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8/15/08

Pot calls kettle black! Jon Stewart has something to say about it.

8/14/08

I just got the following from Andrea tonight: "Ruby Amelie Lahodny was born at 5:27 am on August 10th, weighing in at 7 lbs 9 oz and measuring 19.75 inches. Her main interests are sleeping and eating, which coincide nicely with those of her parents right now :) "

This is really awesome news and congratualations go out to Andrea and Jon! I can't wait to meet her.

8/11/08

Saul Williams is cool!

8/10/08

Bill O'Reilly is a madman and now the kids know it. Orwell's diary becomes a blog. Orwell on Nationalism.

Have to spend today getting my books in order. I've been on a mini spending spree for a bit now and it has to stop. I need to pretend like I don't have a job. Deebo's been costing me some money, but that's going to calm down now until mid fall when I get him neutered (when you meet him don't mention this to him, please). We went to the vet yesterday and he checked out ok. I got him his shots and some heart worm prevention meds. All in all the vet said he was in great shape for a stray. His behavior has improved a bit as well, although I have to crate hime when I leave. We did that for the first time yesterday and he tried to get out to no avail. I hate doing it, but he'll eventually get used to it and it's better than replacing doors and windows (which I will now have to do anyway).

Batman Beyond is pretty shway.

8/4/08

What have we done?

8/2/08

This is soooo cool! Shit, and so is this.

8/1/08

Um... It's August people. I'm really not ready for that. This has been a strange summer and it's only going to get stranger before it's all done. It's all work related, though and I'm not going there here (as usual). Suffice to say that we are dumping a lot of changes on our staff this year. Oi!

In other news, I have a new addition to my household. I have a dog. Ok, breath. Now repeat. Yes you read that right. I have a dog. My next door neighbor Rachel rescued this beagle mix a week or two ago from the streets of A2. She'd been trying to find a home for him, but no one would commit. I fell in love. He's house broken, small, and doesn't bark a lot. He's also incredibly cheerful for a dog that's been out on the streets and has likely been abused. Last night was his first night and he and the cats got along ok. We just have to work out the food details. He likes the cat's dry food. Oh, his name is Debo. I didn't name him, but it's on his tag now so...

Todays articles are on the MIT breakthru in solar technology. Here is the link to the first article I found and here's an article on Ars that mentions it.

7/28/08

Articles I plan to read today:
Wikipedia article on Russian history. White Supremists for Obama?! New book on a plot to kill Morris Dees. A great comparison between Jesus and Horus (I really want someone to do a cartoon in which the two do battle armed only with spoons).

7/26/08

Beerfest so far has been a blast! I poured for Founders this year and Dave and Matt were really fun to work for. Everyone of us had a great time and they had some stellar beers on tap. Devil Dancer and the Kentucky Breakfast Stout were highlights from our part of the tent. The Kentucky Breakfast Stout was extremely popular and went very quick this afternoon. 15 minutes after tapping it it was gone! Hands down the best beer I had, though, (other than what I was pouring) was from a small place up in the UP called Jasper Ridge. They had this Blueberry Wheat beer that was like blueberry pancakes in a glass! I went back for thirds on that one. I met the brewer Grant Lyke. Very cool guy. Matt and Grant happened to have friends in common. Matt is apparently from the area Grant's brewery is from. Small world! Jaimie wants to pull some people together to go camping up north next summer near their brewery. I'm definitely in. I'm so tired right now, but I gotta hit the after party. Davey and Jon will be there. More tomorrow.

*update: I just got back from the after party. It was a bit anticlimactic. We had to order our own pizza. They had free beer, but no food. Lame. The company was good, but I was so tired I couldn't stay more than a couple of hours.

7/22/08

Now I need an iPhone.

My favorite Dinosaur Jr. song. More Dinosaur Jr proving they still have it.

7/20/08

Friday night Chris and I went to see Boris at St. Andrews Hall. This show is in the top ten list of the best shows I've been too in my life. Boris was amazing! At one point in their set they sent this wave of low end frequencies across the room that went through the floor and rippled up through my body in a way very similar to being in the ocean. I was stunned at how good that felt. They played as if they were wire walking without a net; like they didn't need one. The drummer is a ham. He's the guy who jumped in the crowd while everyone else played on. Only this band could get away with that. I spent WAY more on records than I should've, but...

Later we had a mini birthday party at Sidetrack for my friend Jon. He's the guy I was dog sitting for last week.

Saturday I was supposed to organize the basement, but I got nothing done. I just couldn't bring myself to go down there. Working with Anthea later in the day was uber-productive, though, so I don't feel that bad about wasting the earlier part of the day. I started out just practicing on my upright drum kit and then came up with something completely unrelated to what we were working on. Anthea was like "record that," so we did. I set up another file for recording and we wrote a new piece on the spot. It was pretty rad. Then we went back to the previous recording we were working on and nailed that down, then had dinner. We watched Shakes the Clown. After dinner I decided we should improvise with a bunch of pedals and noise toys. We ended up recording a 12 minute sonic assault that might need to get cut down a little, but it was fun doing it.

This morning I went to see The Dark Knight. I can't even write about how much that movie rules. Heath Ledger deserves an Oscar. Now I need to eat something and go mow the lawn. Maybe even get into the basement this evening.

7/18/08

So I went to Jaimie's last night and got in the pool. I'm still a little stiff from the workout, but I was extremely relaxed. I've been relaxed in mind, and I've been relaxed in body over the last few years, but it's been quite some time since I've been relaxed in both mind and body at the same time. I haven't been submerged in water properly in a long time and I think I need to do that more often.

Watchmen trailer!

7/17/08

I'm so relaxed right now that I can't even write about it.

7/14/08

Yeah it's been awhile. Things have improved and the worst of my situation is over. If you need to know more call me.

Now on with the happy:

I need this.

Hellboy 2 rocked!

Boris comes to Detroit Friday night.

I'm slowly putting together ideas for two new albums.

6/4/08

Some of you know that my life has been a nightmare lately. Completely turned upside down. I'm working on fixing that and may know more this afternoon. I'm not going to write about it here. If you want to know more call me.

30 days is doing an Ypsi-centric show.

Summer Japanese filmfest: Horror!

5/26/08

Today's reading: one, two, and three.

5/25/08

Pimpin for Jesus! Maynard gets a box of smut. Biden gets all vice-presidential. A reminder that Jesus was one of those brown people we want to destroy. A really cool video.

5/24/08

Olberman!

5/23/08

This gives me hope. Thanks Mark.

*Update: You have to watch this thing of beauty.

5/22/08

I know I'm not posting much these days, but I've been really busy, both at work and at home. Here's something for you to chew on: this and this and this. Oh and this.

5/17/08

My favorite word set to film.

5/8/08

So not only did we legislate bigotry into our State constitiution, but now our courts are upholding it. I can't wait to see what happens when it gets to the Supreme Court. Oh, and I hate Mike Cox. A lot. No link, just hate.

4/28/08

Just got back from seeing Alien at the Michigan Theater with Anthea and Ronen. Boy was that amazing. They showed the extended cut in the big room! Simply awesome. Afterwards we hiked back to Ronen's place above Wazoo. Nice guy. I like him. He has a nice room for movie showing as well so we're going to do a film night during my vacation. Must sleep now.

PS. Anthea is graduated and has a teaching job lined up in the fall. W00t!

4/27/08

Wow. Yesterday was pretty productive. The back yard is mowed and the lawnmowers oil is new. The rototiller has a new cable (thanks John!). Jaimie has a new dishwasher. I found my barberry bushes; just have to buy them. I bought what I need to bend some toys into a useable shape. I may have even found the screw I need to fix the fan in the kitchen. Now I just need to finish the laundry, make a list of things that need to be done in the yard while on vacation, balance the checkbook, and take in the recycling.

Going to Kevin's in a few hours to BBQ. Wonder how cold it'll be today. Fuck I want spring to stay.

Anyway, back to work for now. I leave with todays stoopid. Why can't Bush and his ilk just go away.

4/25/08

It's been a really weird day and I can't really talk about it. Suffice to say, that it's like the Hulk walked through our school district today.

Ashcroft gets owned.

And I have a crush.

4/24/08

Happy Birthday Stephe!

4/20/08 (Actual)

So I forgot to mention something. I went to A2 yesterday morning to look for a few items at Kiwanis and the ReUse Center. Inbetween rummaging at the two of them I ate at a place called Mr. Greek's Coney Island on State Street. The food wasn't bad, but IMHO you don't get to put the word Greek in your name if your Giro meat comes out of a box not from a spit. I got to hang with Matt Bradish for a bit too. He was very tired. He took a job at Trader Joe's for the health insurance. Seriously, folks. The man runs a record store and can't afford health insurance. Now try and tell me that things aren't skewed towards big business. Universal health care for all is a necessity.

So what was I rummaging about at the ReUse Center and Kiwanis for? Electronic toys to circuit bend. I struck out at both places, but Value World here in Ypsi did not fail me. $10 later I had three working toys. I can't wait to rip into them. Of course I have to, because I have yard work to do, a lawnmower to get working again, and a rototiller to go buy. Spring!

4/20/08 (Technically)

Just got back from The Smithee Awards. I had a great time and I have a list of bad movies I feel I need to inflict upon any of you that may end up at my house. Beware.

I aso recently rediscovered Loudness. Yes, you should be scared.

4/19/08

Beth sent this too me this morning! I laughed so hard I was crying. Kitty cardboard art!!!

4/18/08

Complete waste of money, but if I could find it to steal it...

4/17/08

Hazel Court has passed.

4/16/08

Jon Stewart speaks the truth. It gets clipped at the end, but well worth it anyhow.

