The Weblog Of Dr. Dot Stein
Super busy- still have to submit the December Penthouse Forum "Calling Dr. Dot" sex column and I have 418 unread emails, yikes!! AND I am late to massage Flogging Molly an hour drive away. omfg.
gotta run
x
ps. It's over 90 degrees F today in NYC (same as yesterday)
On the actual flyer it has my phone numbers on it, but I colored over it for the net, too many folks calling my number to chat, I am too busy to discuss the weather unfortunately
You likey?
Going mad here trying to pack for my trip to NYC. I will be there a few months, not even sure how long this time. I do NOT want to leave Berlin. I love it here now. How crazy is that? I always do things ass backwards, ugh!!
Anyhow, I interviewed Joe Jackson for the Exberliner magazine, the English magazine for Germany; same one I have been writing my sex column for since it began 6 years ago. Joe is very private and I was surprised he agreed to do the interview at all and NOW, I am proud to say, it is the cover story and his picture takes up the whole cover of the September issue. Guess I will only be able to see it online as I am leaving to NYC in a few days.
Recently I have had many friends pass through Berlin and I showed them around a bit, as much as I could. First, Norm, my buddy from San Diego and bassist for the band Hard Echo came to Berlin-
then Tina, Robin, John and Shirley who are ALL into Frank Zappa as much as I am, came this past Monday, and they brought two friends along with them as well (they all went to the Zappanale , the same Zappa festival I went to last summer). I sadly didn't make it this year, but will be there next summer, hopefully. They passed through Berlin and we all went out and explored and quoted Zappa all night, wicked fun!!
Here are some pics..
Hard Echo in the house!! ^ (Norm is the Blonde and "Prince Harry" is on the right 🙂
Standard tourist spot, the bombed "blue church" on the Ku'Damm ^
 Tina and I at Potsdamer Platz ^ |
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Robin and I ^ at same tourist trap (gasp, pieces of the WALL! oh my my) |
Robin, Shirley, Tina and John a the Brandenburger Tor (gate) ^
John, from Chicago, is a massive Zappa fan and knows Cynthia Plaster-Caster personally (hoping I can get a good deal on the Jimi Hendrix cock replica (below) 
Raising ^ HELL in Murry's Irish pub at 1am (they had to be at airport by 5am, YIKES!)
Looking forward to going back home to NYC, to see Jasmine and then up to CT for my class reunion and THEN to Boston to visit friends, family and loved ones and my DAWGY Frankie is in CT waiting for me too, but I am truly gutted to leave Berlin. This time its really hard because I know Jasmine will be studying for 4 years in NYC, so coming back to Berlin won't be so urgent. I know people all over the world, but I have more real friends in Berlin than anywhere else. It takes YEARS to earn someone's friendship here in Berlin, but once you do, you can trust them with your house keys, bank card, child, everything. My heart is truly torn in two (Berlin/NYC). Funny thing is, Joe Jackson is in the same boat. He too loves Berlin and NYC and he too, can't decide. So we both go on, living in both places. It's great knowing someone else in the same boat. sigh.
I have to go pack
x
Dr. Dot
It's the official live debut of what many music fans suspect could be the most exciting power trio in years– Keneally • Minnemann • Beller.
What if the word "supergroup" wasn't defined by the fame and egos of its members, but by the quality of the music they make? While Mike Keneally, Marco Minnemann and Bryan Beller dare to redefine that misused cliché, they're also happily retooling the expectations of their audience.
Mike Keneally (guitar, keyboard, vocals), Marco Minnemann (drums) and Bryan Beller (bass) may not be household names, but they need no introduction among the tens of thousands who relish intense, exploratory live performances and musicianship so advanced it that seems somehow irrelevant in the face of their near-telepathic cohesion.
The three share an addiction to musical adventure, otherworldly chops and talent (tempered by refreshing humility), and a sly sense of humor. Now it's time to tour, they've decided, because playing together is always challenging, fun and unpredictable for them– no two performances are ever alike.
