New Mraz Polaroid Book – No Shaking Required

a thousand things

When you got your Mraz pre-sale tickets you may have seen a little box where you could select to pre-order Jason’s new book of Polaroids. It’s titled a thousand things and is a bit pricey at more than $40, but maybe you can share with a friend.

If you’re not sure whether you need it or not, you can wait until I get mine and I’ll let you know.

I don’t see any other way to pre-order at this point, but will keep you posted when it’s announced.

Oh, and if you haven’t seen them yet, here are the U.S. and Canadian 2008 What’s the Name of This Tour? Dates from Jason’s Myspace page:

Oct 8 2008 8:00P	Scranton Cultural Center	Scranton, Pennsylvania
Oct 10 2008 7:00P	Radio City Music Hall	New York, New York
Oct 13 2008 8:00P	Metropolis	Montreal, Quebec
Oct 15 2008 7:00P	Massey Hall	Toronto, Ontario
Oct 16 2008 8:00P	Tower Theater	Philadelphia, Pennsylvania
Oct 17 2008 7:00P	Orpheum Theater	Boston, Massachusetts
Oct 20 2008 7:00P	DAR Constitutional Hall	Washington,, Washington DC
Oct 23 2008 7:00P	Nokia Theater	Dallas, Texas
Oct 24 2008 7:00P	Stubbs Outdoor	Austin, Texas
Oct 25 2008 7:00P	Verizon Wireless Theater	Houston, Texas
Oct 27 2008 7:00P	The Fillmore	Denver, Colorado
Oct 28 2008 7:00P	E Center	Salt Lake City, Utah
Oct 31 2008 7:00P	SDSU OAT	San Diego, California
Nov 1 2008 7:00P	Greek Theatre	Los Angles, California
Nov 2 2008 7:00P	Greek Theatre	Berkeley, California
Nov 3 2008 7:00P	Freeborn Hall	Sacramento, California
Nov 5 2008 7:00P	Knitting Factory	Boise, Idaho
Nov 7 2008 7:00P	INB Opera House	Spokane, Washington
Nov 8 2008 7:00P	Center for Arts	Vancouver, British Columbia
Nov 9 2008 7:00P	Paramount	Seattle, Washington
Nov 12 2008 7:00P	Arlene Schnitzer Concert Hall	Portland, Oregon
Nov 15 2008 7:00P	The Pearl	Las Vegas, Nevada
Nov 16 2008 7:00P	Dodge Theater	Phoenix, Arizona
Nov 19 2008 7:00P	Myth	Minneapolis, Minnesota
Nov 21 2008 7:00P	Eagles Ballroom	Milwaukee, Wisconsin
Nov 22 2008 7:00P	Aragon Ballroom	Chicago, Illinois
Nov 23 2008 7:00P	Fabulous Fox Theater	St, Louis, Missouri
Nov 25 2008 7:00P	Lakewood Auditorium	Cleveland, Ohio
Nov 26 2008 7:00P	The National	Richmond, Virginia
Nov 29 2008 7:00P	Tabernacle	Atlanta, Georgia
Dec 2 2008 7:00P	Florida Theatre	Jacksonsville, Florida
Dec 3 2008 7:00P	Hard Rock Live Orlando	Orlando, Florida
Dec 4 2008 7:00P	Ruth Eckard Hall	Tampa Bay, Florida

Kiss me, I will kiss you back,
Lisa

Did You Get Your Mraz Pre-Sale Tickets?

New tour details came out yesterday and a freaking lot of new Fall 2008 tour dates went on sale today. Details are on Mraz’s tour page, or head straight to Ticketmaster.com and use the password: polaroid.

Update (10:06am): A friend trying for tickets in San Diego said he immediately got a Sold Out message at 10:00. Is it possible to be sold out before the sale even begins? Maybe just a computer glitch? I’ll be watching Jason’s site for news.

Another Update (10:16am): Never mind. It’s working now.

Dear Mraz: Thank You for James Morrison

In the last week, my postings have followed Mraz’s Practice Gratitude theme. I was thankful for Joss Whedon. I was thankful for friends.

