to the writing and to the tragedy of it all that I as the reader was so present along the way.

Nic has written his account of addiction in a book called Tweak:  Growing Up on Methamphetamines.  I haven't read it yet, but I will soon.  Both David and Nic will be guests on These Days this morning.  In fact, they've just arrived and I'm heading down to meet them now.  Tune in at 9:30 to hear what they have to say about addiction and, ultimately, hope. 

There's a new trend of street art featuring Sarah Palin and, not surprisngly, a lot of it leans strongly to the left.  Hmmmm, wonder where are all those GOP graf artists are hiding out.  The poster below is an obvious tip of the hat to the Shepard Fairey designed Obama poster.  Click here to see more Palin on the street. 

This video from the British comedy troupe The Hollow Men is pretty clever.  The guy in the middle who has been living with ABS (Advanced Brando Syndrome) for years is the best.