Why Do I Care Where/When Nathan Gunn is Performing?

Well, I'll tell you why. I would like to go see him in something and since his websites performance schedule is apparently only updated once a year, it only goes to the first of June. I was hoping/wishing he were doing something in my area and so I went asearchin'. I'm not a lunatic, I just want to see him do a live performance around where I live.

I could hang out at the university and hope to run into him, but that seems so smarmy somehow. Not fair. Don't want to ambush the guy and force him to sing something for me...hmmm, I don't, right?...no, I don't. I want to pay homage in the proper way, in the proper venue.

Here's hoping something comes up near here soon.

Okay, Nathan Gunn Is Not Staying the Summer in England

I've also discovered a committment to perform at the Aspen Music Festival in July. Aspen in the summer. Well, I suppose it can be fun - hiking, etc. instead of skiing.

Here are the details:

Aspen Festival Orchestra

FEATURED CONDUCTOR AND ARTISTS
Aspen Festival Orchestra
David Zinman conductor
Sasha Cooke mezzo-soprano
Nathan Gunn baritone
Janine Jansen violin

PROGRAM

DVORÁK: Carnival Overture, B. 169, op. 92
JOHN HARBISON: Symphony No. 5
TCHAIKOVSKY: Violin Concerto in D major, op. 35
PERFORMANCE DATE AND TIME
Sunday
July 12, 2009
4:00 pm
Benedict Music Tent

Now don't you want to go? I know I do!

Nathan Gunn Spends Another Summer in London!

Or maybe it'll just be June. With my super NG antenna I have ferreted out his summer performance - and, of course, he's going to do a production of CAMELOT. GAH!! I would give my eye-teeth to see it, but I don't have the DeNiro (get it, denero, i.e. money) to get there. Woe is me.

Nathan Gunn and Me in the NY Philharmonic Camelot
Okay, fine, it isn't me it's Marin Mazzie
Sheesh

Here are the details:

Royal Festival Hall

Camelot

A concert performance presented by Raymond Gubbay
Friday 26 June 2009 - Saturday 27 June 2009

Frederick Loewe's Camelot

Anthony Andrews, Emmy award-winning star of theatre, film and television, leads a superb star cast including world-renowned baritone Nathan Gunn in this rare chance to experience a concert performance of Lerner & Loewe’s Camelot. This celebrated musical of passion and pageantry which inspired an age is accompanied by the Royal Philharmonic Orchestra as the legend of King Arthur unfolds. With a host of much-loved songs including How to Handle a Woman, If Ever I would Leave You and I Loved You Once In Silence this promises to be a memorable evening not to be missed.

Wonder who the rest of the "superb star cast" is?

If anyone is interested in going, you'll get 10% off groups of 10 or more. I'm just sayin'. OH! Just occurred to me - his family could get a discount if they pump it up by a few more relatives! I'm sure he'll be taking his family. His extremely lucky family to be spending time in England. Sigh.

Here's the link
Royal Festival Hall

Let's All Keep Our Fingers Crossed for Susan!

Tomorrow Susan is supposed to go see the fantastic, the handsome, the oh-won't-you-be-my-baby Nathan Gunn perform in Baltimore. Here's the scoop from Susan's site:

The 49th Annual Henry and Ruth Blaustein Rosenberg Lecture-Performance: Nathan Gunn

Nathan Gunn, one of the most acclaimed and in-demand baritones performing today, will be the featured artist for Goucher’s 49th Annual Henry and Ruth Blaustein Rosenberg Lecture-Performance, held on Sunday, March 1, at 7 p.m. in Kraushaar Auditorium.

Free tickets must be reserved in advance by calling 410-337-6333 or e-mailing boxoffice@goucher.edu.

In addition to his performance, Gunn has offered to do a Q&A session/lecture/demonstration with interested Goucher students and faculty on Monday, March 2, from 9 to 10 a.m. in Merrick Lecture Hall. If you would like to attend, or if you need more information, contact Kristen Keener at kristen.keener@goucher.edu or 410-337-6316.

For more information about Gunn’s performance and accomplishments, please see www.goucher.edu/x29695.xml.