Last weekend I was thankful to be flipping through channels and spot Mraz on VH-1 doing an uncomfortable interview where the chick was asking these amature, softball questions and he looked like he would rather be just about anywhere else, although he was polite and kind throughout. Also, there were avocados.

James Morrison

Now I would like to take a minute and express my attitude of gratitude for James Morrison. I can’t believe I actually wrote “attitude of gratitude”. If you come back tomorrow, that part may be erased. I’m not sure about it yet.

James Morrison is the guy singing on Details in the Fabric. His voice is gritty and real, the opposite of the buffed and polished and synthesized stuff you normally get on the radio, but then nothing on We Sing. We Dance. We Steal Things. is what you normally hear on the radio. That’s why we like it.

After listening to “Details in the Fabric” a few dozen times I went to YouTube and looked up Mr. Morrison. What I found was ok, but it didn’t blow me away and I pretty much forgot about him.

A few weeks later I got to meet up with my friend, Jorge, who I haven’t seen in yonks. (That’s Australian for ‘a super long time’.) We had brunch, did some shopping, and walked around Berkeley. We popped into one of the massive record stores on Telegraph and I was thumbing through the used CDs. When I got to the Ms, to see if maybe there was a Mraz import I didn’t have, I found James Morrison’s Undiscovered. It was $3.99, so I decided to take a shot.

After leaving Jorge back at his hotel, I rolled down my windows, slid the CD into my player, started cruising toward the freeway, and suddenly felt like someone had waved their magic wand over my little blue Neon. Maybe it was just the rare, perfect California weather, or maybe it was my mood, but after just a few minutes I decided that this James Morrison CD was going to be my new best friend.

I’ll let you discover more about him yourself, but I do want to share these lyrics from the song Wonderful World:

Sometimes I feel so full of love
It just comes spilling out
It’s uncomfortable to see
I give it away so easily

That’s so me. And that’s so Mraz, don’t you think? Heart on his sleeve, completely willing to look like a fool.

It’s a fun album. Go get it. Even if you have to pay more than $3.99.

I’m not lost, just undiscovered,
Lisa

Dr. Horrible’s Evil Ending! Grrr! Arrg!

Dr. Horrible

*Warning! Spoilers below!* 

Joss, Joss, Joss. Why?

Why must you toy with us like this? Why do you make us wait and wait for something fresh and new (well, networks are mostly to blame for that), then give us a spoonful of your perfect, clever lovin’ to make us remember how happy and entertained you can make us feel, but then snatch our satisfaction away in the last few seconds with a, “What the hell?” and then make us wait even more to find out what happens next? Or if anything will happen next? (Please, please, please say the sequel is in the works.)

I loved Dr. Horrible (the character and the mini-movie). The ending was almost too Willow and Tara, but still moving. The ending ending was the bit I don’t think anybody saw coming, and it’s driving me crazy, but in a good way. A way that makes me want more. Is Dr. Horrible really some guy in, I dunno, maybe a mental institution who’s been imagining the whole thing? Nah. Too silly.

Maybe it was a “Lost”-style flash-forward and Dr. Horrible has returned to living life as a normal guy? Or maybe it’s a story-in-a-story type deal with Billy in the Joss Whedon role, fantasizing about these characters he’s invented?

Or maybe Joss has something even better up his sleeve, being far more experienced at dreaming outside the box than I am.

Uuugggggh! The waiting is going to eat me up. But as long as I have some time on my hands, may as well watch it again

Tenacious Mraz Sings a “Happy Song”

Festival in Germany. Short film. New. The guy who isn’t Jack Black. That’s all you need to know.

Go to the middle of the GMnext page, under Videos.

“Dr. Horrible” is Completely Wonderful! Thanks Joss!

Dr. Horrible

It was so popular yesterday, the entire site crashed so not many people got to see it. I checked back today though and Joss Whedon’s new Internet supervillian musical, “Dr. Horrible’s Sing-Along Blog“, was up and running just fine.