Ben Stein is a douche bag and the proof to go with it.

4/15/08

Monster gets owned! Seriously, read the whole thing. It's the most beautiful "Fuck You" I've ever read. Ever read. In my entire 39 years. I'm twitterpated. Futher reading on why Monster is a theiving company can be found here.

4/14/08

Be afraid.

4/11/08

Favorite quote from last nights forum reading (the subject was guitar tone and sonic manipulation of the same):

"try any remote controls you have for tvs, vcrs, audio devices etc. aim them at one of your pickups and hit some of the buttons. especially fun with a lot of distortion, reverb and chorus, through a delay/pitch patch that delays shifts the pitch down for each discreet repetition. ideally the delay time is adjustable via a foot pedal, a wah-type or volume-type pedal with a sweepable value. and it may or may not *sound* cooler if you rub raw bacon on the strings while pressing the buttons on the remote. but nobody ever forgets the first time they see that one."

4/10/08

Walmart gets p0wn3d. I can't wait to see some of the footage that comes out of this mess.

New band I can't stop thinking about.

Something you all need to see at least once.

Hillary sucks part 6,789.

4/9/08

Just read this. I love how they open with Monsanto in the article. Hands down one of the most evil companies on the planet. Anyhow, it's very scary how corporate malfeasance is almost encouraged by this administration and congress (that's right, the congress critters are just as much to blame).

I'm beginning to get that creative urge again. I built the Voice of Saturn and now I want to use it. I have it set up right now making a constant beat run through delay and reverb and it sounds cool. I may even record that tonight. I also had Mickey do a set up on the 1958 arch-top Gibson. He found that the sound board is coming loose, but putting a lighter gauge string on there made most of the buzzing go away. It'll eventually need to be repaired, though, and he gave me the number of a guy in Ypsi that might be able to fix it without pulling it apart. Anyhow, I got it home and plugged it into the 1950-3 Gibson amp and played for a bit. While doing so I discovered that it resonates from one note FOREVER with tons of harmonic and subharmonic tones. As soon as I get the floor done (I'm so close now that I should be done this weekend) I'm going to do an ellaborate recording set up involving the c414 in a figure 8 pattern, the Alice behind the amp directed at the c414 and the Rode or an ADK at 6 feet away. I'm hoping to be able to capture it in all it's glory.

I replaced the faucette in the front bathroom over the weekend. Ugh. Never again. I was stiff and sore the next day.

Gandalf is sleeping through the night and not waking me up in the morning now. Giving him treats before bed and Andrea's tip to add more water to his wet food have seemed to help on that count. We'll see how his weight is sometime during my vacation, which I just got official word begins on May 3rd.

Your moment of Zen.

4/1/08

Minus the Bear was tight as fuck last night. It was weird, though. This was the first time I'd ever been to a show and felt like I was too old to be there. About half the kids there were not old enough to drink.

How the fuck does this happen?

Al Jaffee! (Be sure to do the foldouts)

3/29/08

Helped Jaimie move into her apartment yesterday. Nice place for a condo. I couldn't do it but it's perfect for her. She even has deck space for a potted garden. It needs some work, but for the most part it's in nice shape. I'm particularly jealous of the recently refinished hardwood floors. Afterwards I ended up eating a vicodin and chilling out with some graphic novels.

Today was a bit different. I went out and did some errands and then set about finishing up the stairwell. It's done now and so is the tile in the kitchen closet. Now I have to finish the sanding the trim and painting it. So close I can taste it. It looks good so far, although I'm finding some of the tiles are a bit loose. I hope gravity fixes that. I just finished a steak dinner. Gandalf shared it with me. He's so voracious and yet so thin. He's going to get weighed this week.

Got an e-mail from Geoff. He wants to sell his drums so he can buy some new ones in NO. Damn I wish I had the space for them, but I really want something electronic. I'm going to sell them for him, but I have to get them first. It's sad to think we're not going to be able to really work together anytime soon.

Which brings me to the crux of the biscuit. I need to start creating again.

3/28/08

Can't these people go away. Please?

Tragedy in England.

3/27/08

Amen!

I'm not sure how to feel about this one. Mumia is off death row, but he's not free. Ugh! These kids need to pick up a fucking book once in awhile.

3/23/08

The floor still isn't done, but it's very close. It'll likely take a few days. My hand is all puffy from the knife. I took a break and went to see Doomsday. Nice premise that is well executed. A little bit Aliens; a little bit Mad Max, but without actually being either of them. My only problem is that the main character is too cold. Even Ripley at her hardest had a soft spot that would shine thru occasionally. Highly recommended.

Where was this douche when the war began. Oh yeah, cheerleading.

 

3/22/08

Stephe has photos up for sale. You can purchase them here.

The kitchen floor gets done today. I'm almost ready. I scrubbed the floor, but I couldn't get some of the problem areas as clean as I'd like. It also occured to me that I should probably paint the base boards before laying the new floor. Oh well. Off to move snow!

Beth sent me this. It pretty accurately describes why I chose to be a homeowner in Ypsi.

I bought this last night.

3/19/08

Arthur C Clarke has died. It's funny that I was just having a conversation with Fosket about the three laws of robotics yesterday.

A not so pretty picture for you.

Why Hillary sucks part 2129.

In case you haven't seen it yet.

Your moment of Zen.

3/16/08

To go with your morning coffee.

3/15/08

Went with Anthea to go see Blade Runner on the big screen. Fucking amazing! This was the Final Cut edition and it looked glorious. Joanna Kennedy's death scene looked utterly fantastic on a large screen. Nobody I was with noticed that she had been digitally re-inserted into the film. Hell, I couldn't see the difference. Didn't do much else after that, although I'm feeling like I should have.

Tiles for the kitchen have been bought. Still no word from Lea. Back to my regularly scheduled bottle of wine.

BTW I miss Barkmarket. Sardy needs another rockband. Seriously.

3/13/08

Well well well. What have we here? Remember the homophobic tirade from an Oklahoma lawmaker I posted a few days ago? Seems she has a gay son. Of course she did the "Christian" thing and disowned him. Cunt. Ellen DeGeneres talked about this on her show. Take a look at Ellen's face as she plays the audio clip. I can imagine my face looking as pained. I like the way she dealt with it, though I wish she had actually gotten thru. I'm going to write something up and send it to her. You can too.

Olbermann!

Just watch.

3/12/08

Nice! I'm sick of hearing about it all really and for all of those reasons, plus the fact that it's a huge distraction.

More stoopid from Congress Critters.

Which one of these two articles is a sign of the coming Apocalypse? This one or this one?

3/11/08

Ok, I can't not comment on this. To begin with, The Stooges should've been inducted years ago. Long before The Ramones, Sex Pistols, or The Clash and each of those bands would say the same thing. Without The Stooges there would be no punk rock. That's undisputed. What really makes this interesting to people who don't know shit about music is that Madonna would go for something like this. It doesn't surprise me at all. She was into punk in New York long before her first album and has always liked Iggy. As for me, I've always respected her as an artist and business woman. She's never been afraid of doing what she wants. That doesn't mean I own any of her records or listen to her stuff. It's not that I think it sucks, it's just not my cup of tea. She's good at what she does. As for the induction ceremony and her choice of inductee's... fucking respect! Just watch this shit. I want to be Iggy when I grow up. The mans 60 fucking years old and look at those abs! If they don't induct them after this, then we should collectively burn down the R&R Hall of Fame.

BTW I've been there, and it doesn't even come close to the EMP. The EMP didn't skip over the 80's underground that Nirvana ripped off. It embraced and exhaulted it. The R&RHOF went straight from The Sex Pistols right on to Green Day. Douchebags skipped 15 fucking years of vital music. Industry shills! No Dead Kennedy's, Misfits, Black Flag, DOA, Minor Threat, Husker DU, Big Black, The Replacements, Sonic Youth, Bad Brains, etc etc etc. Skipped it all. Ugh. And people wonder why I avoid the mainstream like the plague it is.

Now if they would just induct Throbbing Gristle...

Ok I'm gonna drink now.

3/9/08

Great peek into the hayday of video gaming in the Atari days. I like how the had to reverse engineer Donkey Kong for the 2600.

Hitchhikers Guide turns 30!

John Stewart.

Drinking water article of interest. Seriously, does this surprise anyone?

Hungout with Eric's sister and her significant other Donna yesterday. It was really cool. They are really aesome people. Donna gave me a copy of Douglas Adams' "Last Chance to See", one of the few books by Adams I never got a chance to read. I plan to start it tonight. Hands down one of the best gifts I've ever been given.
Afterwards Eric left me at home to go help Jeremy with a couch, so I went downstairs to the soundlab. Eric brought me an old set of Technic speakers he wasn't using anymore so I rigged them up so I could mix without headphones. Dinked around for a bit and now I realize that I need a "live" mixing board instead of the Alesis 12r I'm saddled with right now. It works for the most part, but I can't listen in and fiddle with a signal before sending it to the speakers. Oh well. I'll hold off as long as I can. Too bad the Mackie is completely hosed. It was built for what I want to do. Later on I went to Jeremy's. Made a short stop motion film of us eating and drinking at his kitchen counter. Jeremy made he, Eric, and I this amazing past dish that I really need to learn to make on my own. I had the last of it for brunch.

Not doing shit today. Although I should.

Now on to pissing you off.

*Addendum* Someone forgot to tell this guy that cock rock is not only over, but was seriuosly lame the first time around. Unless you were in Middle School and didn't know any better.

3/7/08

Why does this even matter. Especially after this.

