Card Art - Blake Jamieson & TOPPS Project 2020

Sports, Art & Finding Your Passion

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I got a chance to catch up with Artist Blake Jamieson, who has caused a stir in the sports card collecting universe with his involvement in TOPPS Project 2020. The legendary trading card company is producing an ambitious set, with 20 artists giving their unique spins on 20 of the most iconic rookie cards.

The art-sports card connections go back decades, from the early TOPPS releases of the 1950's to the "paint jobs" on cards for players who had been traded or changed teams. Add insert sets with collaborations with Peter Max, among others, and the time was right for another mixing of mediums.

Harmon and Jamieson talk about the hobby, the success of Project 2020 and how Jamieson's journey into full-time artist began.

With You There To Help Me - Father's Day 2020

With You There To Help Me 

We celebrated Father's Day on Sunday.

It started with my Sunday usual, a four-hour trek on the radio. We had a lot of laughs and goofiness between the serious stories that intersect sports and society. And we told a few of our favorite memories growing up --- like getting carried off a football field by your father like a sack of potatoes after having an opponent twist your leg at the bottom of a pile.

Yeah, good times. I naturally gravitated back to those early concert experiences (Jethro Tull very early on) and the eclectic musical choices of the downstairs bar. When home decompressing from his shifts and scrawling numbers and notes into legal pads, my dad would work the record player. And the range was amazing - pivoting between Tull, Willie Nelson, Pink Floyd, Beatles and Stones, and all of the classic singer-songwriters.

I'll always regret not being more proactive in starting dialogues as a kid. Much left unsaid and questions unasked. But we communicated and commiserated through song. And there were plenty of lessons learned about care, consideration and work ethic. And I got louder (see the 24 hours each week on the radio).

And I'm a lot louder in the day-to-day as well. I'm sure my daughters wish the questions and comedy bits would back off at times, particularly when friends are over.

The lockdown during Covid-19 has been a blessing in my respects - for me, anyway. I'm sure they'd have been thrilled to keep moving in practices, workouts and rehearsals. Hell, they've both asked about just continuing the school year given restrictions on activities.

We still got a final recital in on Father's Day, and a bunch of time munching on snacks and watching silly television and movies. And hearing them giggling together over TikTok videos while watching "The Office" was everything.

The roller coasters of emotions and thoughts stop for a minute. Everything's right with the world. 

It Don't Come Easy - June 17th

It Don't Come Easy 

I restarted this entry several times before committing to the awkwardly-scrawled prose below.

Choose better. Find some peace.

Every day, it's a challenge. Here's the deep stuff.

Gains are hard. Change is hard.

Be it something "simple" like the gym. Plateaus and desire for instant gratification and results dissuades people from continuing their resolutions.

Or, at work - the extra hours, projects or perhaps the uncomfortable conversation about aspirations or where the system needs improvement or management styles need tweaking.

Or, in your relationships of any type, difficult conversations are oftentimes sublimated (diving back into the career, housework or a stated goal). The consequences of that discussion may be dire and the fracture irreparable. 

Change is hard, but necessary to grow. You learn by building on previously established truths in math and science. But in other subjects, you may need to tear down preconceived notions or perhaps things you'd be told or taught by a trusted source. Experiences and time reveal new paths of knowledge. And hopefully that peace you sought at the outset ...

Today's "Devil's Jukebox" accompaniment is It Don't Come Easy from Richard Starkey - aka, Ringo Starr. You know the words. Sing it loud. 

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One, two,

One, two, three, four!

It don't come easy

You know it don't come easy

It don't come easy

You know it don't come easy

Got to pay your dues if you wanna sing the blues

And you know it don't come easy

You don't have to shout or leap about

You can even play them easy

Open up your heart, let's come together

Use a little love

And we will make it work out better

I don't ask for much, I only want your trust

And you know it don't come easy

And this love of mine keeps growing all the time

And you know it don't come easy

Peace, remember peace is how we make it

Here within your reach

If you're big enough to take it

Got to pay your dues if you wanna sing the blues

And you know it don't come easy

You don't have to shout or leap about

You can even play them easy

Peace, remember peace is how we make it

Here within your reach

If you're big enough to take it

I don't ask for much, I only want your trust

And you know it don't come easy

And this love of mine keeps growing all the time

And you know it don't come easy

"What's my name?" Ringo!

