We got creamed by another haboob (sandstorm) yesterday evening.... this time I took video of the approach:

I was slammed by flying sand right after the point where video ended. I was out in it for only a couple of seconds, but that was long enough to get sand and dust thoroughly up my nose and in my hair and ears. I think I'll stay inside for the next one!

Yesterday I fed my monthly music addiction with a new round of stuff from eMusic. After I downloaded everything, I realized that everything I got this month came from musical families:

• Sorrythankyou by Unbelievable Truth - this band is fronted by Andy Yorke, the younger brother of Radiohead's Thom Yorke. You can hear the family resemblence in the vocals, but the comparison stops there. This has a much more mainstream feel to it than anything I've ever heard from Radiohead. Whether that's good or bad is a matter of personal taste.. I think it's okay, but not spectacular. (edit: well, ok it's kinda spectacular)
• Fables by Immaculate Machine - Immaculate Machine's lead singer Kathryn Calder is the niece of New Pornographers leader A.C. Newman. She also sings in New Pornographers, where she is knows as "not Neko Case, but the other one". (Seriously, it must suck to not be Neko Case.. I really don't like country music, alt or otherwise, but Neko weakens my resolve. What a voice!) So far, I'm indifferent to this album, but I think it will grow on me.
• EP by The Fiery Furnaces - Still my current favorite band ever, The Fiery Furnaces are a brother-and-sister act. EP has less of a learning curve than their other albums, so if you're thinking about trying them out, this might be a good place to start. Of course, this means that the songs on this album lack the epic storylines prevalent in their other work, but it's still great stuff.
• Sunny Border Blue by Kristin Hersh - Kristin Hersh comes from Throwing Muses, which she started way back in the 80s with her step-sister... yes, my family theme is getting pretty thin here. Excellent music as usual here - I've never been disappointed by any of her work.

...is brought to you by Laughing Squid, without whom I would have never seen this completely awesome mashup of William Shatner's cover of "Common People" plus classic animated Star Trek:

I'm sure that there are things cooler than this, but at the moment, I can't think of what any of them might be.