In this economy people are generally trying to keep their heads down and get the job done and try not to attract negative attention. Still, Betsy and I were talking about people who are still late for work, some on a consistent basis. According to a new survey from CareerBuilder.com one in five of us are late to work every week. In this economy you’d think one would try really hard to show up to work on time. The most common excuse is traffic, followed by a lack of sleep and getting children ready for school or day care. A shocking one in 10 workers say they are late to their jobs at least twice a week.
Some of our favorite weird excuses are:
* My heat was shut off so I had to stay home to keep my snake warm.
* I feel like I’m in everyone’s way if I show up on time.
* I had to go to bingo.

I could hear the boss saying it now to his colleagues, "He had to go, period",

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Seriously,  herding fish into the nets of Portuguese fishermen is one of the skills of the Portuguese Water Dog.  I don’t think there will be much opportunity to herd fish at the White House.  Herding cats (senators) maybe.  First Lady Michelle Obama announced today that her family will be welcoming a rescued Portuguese Water Dog in April.  Similar to a poodle (the standard version) the breed is known to be almost non-allergenic.  Congrats to John on the Peninsula.  He guessed the breed and won tickets on today’s KDFC Lunch Box trivia to hear The 5 Browns next week at The Marin Center. The Obamas are asking for name ideas.  Would you believe Porto?

I came across this item the other day and had a tough time tracking it down on the web. Finally I Googled the correct message and “voila”. What is it? The “Gran Slang” dictionary. You know, a list of words our grandparents use that may be out of vogue like “hullabaloo”, “urchin” or “poppycock”. As an added bonus there is a “Youth Slang” dictionary for older folks. It all comes from a reverse mortgage company from the UK so some of the slang terms are decidedly British, but it is still relevant and fun.
You’ll find the link here.

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The Infinity is throwing another "get acquainted" party this Sunday March 1st just down the street from KDFC’s studios. I’ve been working, shopping and dining south of Market for the last 15 years or so and it just keeps getting better. I like our part of SOMA right next to Moscone Center, but I have to admit some of the most special parts of San Francisco are right near the water. That’s where they have constructed the two distinctive round green glass towers of the Infinity complex. I spent a night in Tower 1 last year and I went back the other day for another tour with one of the personable sales reps, Carrie Barrett. This time it was a look around Tower 2 and a "once in a lifetime" chance to stroll around one of the 42nd story Penthouse residences. Wow.
Here’s a view you could live with till the end of time. The ever-changing, magical, unique San Francisco waterfront. I hope you’ll join us at the Infinity’s Club Lounge Sunday from 2 to 4pm at 301Main Street at Folsom for appetizers, tasty La Crema wines and your tour of all the Infinity has to offer.

We’ll see you there.

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I mentioned this one a couple of times over the last week and if you are a fan of film music this ones for you. It’s called “Discover Film Music” and it’s part of the educational series on the label Naxos.
There are two CDs, one featuring music from American film and the second from films from the rest of the world. Some familiar music, some unfamiliar, but the  in depth essay from John Riley really brings the tracks to life and showcases other composers and film score missing from the CD set. If you love the classic film sounds of Max Steiner and Bernard Hermann (Hitchcock’s favorite) and some of the recent crop like Danny Elfman this one is worth checking out.

The Academy Awards are Sunday night and if you’ve seen a few of the telecasts you’ve heard some rambling, awkward acceptance speeches. What would you say if you were up there on stage? Wonder no more. Click here for the handy Oscar Awards Speech Generator from Atom.com.

We’ll wrap up KDFC at the Movies on Saturday. As always we love your feedback on our annual Oscar tribute.

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During the Valentine’s week we’ve focused some on composers in love and on Wednesday’s Morning Blend at 10 we led our themed hour "Satisfied Staying Single Day" with music of Beethoven. Perhaps you’ve heard of the "immortal beloved" that he wrote a letter for, but never mailed. Have you ever read any of it? It is filled with passion and frustration. Here is how it starts…

"My angel, my all
my self – only a few
words today, and indeed with pencil
(with yours)
only tomorrow is my lodging positively fixed
what a worthless waste
of time on such – why
this deep grief, where
necessity speaks -
can our love exist but
by sacrifices
by not demanding everything
can you change it, that you
not completely mine. I am not
completely yours – Oh God"

If you’d like to read the rest and find out more about Beethoven, here is a link to a great website. Follow the links at the top of the page to explore the great man’s life.

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Vocal music on KDFC has always been very polarizing. Comments this year included “I would REALLY like to have more vocal music,” and “Be careful, a lot of people find it irritating,” to “STOP THE SINGING!”  Some 50% said they enjoyed our monthly SF Opera broadcast; about the same number enjoy the Sacred Concert on Sunday mornings.  Over a third of you said you would enjoy vocals added to the KDFC regular mix.  Where do you think vocals fit on KDFC?  What kind?  Opera, choral, art songs? Any? When?

Movie Music in small doses on KDFC was added almost 2 years ago. We’ve had a wide variety of feedback.   In this survey we heard comments like “I would think that movie theme music is not quite for your targeted audiences. I personally detest it” to “I get a real kick out of hearing some of movie soundtrack music you throw in occasionally.” Do movie soundtracks have a place on a classical station?  Is it the new classical for a new audience, or should it be left out? If it’s enjoyable, does it matter where it comes from? What do you think?

Longer Works (20-50 minutes)were a hotter topic in the comments this year.  While KDFC does play longer full-length works daily, years ago the station began playing movements (segments) of major works to provide greater variety in an hour and to control the tempo.  Would you prefer KDFC play more complete, longer works or leave the mix as is?  When is the best time to hear longer works? If your favorite work is 45 minutes long, do you prefer hearing a movement of it morning drive, or prefer it be played in its entirety or not at all? Where do you stand?

Morning Drive on KDFC.  There were a lot of comments like this.  “I especially love Hoyt and Betsy in the morning. They’re a lot of fun to listen to.  I carpool and we listen and laugh.”  60% of those surveyed listen to KDFC between 7am and 9am, but what about those who don’t? What can KDFC do in the mornings to attract a larger percentage of the Bay Area’s classical fans? What do you think of the music?  Is too familiar, not familiar enough, too long, too short, too loud, too soft, too upbeat, too mellow?  Do you want more news, interviews, contests?           Fire away.