I had a great gig last night. It was fun, I was even nervous before I played. I stumbled a few times, but I think there were some genuine moments of "new stuff" for me on the drums. I met a ton of new people, and may have even landed a gig next week with players I've never hit with before (stay tuned for details....).

In the meantime:

a video excerpt of last night

It's a Quciktime .mov file, so Apple folks should have no problem. PCers, well, maybe this will help.

Ok, last announcement for the solo show tonight. Hopefully I'll see some of you there!

Leftover Daylight

@ the Arraymusic Studio
60 Atlantic Ave. Suite 218

Show starts @ 9pm, I'm first and I plan on being punctual ("on time" was too much of a pun for a drum gig, so I didn't type that, but now I have, so there you go....).

$10/$6 (I think the latter is student, but aren't we all in some way?)

if i don't see you at the gig, check in to the blog tomorrow or sunday and I'll have a multi-media report. :)

map to gig

Tonight's cc3 gig with Martin Aucoin was great. Martin is such a pro, he knows lots of tunes, has a great vibe, and he makes me feel like I can play! We had two great sets, with a really strong response from the audience, and a great hang overall. Martin's back in a few weeks, do try and come out if you're able.

Meanwhile, I am now clearing my gig-mind for tomorrow's solo show. I want to just go and play, no agendum. Take this set as an opportunity to re-connect with my instrument. That connection can get lost or altered when it's always gig, gig, gig. You see your instrument as a tool to earn money with, and forget that it is really so much more a partner than a tool.

GIGS THIS WEEK:

thursday 4.28 - cc3 (with Martin Aucoin on keys) @ Canyon Creek Burlington 7pm-10pm
friday 4.29 - cc solo @ Leftover Daylight 9pm $10/$6
saturday 4.30 - cc on percussion with the Kevin Cooke Band @ the Black Swan 9:30pm $5

... I'm pleased to say that Anesti Karantakis will be completing the cc3 lineup for the bulk of our summer dates at Canyon Creek Square One (Tuesdays) and Eric Boucher will be the third man in Burlington on Thursdays this summer. I feel like I've been on the phone non-stop for days now arranging people's schedules and trying to get various guys for various gigs, it's tiring. But, it means I've got work in my book, so it's a good thing.

My friend Ed Pas, a very fine artist, has a blog that tracks him and his family's current adventure in Japan. It's a great read. http://edpas.net/bog/

Anyway, he informed me that he doesn't read my blog often enough because I don't have RSS (whatever that is). Well, I do now, click on the link for SITE FEED over to the right on this page and if you know what to do with it, do it!

I'm just learning. :)

Most of the dates are up for the summer now. When this campaign began (to somewhat "install" my two working bands at Canyon Creek for the summer) I was hoping to book more HBS than cc3, but it's worked out the opposite way. I'm not dissappointed by this at all now that it's a reality. As a musician I think this is a more adventurous schedule. With cc3, the repertoire is constantly changing from gig to gig, whereas HBS has a set repertoire, with little variation. So, with 22 cc3 shows and 13 HBS shows, I'm likely to play more different music, which is good.

As for cc3's lineup, I'm going to scale back the amount of variation in the "third man" position. I'm going to book people in for at least 4 gigs in a row. So, Eric Boucher will be with us on Tuesdays and Thursdays are still TBA. May's schedule (only Thursdays) is still a rotation, but once we're into June, I'm going to start slowing that down. Frankly, booking a different player every week is extra work, and I don't think my client, nor the audience, is really demanding it. Certain players have gone over bigger than others (not due to their ability by any means, but more because of the repertoire they bring with them), and I'll probably draw on that. Of course, Mike Pelletier remains on bass, with Nikku Nayar finally making a few sub-appearances in June and July.

NEW MUSIC:

I've received advance copies of the new John Scofield and the new (new to North America, it's been out in France for a while) Meshell Ndegeocello fusion album. Both records are quite good. The Scofield is a Ray Charles-tribute produce by Steve Jordan (who also plays drums on it), and the Meshell is an all-star fusion outing. I had a similar experience with both records: I forgot who's record it was. There are so many different players featured on these discs that the personalities of Scofield and Meshell are submerged to a great degree. I would argue that the Scofield record is really a Steve Jordan record, when it comes out in June, you'll hear what I mean. As for the Ndegeocello, it has some wonderful moments (there's a track that features Cassandra Wilson and Brandon Ross that reminds me of Kip Hanrahan's Thousands Nights records). There's a 3/4 ballad that I will probably chart out for cc3, called "Papillion".
I think both records are very satisfying, but they're not what I expected.