The reason we need to keep our fingers crossed? The WEATHER. Yes, the weather is conspiring against Susan. Her area is under a hazardous weather warning for snow and sleet. QUELLE HORREUR!
So now what I have always suspected is true. Weather is a JEALOUS WOMAN. Yes, plotting against Susan, attempting to keep Nathan Gunn to herself. You don't believe me? Just take a look at Monsieur Gunn's own performance schedule. Performance CANCELED in Cincinatti due to...WEATHER. I'm sure this has happened quite a bit over his career. I don't blame Weather, of course. If I had that kind of power, well, let's just say M. Gunn would be hanging around here, and we'd be having a GUNN show (<--ha ha) every day.

However, Mme. Weather, my friend Susan needs/wants/has to get to Baltimore tomorrow. So KNOCK IT OFF. Or I'll tell Nathan on you and he won't love you anymore. So there.

Nathan Gunn Wins Hottest Baritone Poll!

Thanks to you, my grateful public, Nathan Gunn won the hottest baritone poll here by the slimmest of margins over The Gunnster.

Take that, you David Adam Moore fans. HA! In your face!

Music Review - Rodgers & Hammerstein's Allegro

Here's the good news about these CDs. Nathan Gunn and Audra McDonald sing on them. And they are very good, although there is a bit of dialogue that feels as if NG forced it. Not the music, never the music. But the dialogue...well, I'm still trying to understand what happened there. Feels a bit fake, feels a bit forced.

I've had the CDs since their release date but I waited a couple of weeks before I would allow myself to review it. Why? I wanted to give it a fair chance. It's an old work, never done more than a handful of times, and it shows its age. By that I mean it is definitely a product of the time in which it was created.

While in high school, one of my younger sons was very involved in the drama department. The reason I bring this up is that they did a stage production of the Jean Shepherd book "Wanda Hickey's Night of Golden Memories". (Jean Shepherd also wrote the perennial favorite "A Christmas Story".) The play was done with the entire cast speaking the narrative, then the 3-4 leads would say their lines individually. No sets, just all the cast in white shirts and khakis and they moved around the stage in various configurations as the action was played out. I immediately flashed on this when listening to Allegro.

The story centers around Joseph Taylor Jr.'s life from growing up to growing wise. Sort of follows his rise and fall and then redemption, if you will. Nathan is only in a few songs and bits of dialogue and the chorus figures largely in the storytelling. Audra McDonald sounds wonderful - I can't say enough good about her songs and her dialogue.

It feels so dated that I can't imagine seeing this as an actual stage/movie production, but I suppose it would be possible. The story is as old as time - kid does good, makes it big, meets a woman who has other ambitions for him, he plays along for awhile, finally gets his head on straight, remembers where he came from and goes back there. Nothing new, nothing anyone hasn't seen before.

And now for the brutal honesty. The songs aren't that good - there is nothing catchy or memorable...due to the talking/chorus nature of the work, it's really an ensemble that has no breakout numbers. That is not to say that Nathan's voice isn't good, you know it is, but the songs he sings are not anything to write home about. Marni Nixon sings the grandmother parts and she is very much past her singing career. Sorry, Marni, you know I love you, but it is just not happening for me. (In case you don't know her, Marni Nixon did the singing for Audrey Hepburn in My Fair Lady and for Natalie Wood in West Side Story, among others.) Judy Kuhn, the voice of Disney's Pocahontas and a longtime stage/concert performer is good as is Patrick Wilson who sings the lead.

The lack of fire, the lack of anything memorable or catchy is probably why this piece lay dormant for 50 years, and why it probably won't go much farther. To quote Dennis Miller, that is just my opinion of course, I could be wrong.

If you are a Nathan Gunn lover, you can buy this, but if I were you I'd go to Amazon.com and download the mp3s of the tracks that he is in if you feel compelled to have them. They won't make much sense since they are not set up by the singing chorus, but you'll get to hear him and that is NEVER a bad thing. It'll cost a lot less and won't make you want to hit yourself in the face for wasting money on the two disc set.

Oh, Come On Now - Vote for Nathan Gunn!!

There are only three days left in the poll on this blog (check the sidebar, please) and Susan, devilish Susan, I'd-rather-be-sleeping Susan, is stuffing the ballot box for her favorite, The Gunnster.

Are you people going to allow The Gunnster to beat Nathan-The-Pearl-Fisher Gunn? (I'm discounting that Top Gunn thing 'cause I just borrowed it for the poll.)

Only eight votes and yet The Gunnster is pulling ahead.

I call upon all fans of Nathan-Billy-Budd-Gunn to come out of the woodwork and VOTE!! I want to shove this poll down those Moore fans at Barihunks throat!

