It had been more than 2 years but I finally made it back to Deming, New Mexico - the locale of most of my family. I wish it was a happy trip. My grandmother became ill, and we made the 12 hour drive to be with her. Unfortunately, 2 days after we arrived, my grandmother passed at the age of 83. I took happiness that I was able to show her pictures of my son that she had only seen once when he was a baby and my daughter whom she never got to meet. In her weakened condition, her eyes lit up and her frail arms reached and she grasped the pictures - holding them in front of her so she could see. As weak as she was she could still do such things, also being able to wave at visitors, including me.

With her issues, the hospital could do no more for her and it was decided she would be sent home to my Aunt's house. Hearing this news, her eyes lit up once again and her demeanor changed, even managing a smile now and then. After monitoring her closely for 24 hours, it was decided to remove her oxygen and she was only supposed to last another 30 mins. 2 hours passed and she was still breathing on her own. Everyone was asked to wait outside of the room to allow her to rest. Sure enough, a short time later, she took her last breath.

Going back to Deming was quite an experience. While I was sad about my grandmother, I was also happy to visit with family - cousins who had their own children, other cousins who grew from knee height since the last time I saw them. I was happy to see Aunt's and Uncle's whom I never felt closer to. I went to my cousins Mariachi concert and watched her play violin. I was in the room when she played for my grandmother. I experienced alot of things and alot of emotions. Im grateful to my grandmother for everything she did for me and my family, and for allowing me to go back to Deming and experience the Family element I didnt know I was missing.

Rage Against the Machine reunites

Somewhere, John - the best man at my wedding, and one of my best friends - is one happy camper. I remember when Rage broke up and 3 of the 4 members started jamming with Chris Cornell to form Audioslave. I was a big fan of the first album. I recall watching a surprise first performance by Audioslave on evil MTV which drew me in. John, though, wasn't too excited, "It's just not Rage.", he said when I asked him how he liked the album. And that was kind of a consensus for most of my friends who were into RATM.

I myself, wasnt as big a fan of RATM, although I did really like them. Im a
singer, so rap (a small majority) can be appreciated at a distance. I cant dedicate myself to it though because I'll eventually want to start singing. Zack De La Rocha, is phenomenal though. His lyrics are full of truth and smite and when he's performing you can feel the emotion in each word. Guitarist Tom Morello, drummer Brad Wilk and bassist Tim Commerford are all awesome in their own right as well, with Tom manipulating his guitar sounds so it sounds like anything but. The man also practiced in the old days with Adam Jones, the wonder from TOOL. I enjoy watching the band as a whole perform, their energy is unmatched. I saw a DVD of their "Battle
for Mexico City" show. They were playing in these sort of ruins in front of what seemed like an ocean of people - all jumping and screaming and singing along. I felt I was there instead of sitting on my friend's couch living green. Audioslave's first album of the same name was, in my eyes, a huge album. I thoroughly enjoyed the tracks and listened to it for quite some time - their follow ups were disappointing.

All in all, Im happy that a great band is back together to make great and inspiring music, and also that John can soak up their new material. I can almost see him rapping along....

Boat drinks, mate.