WHAT'S UP THIS WEEK:

I am playing my solo show and I am still trying to decide whether or not to just play drums alone or bring some soundscape tracks (to play off my iPod or iBook) to add some textures and atmospheres. I have to decide soon. Also this week is cc3 with Mike Bowell on guitar and a Saturday night show with the Kevin Cooke band (a huge 10pce blues/r&b band, all originals by Kevin). If you're on my email list you'll get a reminder early this week...

SIRCorp + me

So, SIRCorp is the company that owns the chain of Canyon Creek restaurants that I find myself fortunate to have steady gigs with. The gigs are split about 70/30 between my trio (cc3) and the r&b band I work with, Hot Buttered Soul. This summer, I'll do well over 30 gigs for them between June and Labour Day. That's a lot of work, and all essentially from one client. I'm very grateful to have this relationship, as with very few exceptions, they trust me to pick the repertoire and players for all of the gigs, and they treat the musicians kindly and generously when we're performing there. The per gig money isn't huge, but it's decent and steady, and commitments of this size from one client are rarer and rarer in this business. So, a public thanks to my folks at SIRCorp that still see value in live music of many different styles.

I got a great phone call today:

Peggy Baker (modern dancer extraordinaire) has asked me to do 2 weeks of dance classes with her during her Intensive at the National Ballet of Canada in August.

Of course I accepted. I told her I was very flattered to be asked, and she laughed and said she was the one that was excited!

This could shape up to be a decent summer creatively and financially, too good to be true!

I saw the John Scofield Trio last night (bill stewart + steve swallow), it was fantastic. They're playing at a very high level, and Steve Swallow is without question among the living legends of this or any music. I waas fortunate enough to be standing sidestage about 8 feet from Mr. Swallow and Mr. Stewart, so I had about as close a view as I could get without being in the band. The gig was at a rock/dance club, and while not the ideal venue (noisy air conditioners, lotsa people chatting, etc.) they quickly put that aside and made the venue work for them. I was very impressed.

My "aha!" moment of the evening was when John was engaging in a long spoken introduction to their rendition of the standard, "When Sunny Gets Blue". Now, this is a warhorse of a tune that's been abused by would-be jazz musicians mercilessly since the 40s. One wondered why this trio would do this tune? Well, John's introduction explained that this was a song from Swallow's youth, and he had fond memories of "falling in love" to it. While this may have been a dry comedic "bit", it resonated with me: play songs that MEAN something to you. It seems simple, but jazz musicians miss this so often, and that's why we have endless versions of "Autumn Leaves" by guys that never even realized this was a song from a musical, a "hit" of its day.

Play music that means something to you. Chances are it will mean alot more to the audience if you do.

What a concept! :):):)

I am swamped right now with Hot Buttered Soul's summer schedule. I am very happy about this. It looks like we'll be working alot this summer, enough to buy me a few days off here and there to enjoy the summer. Getting the gigs is the easy part, coordinating everyone's schedules is the work. The net result will probably be that HBS will get to work with 2 or 3 singers this summer, as Todd (our main man) has a day-job that conflicts with some of the dates. I'll post all of the dates when they are confirmed (probably next week). But suffice to say, we'll be working this summer. :)

I hope I can put all of these bookings to bed by the end of next week so that i can concentrate on my trio recording with Tim and Ed. Then I can concentrate on booking that band too. As my last post said, live gigs are probably where it's at for what i do, so I am sharpening my booking skills.

things on my mind:

.... While booking the session date with Tim Posgate, we briefly discussed his new record. He's getting the discs from the manufacturer this week or next, and I asked him about its release date. His response was that there wasn't really going to be a "release" per se. I am sure he'll send it out to all the press contacts he has, etc., but he said his best sales have always been off the stage at gigs. They're touring this summer for a few weeks, so I imagine he's got his mind set to do most of his sales then.
It's an interesting time; music retail is a non-issue (in terms of supporting new or small-time artists), and my contacts at the major labels say they can't get much happening with retail either. Are downloads the way to go? Well, in my heart I think so. In reality I have been waiting MONTHS for my stuff to get "added" to the big sites. The major labels obviously have a direct-line to getting added, so what's so different from the old retail model? I am not sure. Thankfully, the cost of getting in queue to be added is minimal (less than $200 for my whole album), but the great democracy of the internet is once again a joke.
There are benefits to trying to get onto iTunes and the like; people will find your music by accident while searching for something else, and they might just buy a track or two to check you out. Your "fans" will be able to easily and securely purchase your music and you have no IT costs of your own to maintain a paid download service.
The fact remains though that you still have to spend the time and money to publicize the existence of your music. This is costly and is not a guaranteed return of investment (no advertising or marketing is). So, musicians like myself and TimP are left to figure out where the best source of revenue is.
I am beginning to suspect that for the kind of music I want to and like to make, it's a live thing. Simply put, there are WAY TOO MANY records out there. Jazz magazines alone review hundreds of titles a month, how many really connect with a large group of consumers? (Tim's last record got a killer review in Downbeat and I think it translated into little or no sales....).
So, are records vanity projects? Is it a glorified business card? Most jazz artists on major labels do not see money from their record sales. The record company pays them to record an album, which they then promote, and the artist (if he or she is smart) coincides record company promo with their own promotion of their live concerts (where they actually make money). The alliance with a record company is not a partnership that will generate revenue for the artist (if they wrote the material they may see a bump from publishing royalties.... but), but rather an exchange of time and talent (from the artist) for promotion and marketing (from the label).
It occurs to me that maybe for jazz/improvising/whatever musicians, a pro-sports model might be more apt. Do people buy DVDs of football games? Not really (maybe highlight reels or historic games)... But the NFL generates huge amounts of money based on their live show (the games themselves). Obviously the scale is incredibly different, but what if an artist like myself promoted a "season" of gigs instead of a record?
What I am talking about already happens of course, but I think a shift in perception by artists is necessary. The CD you sell off the stage is merchandise, like a T-shirt. It may have much more artistic and sentimental value to you as its creator, but it is increasingly evident (in this over-populated CD world) that it can't be the reason why you're on stage. The new generation of entertainment consumers (I'm talking about teenagers) place very little value on CDs themselves. I treat my records and CDs like jewels, many kids I know will use the CD case as a notepad to write down someone's phone number. They place value on the music, but not the form it's presented to them in. For that matter, paying for it seems at times ridiculous to them. It's like TV, always on, free for the watching.
I am not suggesting changing people's attitudes, but I am changing mine. As a musician I have to assess where my revenue is most likely to come from. If it's live gigs, I have to focus on that. That may mean giving the music away for free off my website, or near-free through iTunes, in order to establish an audience for my live music. Many musicians are dissatisfied with the state of gigs, making $100-$200 per show is not enough for them. (I feel that way sometimes too) Fine, don't do it. But be prepared that a career in music may no longer be in the cards for you. The industry is changing. The "superstars" of today are those that are comfortable in the midst of the convergence of music/movies/etc., and that means that the music element is just one portion of your total presentation (J.LO......). For people like me, music is the whole package. So, I have to tailor my plans and my expectations to this new sub-industry. The new priorities may put live performances at the top, teaching workshops (interacting with your audience beyond the confines of a concert) below it, and the creation of permanent documents (CDs, DVDs, etc.) below that. I am prioritizing them based on their likelihood to return on investment. Know what you are selling, and then it becomes clear what can be given away for free. In the end, we're selling brands. The brand is represented through concerts, workshops and recordings. At any given time, one of these may need to be used as a "loss-leader" to support the others. Be flexible, and manage your risk (don't spend all of your money on your record, because you won't have any money to promote yourself after it's done, for example). And most of all, be realistic. That doesn't mean you can't be idealistic as well (don't compromise or sacrifice your musical vision), but don't forget that the joy is in the creation, not the renumeration. A music career is a business decision, not an artistic one.

Big Day!

I booked the studio session for my new band of myself, Tim Posgate on guitar and Ed Zankowski on tenor sax. We record May 25th at the North-Eastern Utility Muffin Research Outpost (manned by the stalwart Kevin Cooke), and then on May 27th, we have our first gig!!!!

We're opening for the very fine Kevin Breit and his band at Pepperjack's in Hamilton. Too cool.