3/4/08

Quote of the day from Steve Albini. He was recently asked, "What does every girl really want?" His reply, "Another pair of shoes, someone to call a whore and a reason to cry."

I find that funny. What do you ladies think?

*Addendum- Must. see. film.

3/3/08

Another reason people file share.

3/1/08

To the kind soul who cleaned my driveway and sidewalk with their snow blower. Thank you. Seriously. I hate moving snow.

2/25/08

So stoked!

2/23/08

Obama's voting record is out and nicely collected. I'd like to see more of the candidates voting reords in congress. And what's up with the other parties? Not a peep. No Greens or Populists, Socialists or Constitutionalists. Not a word.

*Addendum #1: Nader just announced.

So I've decided to buy a MacPro in the spring. There I said it. The thing is it's a little past due. A lot of my personal recordings don't go much beyond 8 tracks usually, but when recording other people that goes up and, since I sometimes mix a bit before another track is recorded, I run into problems being able to record more tracks, especially if I have any plug-ins active. So it's time. It's gonna hurt financially, since I'm paying for it outright, instead of getting a loan. I'll also need to upgrade my pci-324 card to a pci-424 card at the same time. So I'll have to wait for this. I'm almost tempted to wait another year for the MacPro so I can have the Mondo Loco. Almost.

Today I'm going to finish building my sound laboratory. I spent what time I had yesterday cleaning the Mackie mixer I'm going to use. Boy was that fun. So many screws; so many nobs.

*Addendum #2: The Mackie is a wash. A Complete waste of my time, to be honest. I'm using the Alesis now and that's much better. Now I need to set up speakers and bring the R-5 down. I think a drum machine is going to be essential.

2/22/08

I found this article on Digg today and it's been the most interesting article I've read in quite some time on how kids create and perceive social structures. It's kinda lenghty.

2/9/08

Today's best of the web. John Stewart is my hero! Ryan Sussman is my other hero! The British can be just as whacky as the Japanese. And Leighton posts video of Dillinger Escape Plan on Conan. Truely badass!

This band gets poseur of the week award. Seriously, the only reason they get gigs is because the chicks are hot.

2/6/08

Wow. It's February. January pretty much sucked. I'm also still sick. I feel alright for the most part and can do some light excercise now, but the simple act of laughter sends me into a coughing fit. I think it may take awhile for it to get out of my lungs. I'm so glad I'm not a smoker. Anyhow, I'm going to try and get back to what's real. I've spent way too much time on the couch lately and I really need to get back to creating things. I'm hoping this week sometime to get my stop motion film started again. I also really need to redesign this damn website. This site was a good way to start out, I need something a bit more robust. And comments. I really need feedback and dialogue. It's the modern thing to do.

Anyway, I found this article written by an abortion doctor. It's the clearest argument for choice I've ever read. You can find it here.

1/29/08

Two years and two days ago I bought my house. I celebrated it with a sinus infection. w00t! This also ruined my plans for world domination through stop motion photography/animation that I had for the weekend. Instead I watched The Tudors (kids, just skip to episode 9 and forget the rest. I wish I had). I'm feeling a bit better today (I've had this since last Wednesday) so I may get back to work on the music portion of the film. We'll see.

I found this video series this morning, whilst traipsing teh interwebs this fine morn. I have to thank Wil Wheaton for turning me onto it. The guy rules, seriously. It's called "The Retarded Policeman" and it's freaking hilarious. Now before you get your panties in a bunch folks, you should know this: the kid in the video wants to do this. For proof you can watch his video response to some of the comments it got on Youtube. I think the kid said enough to fill a t-shirt or two. You can watch the series here.

1/15/08

Scott Ritter is one of my many heroes. Here's another.

1/9/08

It's my birthday in case you forgot. Found this tonight. I may have to pick up the book.

1/7/08

I'm posting this on the SUP main site too. Covering all bases. From Delilah Dewylde's blog. Seriously, stealing someone's gear while they're out on the road is simply the lowest thing someone can do. I'm not sure who's paying attention out there, but if you run across any of the listed items give these guys a shout out, please.

On a personal note, tuna steaks marinated in greek dressing and baked for 12 minutes at 375 degrees is freaking awesome. That is all.

1/2/08

Single handedly the best mugshot ever!

1/1/08

Happy New Year! Sue's party was awesome. Thanks go out to her and Jon for a good time and special thanks to the drunk naked girl who made the party that much more dramatic. My deepest symathies to her boyfriend, who had to just go with it. Driving home at 6am this morning was a joy what with the ELEVEN INCHES OF SNOW we got over the course of the evening. Glad I drank my last at 3am. Eric left a little while ago. Can't believe either of us got up at all. It was nice having him around and a joy that his cats and mine cohabitated well enough. Anyhow, today I do laundry and lay about. I'm in the process of watching this awesome lecture by Ken Miller on Intelligent Design. It's long kids, but well worth it. The guy is very engageing and really knows how to present his ideas in a way that keeps you listening. As for the records, I have to chop them up in peak and convert to MP3's. I'll likely get to work on that later after dinner.

12/24/07

Well the last two nights have been far more interesting than my nights usually are. Eric's in town so we went to a party Saturday night. Great food, but too many people packed in too small a place. A little too "adult" for my tastes, as well. Once the place thinned out it was much better. Woke up the next morning hungover. Sunday went to Good Night Gracies for a caberet with Ian. The band was great, the chicks were hot, but I really couldn't relax for some reason. Went to The Double Eagle for food afterwards. Probably shouldn't have. Jiani may have been a lot of things, but the food was never at or below the level of Abe's. I've been working on the two albums a little lately. Hoping to finish tomorrow.

12/21/07

Today didn't start out too well. It took far too long to get better. I'm glad it's over.

12/17/07

SNOW DAY!!!!!

I mixed AYTBN's third record as well as an EP of my own stuff yesterday and Saturday. Getting to Randy's house was not the easiest thing to do yesterday. My legs are still sore from the snow removal. I had to take a vicodin inorder to sleep last night. Considering taking another today. If I do, though, I won't get any of the album cover work done that I want to do. Decisions.

12/9/07

Great fucking news! Sometimes I really hate living in Michigan. It can be so backwards, but then something like this comes up and makes me feel like it's all going to be all right. Now if we could get some of the more homophobic parts of our state constitution overturned...

BTW I didn't mention that I went to Chicago last weekend to see Crispin Hellion Glover. The new movie is much better than the first. You can tell Crispin was in love with it too. It wasn't just weird for weird's sake, like the last one. It had a point. Damn I wish I could hang with Crispin regularly. The guy is just fucking cool. Eric, Laura, and I hung out with Abe and Ken at a meatmarket bar afterwards. Had a great time, too.

Working on the next AYTBN record a bit today. Last minute add-ons to the new record. Set to mix next weekend! I'll also be working on an EP of my own stuff. 5 songs of Ambient noise. No percsuion this time. I think my next solo project will be a full album of live and electronic drum work with live bass and guitar underneath all the synth toys.

PS. I just got word that Geoff Dailey will be here Tuesday!!!

12/8/07

Today's educational video comes from my new favorite website. Hillary sucks!

11/29/07

The Orphanage trailer!!!! Francis makes another movie! I'm interested. Gibli does Tales From Earthsea. I think they still got Ged wrong. He's supposed to be black not white. At least he isn't blonde this time around. The spawn of Hayao Miyazaki looks like he did a good job visually, otherwise.

11/28/07

Read this, this, and this.

11/21/07

I want to go explore dead and dying buildings again. This time with a good camera, like this guy.

11/19/07

Crispin Hellion Glover is taking another film on tour! Unfortunately, not to Ann Arbor. I'm making plans to see the Chicago show with Eric.

Kucinich gets more awesome every day!

11/18/07

Larry and I went to see Beowulf last night. The 3-d was breathtaking! Although Zemeckis did get a bit gimmicky with it at times. Do I really need a sword pointed at me more than once to get the idea that I'm watching something in thre dimensions? I don't think so. The subtler stuff was far cooler. Really. I only had two other problems with it. The story was a little lite (especially the end), but that has more to do with the additions to the epic poem Gaiman made, I think, then anything else. The other thing that bugged me was Beowulf needing to remind the audience who he is. All the time! Although on second thought, it works if you keep in mind that his boastful nature is eventually his undoing. All in all I'd give it an A- only because it must be seen on the big screen.

Now on to todays links: fun with scensters, more reasons to read the Constitution and quote from it liberally, a reminder, Harry Reid finds one of his testicles, and a student uprising.

11/16/07

Kucinich is a bad ass mofo!

More fun with Christians (or why I'm glad I don't live in Colorado).

For the Pastafarians in the audience.

Send Governor Bush a copy of the Constitution! Amy Goodman did and so did I!

Sane military officers serve Cheney a cup of STFU!

On a more personal note I would like to publicly state that Abe is my hero. A friend at his work found three kittens sealed in a trash bag in her dumpster the other night. Abe took in two of them in. What kind of evil person puts kittens in a dumpster sealed in a trash bag?!

11/13/07

Um...The Real News Network? Could it be true?

We all know Rudi Guiliani is an asshat, now the rest of the country's catching on.

11/12/07

Today's reading includes the letters "F", "U", "C", "K", "E", and "D."

Understanding Nerds.

11/11/07

Matt and Trey take the piss out of Universal! This thing is fucking funny as hell. Stay til the bitter end kids. Stallone is a comic genius!

11/08/07

This should scare you. More fun with Bush.

11/7/07

For Mac users only!

Scientology video.

11/3/07

If Halloween teaches kids to ask for handouts then what does Christmas teach kids? To expect them!?! Hannity is such a card. Maybe he should have read this before opening his mouth. Except, I don't think he can read. Or maybe he just doesn't want to.