Keneally • Minnemann • Beller
Sunday July 20 2008
Channel Twelve 25
172 East Main Street
El Cajon, CA 92020
Showtime: 7:00 p.m.
Tickets: $15.00
All ages welcome!
KMB will be shooting a live concert video at the show to promote their planned European tour in 2009!
Mike, Marco and Bryan will also be playing concerts and clinics in and around Austria's Outreach Festival in late July and early August:
Friday, July 25
Heavy Metal Miles
Franz Hackl (trumpet), Adam Holzman (keyboards), Mike Keneally (guitar), Bryan Beller (bass), Marco Minnemann (drums)
Cafe Museum
Bräugasse 17
94032 Passau, Germany
Showtime 8:00 p.m.
Admission Free!
Info: 49 (0) 851 966 68 88
Sunday, July 27
Clinics with Mike, Marco and Bryan
Outreach Festival
Tennishalle Schwaz
6130 Schwaz, Austria
9:30 a.m.-12:30 p.m. and 2:00 p.m.-5:00 p.m.
Info: 43 (0) 664 330 31 81
Friday, August 1
Raul de Souza Quartet
Mike Keneally (guitar), Marco Minnemann (drums), Bryan Beller (bass), Raoul de Souza (trombone)
Cafe Museum
Bräugasse 17
94032 Passau, Germany
Showtime 8:00 p.m.
Admission Free!
Info: 49 (0) 851 966 68 88
Saturday, August 2
Raul de Souza Quartet
Mike Keneally (guitar), Marco Minnemann (drums), Bryan Beller (bass), Raoul de Souza (trombone)
Outreach Festival
Tennishalle Schwaz
6130 Schwaz, Austria
Showtime 9:45 p.m.
Info: 43 (0) 664 330 31 81
Sunday, August 3
Outreach Orchestra
Franz Hackl und Lew Soloff (trumpet), Mike Keneally (guitar), Thomas Kugi (saxophone), John Clark (French horn), Gene Pritsker (guitar/rap), Dave Taylor (bass trombone), Bryan Beller (bass), John Sass (tuba), Marco Minnemann (drums), Adam Holzmann (keyboards)
Outreach Festival
Tennishalle Schwaz
6130 Schwaz, Austria
Showtime 9:00 p.m.
Info: 43 (0) 664 330 31 81
Stanley Zappa just emailed this video (below) to me. Funny to see Frank’s brother Carl in there.. he looks like Frank, just bigger. I would love it if they all went on tour and played music for us all to enjoy. Carl could be the MC or whatever. You can never have enough Zappa's around.
Check out this cool interview with Carl, click HERE to read it.
And now the video:
ps. Stanley looks hot 
Click HERE to see full story:
"For more information on … artworks currently in the collection or to sign up to receive e-mail notifications on upcoming art projects, please contact Kim Domanski at 410-752-8632 or email
kdomanski@promotionandarts.com "
"Hello Friends,
As you may or may not be aware, we here in "Zappaland" are busily preparing for
another exciting Zappa Plays Zappa tour filled with new material as well as some
old favorites. Before we hit the road again we will be releasing the Zappa Plays
Zappa DVD from the 06 inaugural tour. The DVD is available at last in stores
now and will be available as a 2 disc set and as a special fan pack that
includes both DVD discs plus audio (3) CDs of the same material. A single
compilation audio CD will also be available separately. It’s in stores now!
Another exciting development is the fact that public television affiliates will
be airing a special One Hour show from the ZPZ DVD as one of their highly
acclaimed pledge shows in dozens of markets across the US. The first market to
take the leap will be Southern California. On May 3rd I will be going to San
Diego to premiere the DVD on KPBS. Ironically, back in the mid 70’s Frank
created a program for television at the KCET studios in Los Angeles with the
goal of a public television broadcast but unfortunately programmers found
reasons not to air the show at that time.