Come on now - we want Nathan-The-Barber-of-Seville-Gunn to pull this one out!

Nathan and Julie Gunn Wow Them at Oberlin College

Nathan and Julie Gunn at the Oberlin Q&A Session February 15, 2009
Photo Courtesy of Banawoman

Okay, perhaps "wow" isn't the right word, but they would have wowed me if I'd been there. A couple of fellow fans attended, took pictures and gave their accounts of the experience. For details, and the pix, check out I'd rather be sleeping (but opera is keeping me awake). Susan obtained permission to post the images and the stories and rather than go to all that work myself, I'm gonna leech off of her. Don't worry - she's already used to people leeching, but at least I give her credit. Thanks, Susan!

There are a few things that struck me as I read the attendee accounts. First, I am squeeing here over the fact that Nathan KNOWS that I want a Broadway album. Okay, that's not exactly what was said, but to a delusional fan such as myself, that's close enough. He wants to play Billy Bigelow! (insert sad face here) Why am I sad, you ask? Well, that guy is NOT gonna get the girl, if you know what I mean. And if you've seen Carousel, you do. No HEA (happily ever after) included. And I really, really want to see Nathan in a role where he doesn't get electrocuted, or hung or banned from a kingdom or thrown overboard or whatever besides The Magic Flute.

However, I am not complaining 'cause I know he would rock that score beyond belief. I was raised on musicals and I still love them all. Oklahoma, Seven Brides for Seven Brothers, Kiss Me Kate, Unsinkable Molly Brown...my mom dragged us to all of them and I know most of the scores by heart. My fondest wish is to hear Nathan sing any/all of the musicals from my childhood.

I gleaned from the account that NG said he had been approached about doing a musical and that he didn't want or couldn't do the open-ended commitment that would take. I totally get that. I don't need to see him playing the parts, I just want the music. And Broadway is so risky. A play opens and closes in the same breath, and there goes all that wasted rehearsal time and your payday. He has a large family to support, I assume he wants the guaranteed money of opera, which is what I would do.

Second, I'm interested in the family talk. Again, none of my business, but the fact that they brought their oldest daughter along and she didn't lose her mind or complain that anyone could tell is fabulous. I'm not saying that she would have, but I have been around kids of that age (13-14, I think?) and sometimes they can really make an experience a chore due to boredom. On the other hand, it was only for about an hour so not much time to get too restless.

The thing that absolutely floors me in both these accounts is that they didn't ask for a picture with either/or/both Nathan and Julie. I would sooo do that. Of course that might not be proper etiquette, but I would still give it a shot.

I would also probably make a complete nuisance of myself asking JULIE questions. (You thought I was gonna say Nathan, didn't you?) But I'd want to find out about how she does what she does and maybe compare notes on parenting a large family. Especially considering his long absences. He can chime in, too, but I really want to pick her brain a bit. I'd also like to know if she sings at all.

Last, I would have to ask this - are any of the children interested in or talented enough to follow in dad's footsteps? If not singing, are any of them musical in any way? I had each of my children play a different instrument in the hope that one day they would be able to play something together. We made that goal when the youngest were in 4th grade. It was very touching and I loved the experience, but they were not destined for greatness musically speaking.

These are my burning questions, as the big O would say. (No, not *that* big O! I mean Oprah - keep it clean, kids.) Maybe someday I'll get to ask them.

New Poll to Measure Hottest Baritone - Vote for Nathan Gunn!

Instead of contesting the results of the Barihunks poll from last week, I've set up my own. Please vote in the poll in the sidebar - we will definitely show Barihunks who the hottest baritone is, once and for all!

Another Nathan Gunn Convert!

Last weekend I was forced by my somewhat elderly mother to drive her to visit my sick cousin in Lincoln, Illinois, a small town about 35 miles away and only accessible by the dreaded two lane highway...passing cars is not a favorite occupation. 35 miles is an hour+ in two-lane-highway minutes. Sigh.

The visit was done and we were on the way back when I asked her if she had had time yet to listen to the Just Before Sunrise CD that I had given her for Christmas A YEAR AGO. (She keeps telling me that she will, she will, she's just so busy, and so forth.) Of course she replied, "No, I haven't - tell me again who this guy is?"