Drew Carey states the obvious, but at least is doing it.

Naomi Klein could be the best thing since Olbermann, if anyone would just pay attention to her.

On a personal note, I feel better today than I have in a week. Antibiotics rule! Been home for two days and of course the only way to get my internet turned back on was to be sick at home. Bastards still showed up at 7am instead of 9am. Speakeasy at least was cool about it. I got a month free service out of the ordeal.
Tonight is Jon Brode's book release party. I may be able to make it after all. So long as I don't drink tonight. We'll see. I'm baking cookies for now and sleeping a lot.

11/1/07

I really should write about my trials and tribualtions with Covad and Speakeasy, but I'm tired of the whole thing. Suffice to say, Speakeasy took care of me to the best of their ability while Covad simply sucks. And AT&T really sucks, for disconnecting my internet service that I pay Speakeasy for. I have NO DEALINGS with AT&T whatsoever. Maybe I won't get that iPhone afterall.

Anyways, in good news the Reverend Phelps gets a douche.

Youtube fun here and here. College humor here and here.

Just in case you haven't been paying attention.

And now a temper tantrum and a whore.

10/27/07

It's 2:26am. I just got back from Rudi's. Nearly didn't go. I was so tired after De-Fenstration that I nearly went straight home. Ended up going to the Tap Room for a beer with James and Rob. Met Curtis and Scott as well. Saw Wendy come in and got snubbed (not surprised). Show was OK. Might be better recorded and edited. Went to Rudi's and ended up talking too much after a little libation. Too lubricated to bite my tongue. Jared is fucking cool, although he places too much trust in Damon and Tassie (almost completely untrustworthy in my book), but he's young. I'm rambling and really need to go to bed. May sleep in the living room. Called Lea earlier, but she's been feeling so bad lately (physically), I'm betting she passed out early. I'll call tomorrow when (if) I wake up. Rambling on and on and on and on........Robot Chicken.

10/21/07

You know, It's been nearly a month since my last post. Have I been that busy or that boring? Today I didn't do shit. I did nothing that wasn't necessary to my existence. I fed myself, I fed the cats, I layed about. About the only productive thing I did was have a very nice conversation with Lea (and she gets more fun everyday, let me tell you). I posted on Mark's website today (not sure if that's productive or not). Working hard not to spend money is boring. I wonder where Rudi is? He was supposed to come by and lay down drum tracks. I really want to finish this record. It's so close I can taste it. Anyhow. I'm hoping to learn enough about Wordpress to actually redesign this site. We'll see how that goes. I could've spent today doing that instead of watching movies and sleeping alot. I should spam the mail list. There are events coming up, Steve released another (my favorite of his) album on Tunenami, and Jon Brode's book is coming out. Maybe I'll write that up in the morning. Rudi just called. We're hooking up Wednesday.

9/24/07

I've been meaning topost for awhile, but I just haven't had the time. Along with work being a complete drag for the month of September, I've also had a special new distraction. Regardless, I would be remiss if I didn't mention the passing of Shakin' Jake Woods. Read the comments at the end of the post. My old friend John Griffin (long time no viddy chief) had some particularly kind words to say on Jake's behalf. I didn't go to the memorial. I wanted to, but I really wasn't in the mood for a circus. Jake would've loved the circus atmosphere that it apparrently turned into. I loved the crazy old man and it still brings tears to my eyes to know he's not around anymore. When I first moved to Ann Arbor I worked at Afternoon Delight. Jake was a regular, eating there three times a week. He always got his "chowder and brown bread with butter" and held court. On the house, too. I don't think there was a restaurant in Ann Arbor that ever charged the man. If they did, they didn't last long I'm sure. Anyhow, I used to take my lunch about the same time he would come most days, so I got the chance to eat with Jake occasionally. Man that guy could spin a yarn. I remember a few of us were taking a break at one of the tables out in front of AD one day in the summer. Jake walked up and sat down with us with his customary AD meal. He was limping, so I asked him why. He proceeds to tell us that he was walking home with two women one evening heading up to his apartment. After getting to the top of the stairs, he opened the door to find six more girls in the apartment. He says, "They all got jealous and threw me down the stairs." That was why he was limping that day. We all laughed so hard, I swear I was crying. He had that gift. That was also the year I got my double decker bike working again. I would always see him on the street, while I was out for a cruise freaking out the students and townies. Years later, after I got tired of riding it (and couldn't get the right parts to fix the brakes), I saw Jake on the street. I'd changed my appearance a little by this time (shorter bluer hair) and had been living in Ypsi for a bit. He stops me asks, "Where's your bike, man?" So I told him about the brakes but not about my loss of interest., He says to me, "Man that bike is your thing. You need to keep on a move." and with that he left me. The old man actually knew who I was. Maybe not by name, but he knew me. It was like I was annointed a "townie" at that very moment. I'm gonna miss him a great deal.

I'll post more alter. I have another dentist appointment later and I hope to talk to a girl about a futon frame for the kid. Zombies is a really cool game BTW.

9/6/07

I wanna see this: Brüno: Delicious Journeys Through America for the Purpose of Making Heterosexual Males Visibly Uncomfortable in the Presence of a Gay Foreigner in a Mesh T-Shirt.

8/30/07

This warms my heart and tickles my funny bone.

8/29/07

Read the article, then read the comments afterwards. Hysterical.

Hilly Kristol is dead.

8/28/07

I found this quote randomly on the interwebs and thought I'd share.

"Blaming Jesus for christianity is kind of like blaming chocolate for fat people."

Amen.

8/27/07

Wow. This pretty much sums up what I knew would happen once we destroyed Saddam Hussein's government. We are so fucked if the neocons try to go to war with Iran.

I'm on three hours sleep today. This is what I get for taking a nap in the afternoon.

I just read this article on SciFi Wire. It scares me, not only because they are going to remake one of the best Science Fiction films of all time, but because Pinochio is playing the lead. I don't hate Keanu but I'm certainly no fan. He's a cold an emotionless actor. Somehow I can see him plaing the role, but seriously, do we need too? Does this film need to be made again? Would it stop Bush from invading Iran?

*update (lunch)*
A couple articles of interest to me as a public school employee: one from the NY Times and one from the A2 News (here and here). Now as you regular readers know, I usually don't comment on my job here. Since this web-site is very public, I try not to write about the inner workings of my school district, not for fear of being fired, but moe out of respect for the district. As much as I sometimes hate how things are done there, I generally like my job and believe that Saline is a good school district. So with that in mind, I want to publicly state for the record that I feel Bruce Ross is worth every penny we give him. I can't say that for every teacher I deal with. This guy comes in before I do (and I come in at 7am) and leaves well after I do (I've seen his minivan here as late as 6pm). Not only that but he works all summer long with Drivers Ed. The first few years I worked in Saline I swore the guy had a bedroom hidden in his classroom somewhere. Anyhow, the guy is great with the kids, great with the staff, and rarely has an unkind word to anyone. Firm and fair. So there.

8/25/07

Mask curled up with me this morning on the couch and watched Little Britian with me for a bit. She's so cuddly.I'm contemplating breakfast, but I'm not really interested in anything. Helping Naz move today. I really don't want to leave the house, which means I need to.

8/23/07

I bought this. Now I need to learn how to play it.

8/22/07

I just found out that Karl Alvarez had a heart attack recently. Karl is the bassist in one of the most influental bands of my life The Descendents. Unfortunately, like many musicians Karl has no health insurance. You can donate here.

I was exhausted when I got home passed out for awhile. Talked to Eric Westmass for a bit after I woke up the first time. He's loving Nashville. Passed back out after an e-mail then got up and got a beer and did more e-mail. Then I started watching Jesus Camp. I got half way through before I couldn't take anymore. Child abuse, pure and simple. I put on Farscape to wash the anger out of my head.

8/20/07

I'm a bit hungover. Ugh. It was for a good cause, though. Mike Welshons married Janelle last night at The Whitney in Detroit. It was supposed to be an outdoor afair but mother nature had other ideas. I'm glad she was thinking for all of us, because The Whitney is one of those building a guy could get completely lost in. At least this guy. Everything is so ornate, that while eating dinner I couldn't help but just get lost in the woodwork. It was a good night over all. I was able to reacquante myself with a few old friends (Ethan, Rob, Chris, Matt, and all who acompanied them). The craziest thing happened after dinner, though. I let myself get talked into getting a drink before leaving (turned into 3 drinks) and just as I step up to the bar I hear my name. Not from beside or behind me, but from right in front of me. Craig, who took over bass duties for me in Waste Nation, was our bartender. I flipped my fucking wig! Of course he was way too busy to hang, but I got him my info. Needless to say I had such a good time, that I didn't get home until 1am and then had to go to work today.

I just finished this article written by Clara Rockmoore's nephew. It brought me to tears at the end. It is a very beautiful and loving tale about her last days.

Oh and the Constitution steps up and tells religious zealots to go fuck themselves.

8/17/07

A must read. It's really too bad that this really won't change anything at the top. Even if a Democrat gets into office.

8/16/07

So yesterday was a wash for me. I had to come in earlier than I usually do, so Steph could go to the dentist (Steph's mouth is bad but it could be a lot worse). She had a worse day than I did, but I was tied to the desk all day watching a progress bar. Ugh. By the time I got home I didn't want to do much at all. So the kid and I watched The Descent. I loved it! It made me jump in all the right places, although I wish the ending was a bit more final. It was a worthy purchase. Today I watch more progress bars. And silly videos:

Stop playing Donkey Kong and wipe my butt!!!