I can't decided whether this band needs a name or not, or if I will resurrect my old Relax with Trudy band handle (the catch-all name for my trios from 1998-2002) and use it on these guys. What about the "new Trudy"? hmmm....

stay tuned for more details!

I just added a diagram of my two main drumkits that I use these days. It's really one kit (a red SONOR Phonic) broken up in two different configurations. Anyway, as most drummers will concur, these diagrams are, at best, an approximation of what I'm using at any given time. Different gigs require different cymbals (and I have lots of cymbals) or drums, but what I put in the diagram is basically what you'd see me with most often.

Here's the diagram (it can also be found on the PRESS KIT page on my site):

A relatively slow work weekend with gorgeous sunshine and warm weather..... and I get sick. Yeah, caught a cold. I did get to pick up 2 of my drums from Paul Fitterer today and he's done a fantastic job on them. It's like having new drums. Anyway, we're working on a weblog for his tech-biz. click hereto see it, very much under construction.

I got the new Charles Lloyd release on ECM yesterday, called "Jumping the Creek", a quartet with Geri Allen, Bob Hurst, and Eric Harland (who's playing was new to me). It's really great. I haven't finished it yet, but it's very powerful stuff. Lloyd assembles and deconstructs the band as needed, sometimes he is solo, or in duo, or trio in various combos. It's all so natural, swinging, and the improvisation is very personal. Rhythmically, Harland injects some "jungle" or "techno" style stuff without it sounding forced or fusiony. Nice work.

Now, a full work week, and a cold to conquer. :)

Today is a day off. So, with the exception of a few business-related phone calls, it's going to be a family day. (2 of the 3 of us are getting haircuts!) Plumbers came to our home yesterday and eradicated numerous dripping noises that polluted the sonic landscape of our home, and eliminated the wasting of water that those drips represent.

This service was not cheap. Plumbers (even after they pay for the parts they install) make alot more than I make per gig. These guys were good, (one guy got down on his knees and listened to our toilet flushing to diagnose it's problems.... I called him The Toilet Whisperer...) so I presume that's why they're expensive. The two of them worked very fast, and they were in and out of our lives in 3 hours (and $1100). It occured to me that one could renumerate themselves quite comfortably in a "trade", quite comfortably. The only sticking point is that to be successful in a "trade", most of the time you really do have to put in a hard day's work. There's not alot of boardroom conceptualizing (or, for that matter, blogging); you show up, diagnose the problem or need, and fix or supply.

I guess my career is straddled between these two worlds; alot of time I am plumbing: providing percussive services to others with skill and efficiency, or replaying music people know (playing covers) to comfort and entertain them. Repairing, Restoring, Recreating. Other times I am the CEO of my multi-national company; thinking up new music, searching for something no one has heard before, implementing long and short-term projects.

Anyway, I just got an email from Paul F., my snare drum is ready for pick-up. I'm encouraging Paul to start a blog for his tech work. It might be a fun site, posting pictures of projects, etc.

Have a great day!

I picked up the April 2005 Downbeat yesterday as it had a review of the three most recent Kip Hanrahan releases (available on my site www.musicformovement.com). All three got good a review, but the reviewer (to me) was attempting to show off his vocabulary a bit too much in his review. I'm very much undecided about music journalism. There's so much bad writing about music by people that have no business writing about music.

Then again, there is also alot of bad music made by people that have no business making music. Anyway, I tend to view music journalism as a marketing tool, and not much else. If a review or article gets one's name out there, great, mission accomplished. If a musician attempts or expects to be able to further express themselves through this medium, that's a lost cause. Of course there are always exceptions, but I'm quite confident that I am speaking about the majority of music press.

One thing that bothers me is when music journalists ask musicians about politics, world issues, etc. Actually, maybe what bothers me more is when musicians ANSWER these questions. It's just so foolish: rock journalist (Frank Zappa described them best; "People who can't write writing for people who can't read...") prepares his big question about nuclear proliferation for stoned and distracted 24 year old flavour-of-the-month, and he ANSWERS it, and the journalist prints it! It's embarassing for all involved.

If you have dedicated your life to creating music, that is a political act in and of itself; and that rarely gets discussed. Just because you have a window to shout out of, doesn't mean you have anything worth shouting about. If you're really making music, that's where your views are, and not just lyrics. If you use music as a vehicle to talk about other issues in magazines and on cable TV, you're abusing music.

