The Christmas spirit was high as we drove into Ottawa to play at Centrepointe Theatre. Singing happy carols and slugging back egg nog we pulled into the beautiful parking lot, entered the theatre, and made short work of the soundcheck.  It was time for food!

A lovely bunch of volunteers made us dinner: salmon with asparagus au gratin to be exact. It was delightful.  Here is a picture of Mike being delighted:

Yes, it’s not the right way up, but we are busy people and don’t have time to rotate pictures before uploading them. Just tilt your head!

But, there was more. For dessert there was a Jell-o cake!

Three different types of Jell-o in it! A day without Jell-o is a day without life, as Confucius so rightly pointed out.

The show itself was a veritable Christmas Miracle of fun. The audience seemed to especially enjoy our repeated jolly shouting of “Suck it up, it’s Christmas!”  Many were so swept up in the Christmas Spirit that they bought our cds and associated products.

And isn’t that what Christmas is all about?

What could be better than Bethlehem at Christmastime? Nothing! Now, we weren’t at the original Bethlehem, but the one in Pennsylvania is every bit as good. They even call themselves Christmas City! We were playing Godfrey Daniels a music club we’ve been to many times before. They made us a lovely meal for, and then we all had pie. Any day with pie is a good day. Then the sound-check. Here is Mike and Chris standing on the stage.

What an action shot!  It was a packed house and we hope to be back soon.

By the way, did you ever wonder what we do during intermission? Well, wonder no more:

And if you know the name of a eight letter dessert wine that starts with “S” let us know.

We loaded up the wormobile and headed off to the USA. After a lovely time at the border crossing answering questions and giving fingerprints we were in the foreign land. The drive was delightfully uneventful, and the three coffee stops we made were quick and efficient. Our destination was Club Passim, a folk club that’s been going for fifty-one years that is located in the heart of Harvard. We felt smarter and more privileged just being there.

We parked the car in Harvard yard, entered the club and did a quick soundcheck (where we desperately tried to remember how our Christmas songs went). There was a major change at Club Passim since our last visit there two years ago: now you could buy booze!  This bode well for the show as our performance always go over better when the audience’s judgement is impaired.

The show was a delight, although the crowd was a little on the jaded and responded to our enthusiastic cries of “Christmas is just around the corner!” with stony silence.  Strangely enough, however, we sold lots of Christmas albums.

As it has been awhile since our last gig, our tour reflexes were a little off and we completely forgot to take any pictures of the show. Fortunately the friends we are staying with have a cute dog. Look:

Sit!

Good dog.

It’s not really much of an accomplishment, but for Trevor, who tires easily, the release of his podcast’s brilliantly titled, “Episode Ten,”  is a bit of an Everest. How’s it doing? Well, the ratings are abysmal, which would be a disappointment if the show wasn’t so terrible.

Given that, you can listen to it here, or go to his Facebook page where he also posts a Pointless Poem every week.

By the way, the eleventh episode will be called, “Episode Eleven.”

It was nice to get back to the Cornwall. The last time we’d played there was… was… hey, we’ve never played Cornwall before! We did stop there for lunch once about fourteen years ago. Needless to say (but still, say it we shall) after eighteen years of touring Canada it’s a pretty rare for us to find a town we haven’t played in before. (Not like Cornwall was hiding, or anything.)

We were very excited to get there, and also a little hungry. Chris was glad to see the fruit tray backstage.

Yummy pineapple! But we were still hungry after the soundcheck. So, on a tip from an old fried of ours, we went to:

Looks promising, it has both Canadian and Italian dishes!  Mike heard the pizza was good and ordered a whole one for himself.

Greedy Mike! He looks a bit like a Jack Nicholson there, don’t you think? REDRUM! REDRUM!

The show was a fabulous success and we were very warmly received by the Cornwalleenians. We hope to return soon, or at least in less than eighteen years.

Rejoice fans of the trivial and the mundane, the Arrogant Worms are now on Twitter! (http://twitter.com/arrogantworms)

Did you ever wonder what they had for lunch? Or perhaps you need to know how many cups of coffee they had today? Or maybe your life is not complete without hearing about the poor service they received at the dry cleaners?  Thanks to the wonder of Twitter this is now possible.