*Update. I just found out Max Roach died today. He was 83, a couple of years older than my dad. The jazz world will not be the same, but at least he had a good long life. You can read more here.

8/15/07

Normally I wouldn't repost something like this, but since everyone around me is hating Windows today (it should be taken for granted that I hate it everyday if you're just joining us) I figured what the hell:

Bill Gates arrives at Heaven's gates and St. Peter tells him that he really doesn't know what to do with Bill. "I mean on one hand you've helped get computers into many homes, but on the other hand you released Windows. I'll give you the choice, heaven or hell?"
Bill thinks about this and asks to be shown both places to make an informed decision on the matter. And so Peter takes him to heaven, replete with clouds, angels, harps and what not. Bill barely manages to stifle a yawn before St. Peter takes him to hell, a fabulous beach with babes playing around. "I've decided I want you to send me to hell," Bill announces.
So a few weeks later St. Peter looks up Bill to see how he's doing. Gates is strung up against a cave passage somewhere, demons all around him whipping and branding him. "Hey Bill, enjoying yourself?"
Bill grimaces and says: "This isn't what you promised me!"
"Ah," says St. Peter, "you're right. That was the demo."

On the personal creative front I did a bunch of work on my story last night. I cleaned up a lot.

8/13/07

Ok, so I nearly got killed not once, but three times this morning. Two of these near death experiences were within 5 minutes of each other. I decided to ride the scooter into work this morning to save on gas and just after pulling on to the one way section of Cross Street i had two cars cut me off. They literally pulled into my lane while I was in it. I ended up having to pull into the bike lane and hit the brakes both times. They never saw me. Not even after I honked and flipped them off. They weren't even aware. Ugh. The third guy was on State Street. He slowly started to drift over in front of me then looked in his mirror, saw me and drifted back. Then, and only then, after I had backed off, he put his turn signal on and came over. Sheesh. None of them used their turn signals. That's my biggest pet peeve on the road and I get it from my Mother. They are there people for a reason! Fucking use them already. Grr.

Karl Rove is quiting! Holy sheep shit Batman! Now can he go to jail?

"Family values" on parade! This one really sickens me. These people are really tacky to close down the guys funeral the day before. That's real "Christian" of you. Douche bags.

8/12/07

Friday night Stephe, Randy, Beth and I went to see Nobody Knows. I liked the film, but thought it was a bit long. It definitely could've used some editing. That aside, I thought it was a very well done film. It didn't try to impose any moral convictions leaving that up to the viewer. Everyone else seemed to miss having a resolution, myself included, but after letting the movie settle on my brain for a bit, I'm glad it didn't take that road. It really left it up to the viewers own imagination as to what, if anything, happened to the kids.The main goal was to show how they got to that point and how they would deal with getting there.In that it was effective. We went to Mongolian Barbeque afterwards. I kind of wished we hadn't. The food was good, but the place was too loud. I'm definitely getting old. Stephe thoroughly enjoyed the experience. The rest of us were in the "Meh" section. There were a very large section of young black gay men next to us that were annoying as hell. Most of the gay people I know would want to smack the shit out of them. They were all so prissy to the point of being a really bad stereotype. Eventually a verbal brawl broke out and I thought for sure someone was going to start slapping someone else limply. Egads! Can't we get to the point in our society where gay men don't have to camp in order to get a date. Sheesh!
The next day I mowed the lawn. The entire lawn. Ugh, I was dirty nasty afterwards. I'm glad it's done, though. I can chill today and write because of it. After a much needed shower and a brief respite Stephe and I went to see Stardust with Larry. We all loved it! Although there were a few inconsistencies that were glaringly obvious. Watch for the scene where trhe last heir apperent takes a sword to the farmers throat. Depending the shots angle the sword is either behind the farmers ear or infront of it, even though the sword is never moved. I also would like to know how our male lead got ahold of a magic rope he should never have seen before in his life. It's like he pulled it out of no where and, having never seen it before, already knows how it works. Ugh. Outside of that it was fabulous! Robert De Niro is fabulous as the gay ship captain, although again a bit campy, it works here somehow. Clare Danes is radiant througout and our hero makes a great transition from dork to adventurer. Very natural. A must own. I also got to paly with Larry's new iMac. It's sweet. Super sweet actually. I thought I would hate the new keyboard, but my only problem is that the USB ports aren't as easy to access. They're tucked up under the back of the keyboard. I like the size of the whole thing. Compact yet fully featured. I hope my MacPro comes with one. Later Stephe and I hooked up with Eric W. and Anthea and went to meet up with Steve Toth for his 48th birthday. JoJo was there as well as Anthea's Mom Chris and Spence. We had a good time, and Anthea really needed it after the day she had. I'll let her explain to anyone who wants to know.

Today I'm hoping for a thunderstorm to help with my writing. We're suposed to get them, but then this is Michigan after all.

PS. MY brother is a dick. Even his kids see that he's selfish. Sometimes I wish I could just bring them all here and keep them safe and loved.

8/10/07

Jon Stewart is awesome. I love how he points out the hypocrisy inherent in the right wing. It's funny how people who have been indoctorinated with so-called "Christian values" are so hell bent on telling other people how to live their lives, and yet can't seem to follow those same rules. You don't get to tell some else to get that cock out of their mouth only to take up said cock and finish it off. Now if Jon could just put the screws to Hillary and her inherent need to felate the health insurance companies...

Oh and here's one from the bigot section. Why do people wonder why I have a problem with Christianity?

Nobody Knows is playing at Lorch courtesy of the Center for Japanese Studies. From the e-mail:
The acclaimed director of Maborosi (1995), After Life (1998), and Distance (2001), stunned viewers in 2004 with this documentary-style portrait of four young siblings trying to survive in a Tokyo apartment as they hide from the eyes of their neighbors. After their immature mother deserts the children in search of her own happiness, the kids must try to make sense of life alone while maintaining the illusion of family and trying to uphold the stifling 'house rules': no loud voices and no going outside. Nobody Knows crafts a naturalistic child's-eye look at urban life in a uniquely dysfunctional family while avoiding simplistic solutions and tear-jerking cinematic clichés. Fourteen-year old lead Yuya Yagira became the youngest actor ever to win Best Actor at the Cannes Film Festival for his performance.

8/4/07

Last night Beth, Larry, Matt, and I went to see Kamikaze Girls. Fantastic film! This is right up there with Train Man and Linda Linda Linda as best Japanese teen movie. I stuck it in my Amazon shopping cart as soon as I got home. We went to Pizza House afterwards and had a nice meal, although my margarita gave me an ice cream headache I drank it so fast near the end.

Today, so far, has been a productive one. Spent the early morning naming songs. I'll have to run the titles by the group, but I can't see anyone having a problem with them. Then I went out and picked up some fertilizer and cat food. I'm switching the cats over to a less commercial cat food. I'm hoping it'll help Gandalf gain some weight. He's been a bit thin these days. The fertilizer I bought so I could plant the six surviving plants I got from Jon and Andrea. They were flourishing in the pots after all the rain we got, so I figured it was safe to stick them in the ground. I mowed the lawn first, so as to give them some time to take and maybe grow before I have to mow again. That way I don't chop them down with the lawn mower. Eventually these will take over that area and I won't have to mow it at all anymore. It was a nice day to be outside. Now I have to figure out what to do with the rest of the afternoon. I guess i could work on the album some more. Or maybe practice my theremin technique. We'll see. I should eat. It's been awhile now that I think about it.

I gotta pull out the notes for the script I started nearly 15 years ago.

8/3/07

Last nights recording session was very fruitful. I can't wait until Sunday when I can start going through this stuff and name it. I think we have about half the record ready for premixing. I have yet to record any theremin, so I may need to get on that. This album is really meeting some of my goals. It's definitely prettier than the last one.

7/30/07

Tom Snyder has died. So has Ingmar Bergman. So many people hype up The Seventh Seal but for my money The Virgin Spring blows it away. In other news, I feel like I'm dying. My experiment is off.

One good reason to shop at Lowes.

7/29/07

Went out with Beth for breakfast. We had a good time. Then I got really sick in the afternoon. Further sun poisoning, I think. Had to take some aspirin to break the fever. I'm feeling much better now, but I'm wondering if I should stay home tomorrow and make sure. It probably didn't help going up on the roof after Beth left to make sure my one fucked up gutter is ok.

I have to take care of Jon's dogs this week. I'm going to be busy.

7/28/07

Beerfest rules! I had such a good time, even thought it was pretty hot out. I need a nap.Jon, Dave, and Dave's brother in-law and I hung out the whole time. Dave's a little scammer. He was palming his chips most of the time, so he was able to hook us up with extra beers (cuz we're way too honest for our own good I guess). Went to Aubree's afterwards for pizza and water. On the way home I hung out with Mike and Miranda. They just sold their home and are moving to Nashville. I got to meet Bob as well. Crazy guy on the street from what I've heard, but he's really got good taste in music. I like him. Although I couldn't hang with the guy alone for more than an hour without needing a break I'm guessing. His social skills are a little lacking. But then so are mine, really.

7/27/07

A great interview with Ted Haggard’s former escort who blew the whistle on him for being gay. Outing someone is a very rude thing to do, but I think in this case I could seriously forgive Mike Jones. Haggard is one of those people who works hard to combat equality for all and is/was a particular thorn in the side of the modern civil rights movement (which the gay rights movement is all about people. It's just an extension of a very long battle).