All these years later, audiences will catch a glimpse of various eras of my
father’s music played by ZPZ with the utmost respect. To get this material on
the airwaves is a small but very important victory for all fans of Frank’s
music. Hopefully one day Frank’s actual KCET show will be aired on public
television as he designed it.
As always, ZPZ’s goal is to capture the attention of a new audience and inspire
them to discover the intricate musical landscape of Frank’s vast catalog of
albums for themselves.
As the public television broadcast is a pledge show, viewer support is highly
encouraged and this is no exception. There are different pledge levels
beginning with the new single CD from the ZPZ show, the ZPZ DVD (2 discs), a
special fan pack that includes the DVD as well as the entire program on CD (5
discs total) and an exciting opportunity to pledge your best support of your
local public station in exchange for the deluxe version that includes
Trance-Fusion (FZ’s final Guitar Recording) as well as "One Shot Deal", the
Exciting and New (and Official 83) Frank Zappa release available on CD here for
the first time anywhere – through the local public television pledge programs’
call-in number. (It will also become available on the ZPZ Tour de Frank and
eventually online at Barfko-Swill.)
I’m grateful for the opportunity to present Frank’s music to a wider audience. I
hope that all you within range of a TV (in San Diego this week ) will
participate in the program by donating what you can to your local public
televsion stations (while they last!!!) Please call in. The response from this
premiere will likely dictate how many other affiliates decide to air the show.
Your help is much appreciated. I look forward to talking with some of you on the
phone during the broadcast and I especially look forward to seeing you at the
concerts this year.
Regards, Dweezil Zappa"
"Let me tell you one great thing about America, that everbody in Europe could be jealous of. For the land mass that we have Vs. the land mass of the European part of the world, you have more hatred per square foot, from country to country, than exists anywhere in the United States. The idea of the ethnic pride, and the grudges that go back thousands of years, that will keep this part of the world a disaster area for centuries yet to come, is something that we will not experience in the States. And I'm happy to be from there, rather than from here(Europe), because over here(again, Europe) you have to choose. You get to be English, or you get to be French, or Polish, or whatever it is, but you,ya know, you have to say, "We're the best," and you live your life thinking that you're the best, and the guy next door is a poot-head, and you have to conduct your business that way, and its the business of hate.
There's no cooperation, and there's no standardization, and you can insulate yourself and think that what you're doing in your country is really terrific, but it's not. Ultimately, it Bites. And in the Unites States, weird as it is, there is always the possibility that something good could happen all the way across the country, there is a national feeling there among a large number of people. Even though the guy from Vermont might have totally different tastes than, politics and everything else, from the guy in Texas, but they are still Americans, and they're happy to be that way. You don't hear people saying, "I am a European and proud to be that way." You hear them say, "I'm French, and the rest of you guys go die."-Frank Zappa (Music Box, 1984)
I am hanging my head in shame here as I have not blogged properly in so long. So much going on, I don't even know where to start. I am in Berlin, it's fucking freezing and everyone here still hates Americans and lets me know about it on a daily basis. I am getting pretty fucking tired of defending myself every time I leave the house. It's bad enough the Germans LOATHE American's entirely, but to hear it from the English here as well is sometimes too much to handle.
I was in an Irish pub the other night, showing a friend around and there were some English guys (from Yorkshire) at the bar and as soon as they heard my American accent they all started in on me. Asking me, as if I was a dumb American (aren't we all?) "So, where in Canada is NYC exactly?" and "I would rather fucking DIE than go to America. They're all cunts!". Yeah yeah yeah, we fucking suck, now get over it.
