A Peverett Phile Christmas 2 Pheaturing Peace Ike From The Peace Project

Hello, happy holidays, season's greetings, welcome to A Peverett Phile Christmas 2. How are you? Christmas is only 4 days away, but there’s still time for last minute shopping. Four days isn’t really “last minute.” Not as many companies are having holiday parties this year. A lot of companies can’t afford enough toner for employees to drunkenly Xerox their butts. My new area at Disney World is not having a Christmas party. That does it, I am going back to Epcot. It’s perfectly fine to get a co-worker a gift certificate for a full-body massage. It’s not OK to start giving them one. Ninety-nine percent of the eggnog purchased all year is purchased during the week before Christmas. And 99 percent of that eggnog is poured down the drain during the week after Christmas. Nog is short for No One is Going to drink it. In Abu Dhabi, there’s an $11 million Christmas tree. The prime minister of Abu Dhabi said he hoped the tree would be a symbol that Abu Dhabi has a lot more money than us. And that we’re paying far too much for gas. The Obamas had their dog, Bo, sign their Christmas card this year with a paw print. But Bo only agreed to do it after Obama agreed to extend the Bush-era treats policy. Several TSA officers have formed a holiday choir at the Los Angeles International Airport. Which, of course, answers the question: How can going through airport security possibly get any worse? Last Saturday we had our Peverett Christmas party at the house and I couldn't believe who one of the guests we had was. Check it out.

I was like, "Whoa, who is the new chick?" I have to apologize about something. Last week at the end of the entry as always I posted a drawing. It was of Santa holding his belly and it said "Don't Stop Believin'". Well, apparently in last year's Peverett Phile Christmas entry I posted the same picture. I went back through the archives and checked it out. I did. So, here is the picture I should of posted last week.

There, you happy now, eagle eye reader? Readers of the Phile know I love inspirational posters, right? Well, I looked every where for a Christmas themed one and finally found it.

I was out shopping the other day and I noticed a few fails while I was out. Just in time for the Christmas entry. Take a look, kids.

And if you think that's bad?

Someone is happy that it's Christmas. Okay, let's take a break from this Christmasy type stuff. It's time for...

Captain Beefheart
January 15, 1941 - December 17, 2010
He authored legendary titles like "Making Love to a Vampire" with a "Monkey on My Knee", "'81' Poop Hatch" and "When I See Mommy I Feel Like a Mummy". I miss him already.
Blake Edwards
July 26, 1922 - December 16, 2010
Bearded Walks. Bakers Dawdle. A Braked Welds. Sometimes when I can't think of anything funny to say, I just come up with anagrams for the dead guys name. Bad Walks Deer. Dead Bark Slew. This is one of those times.

And now, from the home office in the North Pole. That's really stupid. There's no home office in the North Pole. Anyway, here is...

Top Ten Little-Known Facts About Santa Claus
10. Real name: Saul Claustein.
9. Has over 1,000 arrests for breaking and entering.
8. Thinks it's funny to answer misdirected fan mail for Carlos Santana.
7. Moved to the North Pole when he got a low draft number.
6. This year, not down the chimney... it's out of the closet!
5. His guilty pleasure: reindeer burgers.
4. Met Mrs. Claus when she was a North Pole dancer.
3. Skips Alaska, for fear of Sarah Palin shooting his reindeer.
2. Naughty and nice list provided by Julian Assange.
And the number one little-known fact about Santa...
1. Money's tight; that's actually him at the mall.

Today's guest is the lead singer from the Pittsburgh based band The Peace Project whose new album "The Peace Project" is now available on iTunes. She is also a sister to the Phile Alumni Joy Ike. Please welcome to the Phile... Peace Ike.

Me: Hello, Peace, welcome to the Phile. So, did your sister say anything good about me?

Peace: Haha, well... she made me swear not to tell!

Me: Your sister Joy has been on the Phile twice, Peace. I think it's so cool that your names are Peace and Joy. Your parents are cool to name you kids that. Are there anymore siblings?

Peace: Yup, we have a brother named Victor.

Me: Man, Victor got screwed when it came to the name thing.

Peace: Hehe, yea people think he got the short end of the "cool name" stick. But in actuality, his name holds the same significance as the word "Victory", which I think is just as cool.

Me: Your sister is a solo act, but you chose to have a band... The Peace Project, which is a great name. what made you go the band route instead of the solo route?

Peace: I actually started off as a solo performer, but I just wasn’t able to do my music justice. My music demands a bigger sound than I can deliver alone on the keys. The full band really fills it out.

Me: Speaking of your band, who is in it with you?

Peace: Well, I just relocated to Philadelphia, so right now I’m rebuilding the band from the ground up. But while I was still living in Pittsburgh my saxophonist was Langston Kelly, my bass player was Tony Thomas, my guitarist rotated between Jason Rafalak and James Graff, and my drummer rotated between Peter Jackson and Eric Downs. I still play with these guys when I come home to Pittsburgh

Me: Do you and Joy ever write together or have you two ever performed together?

Peace: No, we never write together. In fact, we have such different writing and playing styles that I’m not so sure it would work. But being that I drummed for joy for many years, we’ve performed together many times.

Me: You two must really support each other, but do you ever criticize each other's work?
Haha, all the time. I’m probably a little guiltier of this than Joy. But I think we’re helpful to each other’s creative process. It’s nice to know that you have someone who will always be 100% honest with you.

Peace: You two have so much talent, you are like the Pa. music version of the Williams' sisters. Has anybody ever compared you two?

Me: Back in the day, there used to be a local hot dog vendor who would call us Venus and Serena. I used to ignore him.

Me: Let's talk about your self-titled album "The Peace Project" which I purchased from iTunes. It's really good and very soulful. How long did it take to record and did you write all the songs?

Peace: Thank you! I finished the project in about 4 months, which isn’t long for a short-length album. Looking back, I think I would have taken a little longer and made a few changes. But I’m still happy with it. And yes, I wrote all of the songs on the album.

Me: Are you planning a follow up?

Peace: For sure, but only time will tell.

Me: Okay, Peace, Joy introduced me to Tiffany Thompson. You have to recommend who I can interview. Any ideas?

Peace: I highly suggest that you chat with my friend and talented MC, Marcus Hill a.k.a. MH the Verb. He’s a Pittsburgh native who recently relocated to Philadelphia as well, and he’s got a passion for reaching people through his creative lyric.

Me: Peace, thanks so much for being on the Phile. Go ahead and plug your website and anything else you want to.

Peace: Thanks, Jason. Definitely. People can visit my website, www.peaceprojectmusic.com, if they’d like more information. Also, if people have not yet secured the new album, they can do so at www.thepeaceproject.bigcartel.com.

Me: I wish you all the luck in the world and tell Joy hello. Take care, peace, and thanks again. Merry Christmas.

Peace: Thank you, Jason. You too!

There, that about does it for this Christmas themed entry. Thanks to Peace Ike for a wonderful interview, and for you to read the blog. I don't know what my days off are going to be next week, but let's plan for Thursday for the next entry. It'll be the last entry of the year obviously and I will announce the 13th book in the Peverett Phile Book Club as well have two movie reviews: Tron: Legacy and Yogi Bear. Oh, and next week's guest will be Linda Lambert, lead singer of the band August 83. And then the following week is the special 5th anniversary entry of the Phile. More on that later. Have a great Christmas, spread the word, not the turd. Don't let snakes and alligators bite you. Bye, love you, bye.