7/26/07

Yes Men. A great interview with Brian Baker (Minor Threat, Dag Nasty, Bad Religion). Here's a great quote fromt the article:"I don't really go for the costume anymore, because I don't think it's necessary. When I was very young, it was somewhat dangerous and provocative to have a certain image — it threw people off balance. But now, thanks to MTV and Hot Topic, there's nothing threatening or frightening about a guy with a mohawk anymore, so what's the point of all of that hair maintenance every day?"

Mommy, why does the lying man still have a job?

Mid August is coming quick and my life will cease to be my own. I am so not looking forward too it.

7/25/07

Something to make you scared and something to make you laugh.

7/24/07

I have four cavities. Pretty good for not having seen a dentist in seven years. Two of them aren't even really bad. I do need to start flossing more, though. I feel bad for Stephe. She's never really taken good care of her teeth and she's sure to have a ton of cavities. Hopefully she does the right thing and comes back to get that taken care of. The girls priorities are completely out of whack.

Touched base with Adnan today. It would be really sweet to be able to get together with him after all these years. I'd love to get his perspective on comic book movies and geek out old skool style.

Speeking of old skool, for you Zappa fans! All these Steve Allen Show episodes need to be released properly. Steve Allen was one of the coolest mofo's in entertainment and never really lost his credibility. Lenny Bruce loved the man as did many other hip people.

7/21/07

HP is not here yet! AAAAUUUGHHH!!!!!!!!!!! I really didn't think I'd be going this crazy. Fuck.

Last night I had a pleasent conversation with Eric as I walked to John and Leah's place to meet up with Ryan. I had a really good time hanging out by the fire with John. Cool guy. Seriously. I also met Pam who was really cool. We were the last ones to leave the fire. I feel like I should've stayed and talked to her more. She was really cool and interesting, but I was kind of tired and on the verge of being drunk so I went home. Fell right to sleep too. I should try and hang with them more. They only live right up the street for crying out loud.

Leighton had this on his website and it angered me so much I had to repost with my own thoughts. For the record, I never liked The White Stripes. It was nothing personal, but I'm a purist. They just seemed like they'd listened to too much of The Gories and Thee Headcoats. Now I hate them. For Jack White to trash Billy Childish is like Eric Clapton trashing Muddy Waters or Robert Johnson. This prick doesn't deserve to be in the same conversation as Billy Childish, let alone in the same room. What a douche.

*20 minutes after posting- It's here!!!!!

7/20/07

Ok, total disclaimer coming. Abe sent this to the work circle and we all agreed it is the single most stupidest video we have seen in awhile. Interestingly enough, the video has now entered into our daily vocabulary. Fuck.

Stephe seriously needs to get her priorities straight.

Beth is a very good friend and I love her dearly.

The Wire is cooler than you.

HP will end tomorrow sometime (if I can find time to read).

Ryan is coming!

Geoff is coming later!!!

Day two on the meds. I don't notice any difference, but it's a beautiful day.

7/19/07

It's funny how life can really fuck with you. I've gone through a varying range of emotions over the last few months and there is no end in site to the madness really. Interestingly enough, I'm feeling fairly even keeled at the moment. In fact I'm feeling much better since yesterday. I still need to get my head screwed on straight, but I may actually be alright in the long run. I definitely need a playmate, though I'm not sure my emotional fortitude is up to sharing right now. Maybe after a week on the "prescription" Gina got for me for my ADD. Today's the first day on it. Of course, I won't notice the difference and it'll take a week for the stuff to work through my system. I told Brian that I was going to do it just not when. In a week I'll tell him I've been on it and see if he's noticed a change. After a month I'll ask Troy (who's likely not to read this anyway). who will be my control and true test. Too bad insurance won't cover supplements.

Article of the day.

And one more just to piss you off.

*Edit/Addition* I just got off the phone with Geoff. Sorry, dude. I know my problems aren't near as bad as yours. I was just trying to help you feel better in my own clumsy baka way.

7/20/07

Jon Alexander turned 40 today! Larry and I took him out to dinner at Cadie's. We ate and drank too much. A good time really.

7/17/07

It's half past midnight. Stephe just left for Ohio. I'm a mess.

It's late morning now. Trying to stay busy and keep focused. In that regard, Mark Maynard posted a link to Bill Moyers show from last night. I've just watched the first half. Wow. The guy who wrote the Articles of Impeachment for Clinton not only agrees that Bush should be IMPEACHED but that his crims are far worse. Go watch it here. You may also find this article interesting too. Thanks Mark.

Rollins interview.

7/12/07

NYFD kick Guiliani in the nut sack!

7/11/07

Bush's former Surgeon General kicks him in the nuts as a guy from the DOJ kicks him in the shins! Could it get any better than that? Yes, we could impeach and imprison the whole lot of them.

Lady Bird Johnson has passed. It's not funny how her husbands presidency has overshadowed a lot of what she accomplished on her own. A worthy successor to Eleanor Roosevelt. She was 94 and a had a long and full life and that's worth something.

Stephe and I went into Walmart tonight to replace her phone. We tried to go to both Target and Meijer first (at my request) but they didn't have the specific phone she needed (the cheap one). Anyhow, this was the first time I had been in a Walmart in a great number of years (1996 maybe?) and it was an odd experience. Every employee looked frazzled. It was as if at any moment one or more of them could snap and either a) fall to the floor crying in a fetal position with their thumb in there mouth or b) start killing anyone within reach. It was sad. My job makes me feel that way more and more these days, but I'm well compensated. I can come home from my job and leave it behind a little. In fact, I had to do that today, but after a really awesome workout I felt a lot better. I'm guessing these people can't do that. They are likely going home to a messy family situation or to another job. Maybe their third job for all I know. It was a bit unnerving.

Stephe's fighting with her Mom again. She can be so hateful sometimes. I have to agree with the fact that her parents refuse to accept her for who she is, but she could be a bit less evil about it. I wish I knew how to fix that but I don't. Carol and Frank are good people and they raised someone I love a great deal. It's just sad that they can't find some middle ground. At least when I was going through that with my Mom, I still had my Dad helping me out and encouraging me. Even if it wasn't very frequently.

I still want to kill the boy. Insecure waste of skin. All he does is call her up to put her down. The big brother in me wants to find him and hurt him. But then I'm too cute for jail.

7/9/07

Here's a douche bag of the highest order. No one asked this guy to stop being a christian. As David Yas states in the article ``Knowing the law has nothing to do with agreeing with the law.'' So this guy doesn't like other guys. Ok, fine. Don't suck dick then, but at least have the decency to allow my friends to suck cock if they want too. It's none of your business. We're all supposed to be created equal under the Constitution right? Isn't that how the sodomy laws got struck down. Live and let live ass hat.

Oh and here's the Iraqi punchline. It was about the oil after all. Go figure. Amy Goodman rules!

7/8/07

So not looking forward to work tomorrow. It's been a week since I've been there. Now I have to try and remember where I left off. That's the really hard part about vacations for me. I have people fooled into believing I'm organized. It's a sham. Anyhow, didn't really do shit today. It was too hot to work in the yard or change the oil in the car. So I stayed inside and traded off reading and napping. Mask has been in the bed with me most of the day. Gandalf tried to kick her out once, but I wouldn't let him be that mean. She really wasn't bothering him and the bed is big enough for all three of us really.

My sister is getting another cat. Some friend of hers rescued it from a job site in Queens (NY) and can't really keep it very long. It's funny how that works out. I ended up taking Leon from her years ago because Smurfette kept trying to kill him. I later had to pass him to Andrea because he cried all the time I was away, very loudly. I was living in a no pet apartment complex at the time where all the tenants had pets. I didn't want to get anyone in trouble. I saw Leon yesterday. He's so big compaired to the little black kitten that cried all the way home from PA in the car. I went to Jon and Andrea's to get some more rose of sharon for the yard and of course had to give face time to the kids. I love Andrea's cats. I got about eight Rose of Sharon sprouts (?) and I hope they survive this heat. I really want them to take over that section of my property next to the driveway. Less mowing is good for the environment!

7/5/07

Happy Birthday Les Brown!!! Went to Shed's Aquarium today. Pretty cool place but a little expensive for what it turned out to be. The kimono dragon was lazy as all get out. I was hoping for fire breathing and destruction. At least a demonstration of his legendary agility. More like watching Jeremy pass out after several shots of Jameson. Which was what Tuesday night was all about. Anyway, l picked up a gift each for my little sisters and moved on to hooking up with Abe at a pub on Wabash. Abe is definitely adjusting to life in Chicago. I think it'll be good for him and it gives me another reason to come down to Chicago. I really love this town. If I could move my job and my house here...

I wiped my iPod and it now refuses to play nice. I love Apple but....

7/4/07

Happy fourth! I'm in Chicago with Jeremy and Larry at Eric's. Slight hangover this morning, but breakfast at the Golden Nugget (at 1pm) helped a lot. We're chilling and grilling today. Tomorrow we go to the aquarium (Yeah!) and then home on Friday. Stephe was supposed to go back on the road today, but her ride fell through. I'm not sure what I'm going to do about that. I love having her around, but need less drama in my life. I really want to kill her verbally abusive boyfriend. I don't ever want to be 21 again.

I may have a date soon. Something to look forward too.

A very weird thing happened on the way back from grocery shopping at Jewel. Eric wanted to take our picture under the L line. I get into position and look down and there's a pigeon sitting there with half it's tail feathers missing and a good chunk of its ass missing. It was still alive. I couldn't take my eyes off it. I wanted to put it out of it's misery, but didn't know how. If I'd had a car I would have run it over and ended it's suffering. It's been hours now and I can't get the sight of it out of my head. I hope someone was able to do what I couldn't.