I am a walking whipping post here. 99.9% of the people here HATE AMERICANS and when they meet one (me for example) they spit their verbal venom at me (I try to imagine this is aimed at George Bush and let it go in one ear and out the other) but after 18 years of this shit, I am ready to fucking snap. I am not a Patriotic Yank. I don't wear the American flag on my body or brag about being from the USA, but when people ask me where I am from, am I supposed to fucking lie? I should maybe tell them I am from Canada so they get off my ass. AND if they happen to be apathetic about where I am from, they have a go at me when I answer their next question (it's like a fucking interview every time I leave the house) "so what do you do for a living?" MASSAGE (insert lame joke here) "oh, with happy endings?". Just fucking bite me. From now on, I'm from Toronto and I am a waitress. End of story. Hostile? Yeah, I am, but you would be too if you got as much shit throw your way as I do being an (GOD FORBID) American. Thanks Mr. Bush, everyone hates us now, hope you're happy. I didn't vote for the cunt, nor did anyone I know.
Something about being a foreigner, hard to put my finger on it, lets see, it SUCKS. You have to walk on eggshells. Your accent gives you away. So just keep your mouth shut and you'll be fine. But what about in shops? Restaurants? Bars? You have to speak. I feel SO confident in NYC. Like a fish in water. The ambition, the energy, the anything-goes vibe is a constant turn on. Plus, I am from there (well, born 2 hours drive North) so NO ONE gives me shit about being American on my own turf. HUGE chip on my shoulder right now. One more person gives me hell about being a Yank, I'm gonna snap. Go postal. Can you or anyone you know relate? The song CREEP from Radio Head comes to mind.
That and the miserable weather (FREEZING, rain, gray skies) and the fact that Jasmine left on a tour all around Europe again for the next 5 months or so, makes me want to get on the next plane back to NYC. Having lived in Europe since 1989 though, makes me also feel a tad out of place there too (I've turned into a bread snob). Going mad. Turning into an eccentric freak. The more success you have in your career the less you fit in. Losers at bars who have no or little money seem to have a million friends and lots of time to spend with them. If you work and love your work and speak about it (when asked) you get glared at as if you just told them you shit tooth paste. "EH? You like to work? I avoid those kind, as it may be contagious!".
Friends my age are all married and/or are just having kids and have NO time. Single friends are either super rich and have no time or super poor and have NO money but lots of time. Good thing I don't mind being alone. Lately I have been really busy- had a tiny operation, no big deal.. and then helping Jasmine get ready for her trip and showing a lovely friend-
– around Berlin has all taken up so much of my time I haven't even began to answer all of the piled up emails. Another thing, if you are straight (not fucked up) in Berlin and are a foreigner, it's hard to deal with. I go into the Irish pubs of Berlin from time to time for some karaoke and see the English speaking crowds, some of which have been here as long, if not longer than myself and most of they are high and/or drunk as fuck every time I see them. Some of them have actually gone crazy. I know a couple Americans here that have turned into massive alcoholics and put heads; you can barely understand them anymore. You ask them "why?". They say it's cold here, the people are cold here. You wonder "why not go back to your country?" but many have been here so long, they would have to start all over again back "home".
Really odd situation. Not looking to start a pity party, just telling the truth. One American man here wrote a book called the Zoo station years ago. Directly after it's release, he killed himself. The Spring and Summer are better; people smile. Winter is hell on earth here. They will simply NOT obey the smoking ban yet. Most places are still extremely smoky and the one's that do enforce the smoking ban, allow smoking after 11pm anyways. So I stay at home most of the time organizing massages for touring rock bands. Super fucking exciting. Party On Garth.
On a lighter note, I am off to France early April to perform a Hot Chocolate massage on a certain someone (can't reveal their name yet). Then I will take a train over to Italy and meet Jasmine for a week of fun in the sun. Then later in April, back to NYC. I do LOVE my flat in Berlin, as it's all mine and I can do whatever the fuck I want in it whenever the fuck I want….but big deal, the folks here in Europe have already made up their minds to hate Americans, so why stay here? So much hate here, it's insane. Lighten up people will ya?
"I care not what others think of what I do, but I care very much about what I think of what I do! That is character!" – Theodore Roosevelt
Zappa Plays Zappa tour dates ^
Yes I support Zappa tribute bands and Zappa alumni and the Zappanale, but just to show Gail and Dweezil that I am mutual, here are their dates. All things involving Zappa music are good things.
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