Neil Patrick Harris is the most geekalicious and cuddly evil-doer you’ve ever seen. Nathan Fillion is a perfect ass. The songs are very Buffy-esque, the humor is Joss at his most undiluted (thank goodness this production wasn’t done by a studio), and I can’t wait to see what goofy fun Act II brings us.

“Dr. Horrible” is free right now, but for $3.99 you can download all three acts from iTunes. Show Joss some love and pony up your Starbuck’s money. If he makes enough, then hopefully there will be many more Internet adventures to come.

Mraz on Letterman: Don’t You Think He Looks Tired?

No, I’m not trying to bring down the Mraz government à la David Tennant in pyjamas. (And isn’t that just the best episode? He looks sexy and powerful, but cozy and a little tousled at the same time. All rude and not ginger, pressing buttons and smiling and then getting all serious with his, “no second chances” mean face. Love it.)

I just mean that our Mraz is looking a wee bit worn. Gaunt, even. He’s starting to more closely resemble his album cover, all angles and cheekbones and hat. I hope he can squeeze some R&R into his crazy tour schedule.

If you didn’t see Letterman last night, Jason and the band performed “I’m Yours”. It was more like the tour version than the album version, which I appreciated. No need to dumb things down for people who have only heard one version of the song and don’t know that it’s evolved over the past, what, three years?

The clip should pop up on YouTube soon enough. Until then, go watch Joss Whedon’s new Internet musical, Dr. Horrible’s Sing-Along Blog, or try to anyway. It’s having some technical difficulties right now, but I’m sure it’s worth the wait: www.drhorrible.com

Wow. Mraz, David Tennant, and Joss Whedon, all in one post. That’s like the holy trinity of geek entertainment or something.

Once more with feeling,
Lisa

Jason Mraz on Letterman Tonight! July 14, 2008

Jason is the musical guest on Letterman tonight, so plan to stay up late or set your recording device of choice.

Tomorrow is Jason’s secret Myspace show in Hartford, CT at the Webster Underground. Tickets are free, but space is limited, and I’m going to go out on a very safe limb and say that if you aren’t in line a good 10 to 12 hours before doors open at 8pm, you aren’t going to get in.

If someone who does get in wants to report back to the group, I’d love to hear details!

Happy 50,000th Hit to Me!

As much as I love our Prophet Mraz (as much as we all do), I think it’s safe to say that no matter how hard he works, no matter how many years he spends making music, and no matter how many fans we help him recruit, he’ll never have 50,000 hits. I, however, have achieved that on this blog in about a year and a half.

Yeah, that’s probably what Amazon and eBay get every hour, but my product (ramblings on love, goofiness, and nifty tunes) is much more specific and has a more limited audience. Metrics, shmetrics.

Thanks to everyone who’s stopping by and leaving messages for me. It’s nice to know you’re having a good time here.

Practice gratitude,
Lisa

Meeting Mraz Fans Around the World

The next best thing to traveling is meeting people from far away places and learning more about them. Also, making them promise to let you stay on their couch when you do the around-the-world trip that you’ve always wanted to do, but haven’t because you don’t have enough couches lined up just yet.

I had a comment on the “Lyrics to Jason Mraz’s Live High” post from Marcelo. He needed some more lyrics, I did my best to get them for him, and he wrote to say thanks, and to let me know he and his friends were starting a Jason Mraz forum in Brazil. How sweet is that?

It shouldn’t suprise me that Mraz has fans in South America. He may not tour there as often as he does Germany or Japan, but what with the InterGoogleTube these days, an artist doesn’t have to show up in your front yard for you to hear what he has to say.

What I would really like to do is plan a trip around the world where I could meet up with other Mraz fans. We could have sing-a-longs, read our favorite Mraz blogs to each other, make fresh Mraz Chocomole, and figure out how to spread our own brand of Jason-flavored diplomacy to others: Do what you love. Be good to others. Eat chocolate.

So, where are the rest of you reading this from? And who wants to become a Mraz Embassy stop for my tour?