6/17/07

There's a lot going on in my life right now. But rather than take you down memory lane I'll just give you a brief: Eric Brown's birthday was Monday and I forgot it (baka), Stephe moved in with me for a spell (which distracted me from a lot of other things, like birthdays), Kevin Leeser showed his Ren Fair Jousting documentary "Renaisannce Men" at Planet Ant last night (nice work), and Abe is moving to Chicago. Whew! I am buying a new mattress (shut up Beth), and doing more yardwork today. I am killing as much grass as possible so I'm not wasting fuel mowing. This will take a few years but I have a good head start. The house has been re-graded on two sides and I start on the third and final today. Speaking of gas and prices, I found this one on Slashdot with the following remarks below it:

Q:"If you are going to drive a vehicle that is that dangerous to everyone else on the road, shouldn't you have to meet much stricter requirements?"

A: "Fully agree. Given the various harms monster vehicles cause, the only way to rationally preserve people's freedom to drive them is to take steps to make their owners bear the costs imposed on all other motorists by their self-indulgent vehicle choice.
First, increase the gas tax until the drivers of heavier vehicles are paying their fair share of the road repair bill. (There are very rational arguments for subsidizing road wear caused by heavy vehicles, such as semis, used commercially. There are no rational arguments for subsidizing excess road wear by mindlessly heavy personal vehicles.)
Second, actually increase insurance premiums for large, poorly performing vehicles until they are in line with the extra deaths caused by those vehicles in collisions with rationally sized vehicles.
Third, given that truck-based vehicles in particular are much more challenging to drive safely than average cars (as they take much longer to stop, have less body control which means more likelihood of losing grip, and are far more prone to rollover), require special licensing. Of course given the variety of vehicles on the road any line we draw between normal vehicles and heavy, trucklike vehicles is likely to be arbitrary. But I'll propose one anyway: To drive a vehicle for personal use that is EITHER over 5000 pounds empty OR over 78" tall, you need a Class C CDL with the attendant training and much tougher skills test."

No shit.

6/10/07

The Smoking Gun is awesome. They get a hold of documents that most of the rest of us would never see in a million years. One of the types of documents they post are rock star riders. Riders are the contract between the artist and venue that describes what the venue has to provide, such as food, in house mixing board and stage and back stage set up. Some are rediculously pompous (as you would expect), but most are pretty average and boring. Well they just posted the best one I've ever read. The Stooges rider is not outrageous in it's requests. They really don't ask for much. It's just the way the ask for it. Funniest rider hands down. You can find it here.

5/26/07

The following is pretty much how I feel about teh TV show Jericho:

"Aargh, the more I sit and think the more annoyed I get all over again.
I just can't imagine sitting around a table in the writer's room and listening to somebody say "Okay, we've blown up all the major cities in the USA, the country is in Civil War, looting and riots are rampant, normal citizens are totally isolated, thrown back into the 19th century ways of living overnight -- but what people want to know is, will Jake hook up with the blonde or the brunette? And what impact would post-apocalyptic panic have on rural thanksgiving celebrations?'"

I watched it to the end. I'll admit it. But it was pretty much coming off as a low rent bad 80's drama show in the latter half of the season. It deserves to die, so let it. Lost is losing it real fast too.

Going to The Meatmen tonight. Eric's still asleep. Jon Alexander is the least dependable person on the planet when it comes to having a good time. My solo record is almost done and ready to post. My Thingamagoop is being built right now! Steve recorded his tracks Thursday night and Rudi came by to see the whole thing happen. He is now planning to work with us. I may have a plan to start dealing with my ADD better so I won't have to post incoherent verbal purges like this anymore.

PS Al Gore isn't such a bad guy, although I still think he's a pussy.

5/25/07

I just had to post this. Joss Whedon is really cool. I watched the video he spoke of and I really don't want to link to it. I'm usually pretty thick skinned when it comes to blood but this one really got me. If you want to see it it's out there, but you have to seek it out yourself.

BTW, I bought a Thingamagoop. Next year I may have to get him a little brother.

5/20/07

Lee Press-On had this on his site a few days ago. So sweet. He also had a link to one of the coolest little noisemakers ever (next to my Egon). I'm so getting one of these as soon as I can stop bleeding money.

This is a must watch for anyone who has and or deals with teenagers on a regular basis.

5/19/07

My rain barrel came today. Now if I could just get the ground turned...

5/18/07

The new Pelican record is being streamed on Hydra Head. Go now.

5/9/07

Chris Brooks can no longer call me old man. We are now the same age. At least until January 9th of 2008. Then he can call me old man again. This goes out to him. Happy Birthday dude.

4/29/07

DUDE!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! I just don't want to wait until fall. Grrr.

Went to Anthea's birthday party last night and had a drunken verbal brawl with part of the 25%. She actually told me to get out of the country if I don't believe in God. Politics became the discussion for the rest of the night, after this person was dragged off of me. So I got drunk. I'm hungover enough today to not want to do anything outside on this beautiful day. This is why I don't drink like that very often. It's such a waste.

Everyone needs to check out this, this, and this.

4/26/07

This is how we deal with real terrorists. This is how we deal with those we label terrorists.

4/25/07

Reason number 5,129 of why I think Christianity is stupid: being a Christian doesn't give you the right to be an insensitive douchebag. Seriously, if I don't believe in an afterlife and I'm killed, my life still meant something to those who knew and loved me. You cunts don't have a license to go out and mock them for their or my beliefs (or lack of them). Especially when my death was senseless and served no purpose other than to serve someone elses selfish needs.

4/15/07

So yesterday was pretty weird and cool at the same time. I stopped in to the post office to drop off my house payment before breakfast. Just as I'm dropping the letter in the slot this old man asks me, "Can you read this for me?" He's got a piece of paper with instructions on it and a couple of plastic vials. I figure the guy can't see very well and can't read the label for his medication. So I take a look at what he's trying to read and I'm not sure I get it either. That is until I turn the paper over. Basically the doctor sent him home with a stool sample test kit that he was to bring back on his next visit. Do I get karma points for telling an old man he has to shit in a pan without pissing on it and then mix some of it into a couple of little vials with chemicals in it?

Later on I discovered some cement I didn't know I had. I edged the back sidewalk and patio. Wow, does grass really spread out. I reclaimed a foots worth of pavement! Can't wait to do the front.

Got the scooter almost ready to ride. It starts and runs, but it's still choking out a little when I ride it. I really need to get the repair manual so I can properly clean the injectors. I also need to get some car ramps today and replace the fuel filter on the car. If it's warm enough tomorrow...

Chris, Mary, and I went to see Grindhouse later on. Just go see this film. It's fucking incredible. Takes me back to the Lakes Drive-in in Brighton. Seriously.

Why hasn't anyone thought to do something like this before?

4/12/07

A great American died last night. Kurt Vonnegut was 84. So to honor him (and make you all think a bit) I'll repost this speech he gave a couple of years ago, that someone posted on Twitchfilm. Even the kids on Punknews couldn't make fun of this one.