Well, I went into my usual dissertation. Best baritone that ever lived, a lyric baritone which is different than bass and others, not a "tree trunk Verdi baritone singer" (paraphrasing NG himself). I further tried to get her where she lived by telling her that he had played Lancelot back in May...she loves her some Camelot (the Richard Harris/Richard Burton talking versions) and she thought Robert Goulet was a GOD. Still just uh-huhs from her. So I decide to bring out the big GUNN. (<--ha ha, I crack myself up)

"Mom," I say, "it just so happens that the CD is in the player so let's listen to it now" and before she can say anything I get it going. She at first protests that it is too loud. (I like my Nathan cranked up so that when I sing along I don't hear how bad I am in his key.) So I reduce the sound slightly, but she does have a hearing issue so I keep it up a bit so she won't miss anything.

After listening to him sing The Briar and The Rose, she turns to me and says, (get this) "It's so pleasant to listen to a voice that you can tell is a MAN. It just feels like a warm hug, doesn't it?"

HOLY CANNELLONI - my Mom totally gets it! Apparently Hell has frozen over since the last time I checked.

When we completed our trip and I dropped her off at home, she was saying to herself, "Now where did I put that CD?"

Conversion complete. BOOYAH!

OMG Nathan Gunn - Fix It Already!!

I noticed several months ago that Nathan Gunn's page on IMDB (Internet Movie Database) is incredibly sparse and basically uninformative. No pic of our hero, unbelieveably enough, just a link to The Colbert Report and some random and somewhat incorrect filmography information.

I know, I know, he's not a "movie star" per se, but that site is for anyone in the entertainment business and I think he more than qualifies with his Met HD DVD of The Magic Flute, not to mention other TV appearances on PBS' Great Perfomances and so forth.

It's not the lack of a bio pic that has me screaming, though - it's that the link posted to The Colbert Report just goes to a Hulu.com IMDB page and the latest Colbert Report episode. It doesn't even take you to Nathan's interview on 5-6-2008 which was, for lack of a better word, interesting.

The short filmography displayed shows him as portraying Papageno in PETER GRIMES in 2008 for an episode of Great Performances. Yes, the bird-catching Papageno from The Magic Flute. He does an excellent job in that role, but I doubt that is what Britten or Mozart had in mind. How about fixing that? And did he actually play Jaws Brogan in an episode of Out of Sight in 1996? Or does that credit truly belong to Nathan Gunn Number 3 (believe it or not there are three Nathan Gunns in the entertainment industry)? What's up with listing two appearances on The Colbert Report, one in 2007, one in 2008? He might have been scheduled for 2007 to hawk Just Before Sunrise and got caught up in the writer's strike, but I don't think he made more than one appearance. Take a look if you think I'm making this up: IMDB Nathan Gunn Number 2

Doesn't this guy have a publicist? On his home page, NathanGunn.com, there is a category titled "Links" that gives information on his management, which is all over the world. Could one of those people, who no doubt take a bit of moolah from him, check this out? It has been this way for months, for God's sake. I'd change it myself if I had his permission.

How am I going to convert people and get them all rowdied up for Nathan when the info they need to fall in love with him is faulty?

I'm pleading with you, Nathan Gunn's management or whoever takes care of his publicity - fix it! And put up a pic for his bio. And fill out his bio. And list all his performances correctly. And...well, you get the idea. And if you can't or don't want to, let me!! Leave a comment here - I'll zoom over and take care of the whole thing posthaste. 'Cause I loves me my NG.

Nathan Gunn...TIED?!

I am inconsolable. In spite of all my marketing, my word of mouth, my posting...Nathan Gunn TIED with David Adam Moore at Barihunks for hottest baritone with both singers receiving 23% of the vote. Sigh.

I know the truth, though. Those Moore fans padded the ballot box. It had nothing to do with his rising star, his physique, his voice. It was politics, pure and simple, and Nathan was punished for not coming out from his busy schedule to campaign.

No matter. He's still the hottest Barihunk around my universe. Take that, Mr. Moore.

Nathan Gunn Whispers Sweet Nothings...

...unfortunately not in my ear, but in his wife's. Sigh.



I found this article while looking through some old University of Illinois Alumni magazines for an engineering article for my son. It leapt up and slapped me in the face - a true OMG moment. I was lucky to hunt and peck online to find it there.