The reality is most "journalists" have nothing to say about music. They can talk about lyrics (they treat them like a 4th grade book report), and they can talk about the pictures on the CD case, but either they don't have the language to express what they hear, or they simply can't hear the difference between one CD to the next. Read some of Brad Mehldau's liner notes that he writes himself and compare them to some of his press clippings. Vastly different uses of language and in the former, the music actually gains a literary voice, in the latter, it's just promo hyperbole.

Anyway, I can go on forever about this.

....Speaking of mis-representation by the press. I have a dilemma. In this latest Downbeat, Joshua Redman is quoted as slamming one of his records, saying the band wasn't ready to record when they did it, and he is unsatisfied with the recorded results. So, if i want to hear this record, do I pay for it? I mean, I can find some of it via P2P I am sure, but it's also over at iTunes. If the artist is distancing himself from it (and he may not be, he may have just been mis-quoted), why should I pay the artist for the pleasure of listening to something he doesn't stand behind?

Good Gig News!

Looks like my fruitful relationship with the Canyon Creek group of restaurants is growing: cc3 will reside on Tuesday nights on the patio at Canyon Creek/Square One in Mississauga this summer. Hopefully, the restaurant group is picking up Hot Buttered Soul for a bunch of summer dates too.

My earlier post this week with my to-do list has been stalled by trying to find a sub for this Thursday. Argh. What a pain in the ass. I try and book people weeks to at least a month in advance to avoid this crud. Oh well.

Other news:

My friend and fine drummer Paul Fitterer is branching out into drum-tech work. I've watched him use meticulous and conscientious care on his drums for years, and thankfully, he's now offering that service to other drummers. So, I've submitted my 13,16,22 Phonics and an ebony veneer Signature Lite snare drum for his cleaning, re-lube-ing and general inspection. Paul doesn't do any heavy work, like re-cutting edges or fixing cracked cymbals, but for tune-ups and other care/repairs, he's your guy. Email him at paulfitterer@sympatico.ca to inquire about his services.

" Did you mean CARES ANTHRAX? "

That's what I get when I typed "chris cawthray" into the iTunes search engine. This is getting ridiculous.

No ranting this morning, promise. :)

Eric Boucher (who was booked to play the next two weeks with cc3) called last night to bail on this week's gig, so I have to find a sub today, stay tuned...

Before Saturday, I also have to get some demos of 3 dance pieces done for the Pickering School of Ballet. I'm going to use my drumKat and probably GarageBand software to get these done. I'm in at Toronto Dance Theatre for one class this week too, in addition to my regular gigs at the Etobicoke School of the Arts.

Also in this week somewhere will be the finalizing of plans for a new trio recording with (hopefully) Tim Posgate and Ed Zankowski. Three busy musicians + small budget means scheduling gets tricky. I'm hopeful though it can work out so that we'll be recording before Tim goes on tour this summer.

Ok, have a great week!

Sunday morning, way too early, and even earlier than that since daylight savings time ("spring forward") happened overnight. After solving a furnace-related issue that I will never understand nor comprehend how I fixed it, our chilly home is once again being toasted lightly, and hopefully will be golden-brown before anyone else wakes up realize just how freezing it was in here last night.

Backtracking....

Friday's AKIM gig was a really intense mix of highs and lows. In the end, it was total chaos. As it turned out, Akim and I were the only one's familiar with his material (a sax player that was sitting in was simply being cued as to when to solo, not playing any parts, per se). I met a new bassist on the gig, Joe Mcleod, who was fantastic. Great player and a warm friendly guy. When we did two-beat grooves (country and swing stuff) he used a great technique to imitate an upright bass by sliding into each note. Wonderful, though likely it went mostly unnoticed by everyone else. Joe's relative unfamiliarity with Akim's material, and Akim's insistence on calling lots of tunes Joe clearly wouldn't know (despite the fact that Joe and Akim know many tunes in common, enough to fill the entire evening I am sure) made for a tense and uneven gig. I don't fault Akim for wanting to do his material, or obscure covers, it's his perogative and alot of those tunes Akim does great versions of many of them, but the vibe onstage was so crappy I wanted to go home after the first set.