If you’re not on Twitter, we’re proud of you. Maybe you have real friends, interests and hobbies. Perhaps you feel life is best lived directly, not through a series of interfaces… but really, you’re already on the internet if you’re reading this. Admit it. You’ve lost. Reality was never that good anyway. Join us! Bathe in the water of useless information and swim with us in the sea of inanities! Virtual friends are the best anyway. You can delete them whenever they bother you! Come to the dark side. We have. We thought Twitter was bad, but we were wrong! Now we know what Mariah Carey is up to! Why? Because we follow her on Twitter. Did you know that after you arrived in Brazil the other day she went to the hotel and had a nap? We do! And we are better people for knowing it. Come… Come… Come…

I think it’s nap time.

We were delighted to be playing a Sudbury Saturday night. It was our first show here in five years, and Trevor’s first in eight. (Trevor was on paternity leave the last time–The Arrogant Worms are a very progressive organization–and was replaced by the always delightful Mike Ford.) But before we get on with the show, we will let you in on some of the excitement and wonder of the Canadian Entertainment Business. Yes, here is Chris checking into the hotel!

What an action shot!

The theatre was at Laurentian University and the stage was carpeted, which is not something you see every day. We were a little worried about static electricity (and static cling) but you’ll be glad to know that we somehow made  it through unharmed. The Sudbury crowd was loud and enthusiastic, although they did fare poorly on the Mounted Animal Nature Trail, which was suprising given their proximity to the real park. We think they might have been messing with us.  After the show we met some fans and then enjoyed the fungi collection that was in the lobby. Why don’t more theatres have this?

Oh, that Trevor. He’s one fun guy! (this is a play on words… it sounds just like fungi… okay, so it’s not funny.)

Busy, busy, busy, that’s what we were today.  Not only did not only a show, but also a photoshoot with fantastic photographer Andrew Macnaugtan who has worked with the likes of Rush, Great Big Sea, and the Barenaked Ladies. Once we arrived, it was decided that make-up was definitely in order. Here’s Chris getting some Pollyfilla pressed into his face to smooth out his errors and deficiencies.We did many different shots, using a variety of props and settings–including a tiny trampoline! And of course, we were, at times, somewhat wacky.

Look, Mike doesn’t even know hold a guitar!  Ha!

After six hours of shooting (with a brief break to eat some very tasty fish and chips) it was back to the hotel to get our stuff, then to the venue to load in, then the soundcheck, then a quick meal, then the show.  Mike was so tired he passed out before he could bring the bottle to his mouth… or is this a sighting of the elusive unicorn?

The show was at the Glenn Gould theatre in the CBC building, a lovely venue with great sound and, for some mysterious reason, a framed copy of Maria Carey’s cd, Glitter, on the wall backstage. What are the odds?–that’s Trevor’s favourite album ever! Here he is looking longingly at the cover.

She’s like an Angel. A messed up, over-produced, not-terribly-good-at-acting, angel. And if you haven’t seen the movie, do yourself a favour and rent it today. It will change your life.

The Guelph show was another astounding success. There are so many highlights that it would be nearly impossible to list them all… but list them we shall. First of all, we were not the only bundle of Canadiana performing at the River Run Centre. No, playing in the Centre’s other theatre was none other than the legendary Skydiggers.

Surprisingly enough, they did not rebuff our awkward advances and even engaged us in conversation. For proof here is  picture of Chris talking to singer Andy Maize.

Okay, so neither of their mouths are open and Andy seems a little uncomfortable–perhaps because Chris is approaching him with a toothbrush–but we assure you a deep and meaningful exchange did occur.

And why was Chris holding his toothbrush, you ask?  Well, because the backstage spread was super-extra-special that’s why!

Mmmmmm! That’s good eating. The Coffee Mate was especially delightful. So few people realize how good it is on its own… or as a dip for tiny chocolate bars.

But perhaps the biggest highlight of them all was Trevor’s new shirt.  Yes, every ten years he buys a new one. Unfortunately there are no pictures of it–but even if there were we wouldn’t show them to you. It’s the only new thing about the show and we don’t want to spoil it for you.

What a day!  Tomorrow should be more relaxed as we perform in the bucolic village of Toronto.

As part of our never-ending efforts to serve you better, we will be posting a new song every month on our splashpage. Just so you know, these won’t be exactly studio quality or anything like that, and, truth be told,  some might not be very good. But, hey, they’re free!  The first one (A Manly Song) has just been put up–hear it while it’s still fresh! If you like it let us know, and if you don’t, just keep it to yourself. We’re very sensitive.