Here's the link:

http://www.uiaa.org/urbana/illinoisalumni/0701_b.html

Such a nice article about Nathan and Julie Gunn. It's interesting to see that they were apparently predestined to find each other. On the other hand, if my 20 year old son had told me he was getting married...well, let's just say we would have talked quite a bit about it beforehand, then he would have done exactly as he wanted and I would have supported him, albeit hoping it was not a mistake.

It seems very young to me now, but reading the article it also seems as though Nathan was aware of that and worried a bit himself. Perhaps he has an old soul. My once 20 year old sons were more concerned with video games, football and basketball than love and I was very glad for it. That's not to say that they didn't want them some womens - it's more like they did not find "the one" in college. That might have been my fault. I did not get to college due to "love" and had my oldest daughter when I was 19. I hammered into all my children that they had time for that once their education was complete. So Nathan and Julie must have been very special to know what they wanted and not to worry about finishing school or money or any of that back when they were that age. And their parents must have been special, too, to support them through that process, which I assume they did. Good on ya, parental units!

Anyway, good article and clears up some of my questions about their lives, which, admittedly, are none of my business. It's just that I think of my six kids and our lives and the business of it, getting everything done everyday, getting everyone everywhere, let alone being an international opera singer...well, it boggles the mind. People often ask me how I did it and I think that once you're in it, and you're doing it, you just DO IT. You don't think about the how or the why and I'm often truly startled when I think of all we actually accomplished when they were young. No international trips on the scale of the Gunn family, but we went somewhere every year in the summer, lots of driving trips (couldn't afford air travel back then) and we managed to see most of the U.S. in a good way. I think (I hope) all of my kids would say they had a great time and education (even if they fought me all through the Little Bighorn National Battlefield - Mom and her stale old history). But just imagine if I'd been able to afford to do more.

Making their children citizens of the world through international travel can only benefit the Gunn kids. Tolerance is achieved through understanding of different peoples and cultures and I think the Gunn family has it going on already. Good for them.

Calling All Nathan Gunn-ites!! We Need Your HELP!!

Over at the Barihunks blog (http://barihunks.blogspot.com/) they are conducting a poll to determine the hottest barihunk (translation for the uninformed - the hottest baritone). Nathan is currently on top (oh, the places my mind goes to sometimes), but he has two other contenders nipping at his heels!

I call on you, the Nathan Gunn, the naked Nathan Gunn, the half-naked Nathan Gunn populace to wing over to the aforementioned Barihunks and vote! We can't let Nathan lose this most prestigious award...it would be criminal since he clearly is the hottest barihunk around!

We are counting on YOU! There is only a day or two left before this poll ends, so please, please don't let Nathan down. I'm sure that winning this contest will be the pinnacle of his career. Or not, but still...he deserves it!

Nathan Gunn and One Degree of Separation

OMG. It just occured to me today that my favorite baritone, Nathan Gunn, has only one degree of separation from my celebrity boyfriend, Pierce Brosnan. How, you ask? Well, I'll tell you.

I was listening to Just Before Sunrise (see sidebar for a widget with song excerpts) and one of the songs on the CD is The Parting Glass. As I was listening for the 100th time, it finally dawned on me that Pierce sang this exact same song in the movie Evelyn! I think the reason it took so long for me to realize this is that their singing styles are quite a bit different...by that I mean Nathan Gunn is excellent, Pierce, well, Pierce is cute, okay? I loved Mamma Mia, by the way, and thought Pierce did as good as he possibly could in the role of Sam, but I didn't buy the soundtrack for that alone.

Don't take my word about The Parting Glass - judge for yourself. Watch/listen to this Youtube video of the song from the movie. Then go to the sidebar and find The Parting Glass in the Just Before Sunrise songlist. I think you will see what I mean.



Forgive me, Pierce, for putting you in this postion, but MAN. There is no comparison.

Nathan Gunn sings in Rodgers & Hammerstein's Allegro

I am so excited - Tuesday, February 3, 2009 is the official drop date for the "all-star complete recording of Rodgers and Hammerstein's short-lived 1947 Broadway musical, Allegro, featuring Audra McDonald, Nathan Gunn and Patrick Wilson."

Nathan Gunn and Audra McDonald at the Allegro recording
photo by Carol Rosegg

To quote a Playbill story published on 12/8/2008, "Allegro tells the story of an earnest country doctor, Joseph Taylor, following his life from cradle to adulthood, and his journey — both literal and moral — from small town to big city, and back again. The score is unconventional: fragments of song move in and out of the action like passing thoughts; melodies flit by in one scene only to take hold and blossom in the next. Major songs are given to minor characters, while the central character has comparatively little solo work. A chorus provides spoken commentary and sings aloud inner thoughts. Original director/choreographer Agnes de Mille's extended ballet sequences are reflected in intriguing orchestral pieces.