After that the second set involved more of the same repertoire choices, and a guest appearance by a female singer that proceed to sing OVER Akim as opposed to with him, and more general confusion. We had our moments though, and I felt like we hit a good groove on one of Akim's originals ("Shadowchild", I think), and a broken guitar string precipitated a sax/bass/drums funk jam which was too long but fun.

The third set began with just Akim and me (I think Akim wanted to cut his losses on his originals and just do them as a duo instead of forcing Joe to learn them as they were happening), and then the band came back and we backed up Melissa Rebronja on two songs (she brought charts, so everyone was able to sight-read and do a nice job), then a local singer (I mean REALLY local, I think this guy was permanently installed at the bar) came up and did Stormy Monday (only Joe and I knew it, so Akim and the sax player, Luis, soloed on the G blues scale during it). The singer sounded good, he nailed all the blues cliches, and so did Joe and I (when in Rome...). Then the rest of the set was steady decay, finally hitting entropy while we did covers of Hotel California and Like A Rolling Stone with a sloppy drunk woman sitting in on backup vocals and her equally drunken friend shouting at us from the nearmost table. Apart from them (and a few friends, whose presence made the evening much more bearable, thank you), there wasn't really many more folks paying attention. These two drunken ladies had, I presume, won some sort of drinking contest in which the prize was a folk-rock fantasy camp singalong.

And, of course, the gig was supposed to end at 1am, and I was assured no later than 1:30. So what the hell was I doing on my drums at 2:05AM? Possibly playing my last $100 gig with Akim.

To sum up this rant, I must confess that I may have been alone in my feelings about how this gig went. I am sure many folks had a great time. I didn't. The current world that I live in doesn't accomodate these kinds of evenings so well. I usually play gigs during the day (thus, am not sleeping till noon, so I do care whether the gig ends at 1am or 2am, because I usually have to be up the next morning for another gig), and if you want me all-night, I should be paid for that.

I say this because I am a bandleader myself and I seem to have very little difficulty organizing and performing gigs where the sidemen are paid $100 and we finish when I said we'd finish. If we play an extra or extra-long set, they get paid for that. I do this every week with cc3 and Hot Buttered Soul. Furthermore, if you want me to play way past the gig's Cinderella-time, at least make sure we're playing something worth playing, not f'ing Hotel California.

This is not a complaint about Akim's music, he's got some good originals and he could have great gigs playing them. But there's two things that make great gigs that were lacking on Friday night: preparation (and that doesn't always mean rehearsal, just bring charts that a pro can read onstage in dim lighting) and being able to sense the vibe of the band and the audience, and react accordingly.

I've just printed out the setlist AKIM emailed me yesterday for our gig in a few hours, and just realized there's second page of "maybe we'll play these too" songs. Oops! Actually, most of them are familiar to varying degrees, the others, well, that's why drummers invented laying out and making dramatic entrances at the chorus or second verse. (And you thought it was because it's musical, ah, grasshopper.....)

Anyway, I'm getting to take my big drums out tonight, which haven't seen any action in 2005. It's been all jazzy/folky for me so far this year, so I've been using the 18" bass drum. Tonight, I get to bring my 22" Phonic, with a 16" floor tom and I'll use my 13" 27-ply beech snare drum, which packs a nice punch for backbeats. Anyway, just two cymbals, 15" 2002 hihats and an 18" Innovations crash/ride, which is a total unsung hero of a cymbal. It's a great cymbal, and pretty cheap in comparison to many that I have....

I got a copy of Kurt Rosenwinkel's latest disc yesterday, on Verve, called Deep Song. It's got all the right people (Brad Mehldau and Larry Grenadier among them), but I had it on while cooking dinner (spinach linquine with a tomato reduction) and it wasn't really nailin' me. I really wanted it to, I'd heard such a buzz. Maybe it'd be better if the band on the record was a real working band (I highly doubt Mr. Mehldau has much time to be in anyone else's band these days), as opposed to a session band. I don't know, it just lacked that punch that you get from a "band" band. Like, the Wayne Shorter Quintet (to compare a similarly current acoustic jazz group), for example. Admittedly, Wayne is truly above everyone else, but his band are mere mortals (pattitucci, perez and blade). That band toured extensively, and the rapport that extended playing gives a group of musicians is tattooed on the sound of that band.

Then again, maybe it was the pasta..... :)