reason number 32 why bears are the number 1 menace to the nation: i was late to work because of one. you see, this particular bear decided that this morning was a good time to go on a shopping spree.  as a result, traffic on my interstate route backed up about 12 miles. well, it’s always backed up, but this morning was far more dense, thanks to the closing of a lane and exit so that bear apprehension tactics could be performed.

on the plus side, i got to listen to alice in chains acoustic ep, jar of flies. i was into the chains pretty heavy in high school, enjoying their grunge-soaked, pop-friendly version of metal music. over the years though, i had grown tired of the group’s abrasiveness and by the end of the 90s, i had cleared out most albums, except for that 1993 out-of-character ep.

jar of flies is a fantastic collection of somber, meditative music that avoids indulging itself in balladry. the 30 minute record is only seven songs long (yet two singles were released, which makes it more of a mini-album), and i think it shows that, under the hardened metal exterior, alice in chains could actually put together some very good songs.