The new recording of Allegro features Patrick Wilson (The Full Monty, Oklahoma!) as Joe Taylor, Jr.; Nathan Gunn (Camelot) and Audra McDonald (Ragtime, Carousel, Master Class) as Joe's parents; Marni Nixon (My Fair Lady, Nine) as Joe's Grandma; Judy Kuhn (Les Misérables, She Loves Me, Chess) as Beulah; Liz Callaway (Baby, Cats, Miss Saigon) as Emily; Laura Benanti (Gypsy, Into the Woods, Nine) as Jennie; and Norbert Leo Butz (Dirty Rotten Scoundrels, Wicked, Is He Dead?) as Joe's best friend, Charlie."

I cannot wait to hear this! It's like finding a hidden treasure - a score that I have never heard, but that was written between Carousel and South Pacific smack dab in R & H's heyday. It's available at Amazon - Allegro CD. Here's hoping it's as wonderful as I think it will be.

Nathan Gunn in Action

I spoke about Nathan Gunn earlier in the week. His voice is like warm, rich chocolate. I'm posting a video from the Lyric Opera of Chicago here so you can see him in action. The Barber of Seville is so much fun - and you can tell he really enjoys the role.



An online friend of mine saw him perform this in person. I wish I could have been there.

Here is a promo video from his 2007 CD Just Before Sunrise. The song, Feels Like Home, was one that I wasn't so in love with at first, but it grew on me. I feel like an idiot, but I finally had what Oprah would call a "light bulb moment" the other day - all the songs on the Just Before Sunrise CD tell a story. Duh, huh? I'm looking for something catchy, but these songs require a bit of reflection and totally make sense. In fact, I'm listening to them and totally getting it. Slow learner, I guess.



I have a lot more videos to show...we'll get to them in time.

Nathan Gunn Loves Me - or He Should

Opera baritone Nathan Gunn is my latest love. He doesn't know me, but that doesn't matter - I know him...and there is a lot of him to know.

He's known in opera circles as Top Gunn (quoted from a fan website) and half-naked Nathan Gunn and naked Nathan Gunn. Here's why:



Oh yeah - he sings good, too. His 2007 album, Just Before Sunrise, is a collection of mild and mellow songs from "living composers" as he put it on the liner notes. I didn't like all the songs at first, but on numerous plays I have been brainwashed into liking them. Or is it his voice that I like? Dunno, but either way the desired result was achieved.

You've got to wonder what kind of ego a person like this sports. Is he humble and grateful for his gift, or is he arrogant and tempermental? I don't suppose I'll ever know even though his home base is only 40 miles from mine. I don't hang in the operatic world and I'm pretty sure he doesn't hang in the police world, so I doubt we'll ever cross paths.

Having said that, he owes me. And to quote a right wing idiot that I hate (take that, Glenn Beck) I'll tell you how I got there. I have six kids, two girls, four boys (and the boys include two sets of twins). After slogging along I have managed to put them all through college (thanks to their good grades, Pell grants and William Ford loans), three of them through the University of Illinois. Nathan Gunn is a U of I alumni and a current professor of voice there. (I would hate to be his student since he's probably only able to actually teach like 6 days a year with his performance schedule. My son's professor's teaching assistants did all the heavy lifting when they were in college and I imagine the same is true for the college of music, but I digress.)

Having three kids at the U of I ain't cheap, even with grants, scholarships and loans. They have lived everywhere from the six-pack and Lundgren Hall to private apartments (on 1st Street) and houses (on Chalmers) and the book fees alone are enough to choke a horse, not even counting their horse-like eating habits (and not including the annual testical festival which my vet son cooked for each year) . So I'm figuring that with one son a veterinarian - that's 4 years of undergrad tuition and 4 years of grad school; one son an engineer - add on 4 years there; and the other son a liberal artist - add on 4 more, that is a total of 16 years of tuition, fees, room and board at the good old U of I. I OWN him, or more specifically I own his office space at the very least. I'm sure if I were to seek out his office, there would probably be a plaque mounted on the wall nearby with my name as the generous donor.

Hence the title of this post - he should love me if only for the nice little office he occupies.