"What's my name?" Ringo!

"Just in case anybody forgot"

Put It There - June 15

I was going through some of our archived photos from the past year to toss up a large Mixtiles order. Make memories and make sure you can see where you've been, ya know?

And in the midst of a flurry of early summer '19 photos, I came across a few shots from our experience at Dodger Stadium last July. Normally a space for 60,000 blue-clad Dodgers fans with a ton of kids in the mix, the stadium was packed with a crowd that skewed older.

The signs in left and right fields under the 76 logo read:

"Paul McCartney

 Welcome Back"

I went through the photos, including a shot of the concession options and pricing that I texted to get order while standing on line. My favorite part of the pre-show experience was the music pumping through the speakers as smiling fans streamed into the ballpark. The excitement palpable, people were standing in line and singing along to the McCartney and Wings songs pumping through the speakers. One in particular struck me. Its simple instrumentation cut through the noise and hustle and bustle of the commerce underway -- -"T-Shirts!" "Programs!"

The plucking of the guitar strings was the unmistakable (to my ears, anyway) opening of "Put It There." The short song from McCartney's 1989 album "Flowers In The Dirt" has since become a Sing-A-Long song when my jukebox get rolling on longer car expeditions. Here, it brought a smile and more of that communal, spiritual feel that I've written of in previous posts here. It'll be a recurring theme, no doubt.

The setlist for the concert didn't include this gem, but we were treated to a mix of 38 classics and new songs, ranging from quick 2-minute Beatles classics, Wings, solo work and visits from Joe Walsh and Ringo Starr. You had the obligatory "phone as flashlights" sections and plenty of singing. My kids knew the words to a bunch of the songs, impressing a number of people in our section.

Oh, and which picture prompted the memory? It was the fireworks and strings of "Live and Let Die." The picture was blurry, but it conjured a beautiful image in my mind. It was a flawless night for the band and the environment.

And one I wish I'd done better and could do again. We'll save that for another time.

Sing along if you know the words.

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Give me your hand I'd like to shake it
I want to show you I'm your friend.
You'll understand if I can make it clear
It's all that matters in the end.

Put it there if it weighs a ton,
That's what the father said to his younger son.
I don't care if it weighs a ton,
As long as you and I are here, put it there.
Long as you and I are here, put it there.

If there's a fight I'd like to fix it,
I hate to see things go so wrong.
The darkest night and all it's mixed emotions,
Is getting lighter sing a song.

Put it there if it weighs a ton,
That's what the father said to his younger son.
I don't care if it weighs a ton,
As long as you and I are here, put it there.
Long as you and I are here, put it there.

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Put It There - Paul McCartney Video

A Change Is Gonna Come - Day 7

You inched to the edge of your seat more than a few times watching the news this past week. It wasn't a conscious thing. But each speech, each video clip of protests or clashes or looting brought you closer to the monitor. Be careful not to conflate things or oversimplify as you watch, listen, learn and eventually discuss the events of the past two weeks in America.

I focus on the word listen as I traverse various media sources and engage in conversations with family and friends. The word "empathy" became the word of the week, and I suspect "Empathy Definition" was entered into Google Search bars millions of times.

Listen and hear. It's the Jimi Hendrix conversation from "White Men Can't Jump." You can listen, but can you hear?

I have music in the background for many of my waking hours. Something about the quiet, stillness has always been an issue for me. Lyrics hit home and I've long talked about the connection between music and live events to spirituality and that shared energy.

And that energy is surging on the streets across America right now.

There are a lot of versions of this classic song - Aretha Franklin, Luther Vandross, Rev. Al Green, among others - but I go back to 1964 and the late Sam Cooke.
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Then I go to my brother

And I say brother help me please

But he winds up knockin' me

Back down on my knees, oh