From Vonnegut's Clemens lecture at the Mark Twain house in Hartford, CT.
-----------------------------------------------------------
First things first: I want it clearly understood that this mustache I’m wearing is my father’s mustache. I should have brought his photograph. My big brother Bernie, now dead, a physical chemist who discovered that silver iodide can sometimes make it snow or rain, he wore it, too.
Speaking of weather: Mark Twain said some readers complained that there wasn’t enough weather in his stories. So he wrote some weather, which they could insert wherever they thought it would help some.
Mark Twain was said to have shed a tear of gratitude and incredulousness when honored for his writing by Oxford University in England. And I should shed a tear, surely, having been asked at the age of 80, and because of what I myself have written, to speak under the auspices of the sacred Mark Twain House here in Hartford.
What other American landmark is as sacred to me as the Mark Twain House? the Lincoln Memorial in Washington, D.C. Mark Twain and Abraham Lincoln were country boys from Middle America, and both of them made the American people laugh at themselves and appreciate really important, really moral jokes.
I note that construction has stopped of a Mark Twain Museum here in Hartford —behind the carriage house of the Mark Twain House at 351 Farmington Avenue.
Work persons have been sent home from that site because American “conservatives,” as they call themselves, on Wall Street and at the head of so many of our corporations, have stolen a major fraction of our private savings, have ruined investors and employees by means of fraud and outright piracy.
Shock and awe.
And now, having installed themselves as our federal government, or taken control of it from outside, they have squandered our public treasury and then some. They have created a public debt of such appalling magnitude that our descendants, for whom we had such high hopes, will come into this world as poor as church mice.
Shock and awe.
What are the conservatives doing with all the money and power that used to belong to all of us? They are telling us to be absolutely terrified, and to run around in circles like chickens with their heads cut off. But they will save us. They are making us take off our shoes at airports. Can anybody here think of a more hilarious practical joke than that one?
Smile, America. You’re on Candid Camera.
And they have turned loose a myriad of our high-tech weapons, each one costing more than a hundred high schools, on a Third World country, in order to shock and awe human beings like us, like Adam and Eve, between the Tigris and Euphrates Rivers.
The other day I asked former Yankees pitcher Jim Bouton what he thought of our great victory over Iraq, and he said, “Mohammed Ali versus Mr. Rogers.”
What are conservatives? They are people who will move heaven and earth, if they have to, who will ruin a company or a country or a planet, to prove to us and to themselves that they are superior to everybody else, except for their pals. They take good care of their pals, keep them out of jail—and so on.
Conservatives are crazy as bedbugs. They are bullies.
Shock and awe.
Class war? You bet.
They have proved their superiority to admirers of Abraham Lincoln and Mark Twain and Jesus of Nazareth, with an able assist from television, making inconsequential our protests against their war.
What has happened to us? We have suffered a technological calamity. Television is now our form of government.
On what grounds did we protest their war? I could name many, but I need name only one, which is common sense.
Be that as it may, construction of the Mark Twain Museum will sooner or later be resumed. And I, the son and grandson of Indiana architects, seize this opportunity to suggest a feature which I hope will be included in the completed structure, words to be chiseled into the capstone over the main entrance.
Here is what I think would be fun to put up there, and Mark Twain loved fun more than anything. I have tinkered with something famous he said, which is: “Be good and you will be lonesome.” That is from Following the Equator. OK?
So envision what a majestic front entrance the Mark Twain Museum will have someday. And imagine that these words have been chiseled into the noble capstone and painted gold:
be good and you will be lonesome most places, but not here, not here.
One of the most humiliated and heartbroken pieces Twain ever wrote was about the slaughter of 600 Moro men, women and children by our soldiers during our liberation of the people of the Philippines after the Spanish-American War. Our brave commander was Leonard Wood, who now has a fort named after him. Fort Leonard Wood.
What did Abraham Lincoln have to say about such American imperialist wars? Those are wars which, on one noble pretext or another, actually aim to increase the natural resources and pools of tame labor available to the richest Americans who have the best political connections.
And it is almost always a mistake to mention Abraham Lincoln in a speech about something or somebody else. He always steals the show. I am about to quote him.
Lincoln was only a Congressman when he said in 1848 what I am about to echo. He was heartbroken and humiliated by our war on Mexico, which had never attacked us.
We were making California our own, and alot of other people and properties, and doing it as though butchering Mexican soldiers who were only defending their homeland against invaders wasn’t murder.
What other stuff besides California? Well, Texas, New Mexico, Utah, Nevada, Arizona, and parts of Colorado and Wyoming.
The person congressman Lincoln had in mind when he said what he said was James Polk, our president at the time. Abraham Lincoln said of Polk, his president, our armed forces’ commander-in-chief: “Trusting to escape scrutiny by fixing the public gaze upon the exceeding brightness of military glory, that attractive rainbow that rises in showers of blood —that serpent’s eye, that charms to destroy, he plunged into war.”
Holy smokes! I almost said, “Holy shit!” And I thought I was a writer!
Do you know we actually captured Mexico City during the Mexican War? Why isn’t that a national holiday? And why isn’t the face of James Polk up on Mount Rushmore, along with Ronald Reagan’s?
What made Mexico so evil back in the 1840s, well before our Civil War, is that slavery was illegal there. Remember the Alamo?
My great-grandfather’s name was Clemens Vonnegut. Small world, small world. This piquant coincidence is not a fabrication. Clemens Vonnegut called himself a “freethinker,” an antique word for humanist. He was a hardware merchant in Indianapolis.
So, 120 years ago, say, there was one man who was both Clemens and Vonnegut. I would have liked being such a person alot. I only wish I could have been such a person tonight.
I claim no blood relationship with Samuel Clemens of Hannibal, Missouri. “Clemens,” as a first name, is, I believe, like the name “Clementine,” derived from the adjective “clement.” To be clement is to be lenient and compassionate, or, in the case of weather, perfectly heavenly.
So there’s weather again.

4/5/07

Stole this from Mark this morning. So why am I supposed to worship this guy again?

This needs to be checked daily.

4/3/07

This is going to eventually come up against the US Constitution and fail miserably. Hell it may even go far enough to desolve the concept of marriage being defined by the state at all.

More reasons for the rest of the world to fear us. (Thank you Heir Mann)

4/2/07

My credit card is paid off, wrapped in tin foil, non active, and frozen solid in a block of ice in my freezer. Boom! Headshot.

In other news more bullshit from the Bush administration ( and I use that last word very very loosely).

Snoop Dogg goes off on Bill O'Reilly!

Terry Jones goes off on his native Britain.

And on a more somber note, we lost a kid this weekend. What a way to start spring break.

4/1/07

I must first start off by stating that the following is not a joke. I was looking at my wimpy pathetic 6 volt drill and realised I really need power tools. I own a home and have no excuse not too. So I did some checking into drills online to see what the best drill is for a good price. Two of the sites I hit like the Ryobi p201 and mention that it sometimes comes in a combo with other tools. The price alone should be around $50. I went to Home Depot's site and found this for $159 I got two more useful tools and a flashlight and a vacuum. So I went to go buy it. As luck would have it they had a set that had two more tools ( a sander and another saw) for $199 AND (the clintcher) a $35 discount. I'm set.

3/29/07

Metafilter has links to one of the greatest documentaries on punk music I've ever seen. At least right up until the brits try and talk about American punk, then they lose me. Any discussion of American punk rock that leaves out The Swans, The Butthole Surfers, and Big Black, discusses Seattle without even a mention of Thee Melvins and Green River, and dains to mention Blink 182 as anything other than the pop crap it is needs to be stopped. That being said, watch everything except the "California Uber Alles" section. They only interview british journalists and never talk to any of the principles by this point. This is where the rest of the documentary shines. Other quick thoughts: John Lydon is a dick and I'm ok with that. The douche bag from Kerrang needs to be beaten. I really miss the Two -Tone compilations Eric had that I duped on cassette. The Selector rules.

Thanks go to Mark Maynard for the links.

Addendum: What would Jesus do?

3/18/07

Why the fuck is this not being discussed?! I've read and heard nothing but the bigotry, but not the come back. Fucking spread this shit will you folks!? The cluesless need to be shown their clue.

On a more personal note, I'm very tired of constantly being sick. I've had it. This cold that I got on the heels of the shingles has pissed me off. I had two more days off work and couldn't even bring myself to make music. Washing the dishes was torture. From here on out, no alcohol for 2 months, I start cooking again, and I have to work out everyday. Even if it's just for 15 minutes. The shingles caused a serious lack of appetite so I lost nearly 10 pounds, but I'm flabby and weak and constantly tired. No more.

3/13/07

Pelican was cool. Shingles wasn't. Sleepytime Gorilla Musem was cool. My Aunt Betty Jackson dying was not.

2/27/07

Must read articles of the day from The New Yorker and Alternet.

Spent most of last night fixing my 16 bit debacle and ended up doing some stellar stuff. At 2am. Anyhow, I still have two more to fix, but I came up with a plan to combine the two original tracks and make something new. We'll see how it comes out. I have to re-record a Bari-guitar part today and then post the tracks for everyone else. I also have a way to incorporate live recording into these mixes, but I need to ask Geoff some questions first. Hmmm.

2/26/07

"Best Picture Oscar winners with dildos? DEPARTED's not the first, RAIN MAN had Tom Cruise in it."
» Posted by Rhythm-X at February 26, 2007 02:48am

I laughed so hard at this I cried from the pain in my already strained nerve bundle in my side. So fucking true.

Some good news today in the "culture wars." Now if we could get that shitty amendment that Michigan voters passed in November struck down.

Addendum: I just realized that all the work I've been doing on the next record has been in 16 bit mode instead of 24 bit. I have to start all over again.

2/25/07

One more reason to despise religious zealots.

2/24/07

Woke up this morning in a bit of pain. I had to eat at 4am so I could take the pain medicine. I can't wait until I can get through a day without vicodin, although the Gabapentin is really what's helping I think. Still have that weird tingly feeling in my belly but the sharp pain is now a dull ache.

I've gotten board enough with my dvd collection that I've gone and dug out some VHS tapes. I hate the inability to skip around the movie inherent in the format. It does force you to pay more attention though, I guess.
My sisters Macbook arrived and Troy brought it from the school for me to set up. I'm really impressed. Especially the keyboard. I could easily move to one of these if I was forced to give up my Powerbook.

I've made my first of two music gear purchases that I'm allowing myself, thanks to Randy. I bought a Roland R-5 Human Rythm Composer from Ebay. I used to own this drum machine, but traded it to Goossen for the strat. I never regretted the trade. I love the strat, even more than the Iceman, but I've always missed that drum machine a little. Especially the six individual outputs. I have eight free inputs on the 24-i that are begging to be used. This still leaves me two free for guest devices, yet makes me feel like I'm using the 24-i to it's fullest potential. I hate waste. In fact I got such a good deal on the R-5 that I may actually be able to afford an extra gear purchase if I'm equally frugal. My Small Stone has seen better days and Electro-Harmonix has a smaller version of it for under $60. Electro-Harmonix also makes this little bundle of joy, but it's out of the running this time around. Maybe I'll ask for it for Christmas/Birthday. I'm really leaning towards purchasing the Boss PS-5, though. It's not as cool looking as this one I've been eyeing, but will be a ton cheaper. I think it will color the sound less too. I also really want a Reamp so I can record stuff direct and then send it back out to an amp so I can mic it without the need to have someone keep playing the instrument while I set stuff up and get a sound. Although this would be much more useful if I had a studio to record in instead of a glorified echo chamber, I may still buy one. The echo chamber that is my basement has a certain charm after all.

I found this and wanted to share. Not so funny funnies.

2/19/07

Mask likes hot sauce. Art and I have been going to Tios Hot Sauce tasting for some time now. I consider myself a bit of connoisseur by now. The mark of a great hot sauce is it's ability to meld with a meal without taking it over. Some hot sauces only work well in certain situations. For example, a hot sauce with fruit (ie mango, pineapple) works great on chicken or fish, but not so good on beans or beef. To this end, I keep Cholula hot sauce around always. It is my mainstay. It's good on chicken, beef, beans, fish, vegetables; almost anything. Today for lunch I made a beef and bean burrito with some olives and carrots and a little rice on the side. I doused the burrito with a bit of Cholula and then came into the living room to eat and watch a bit of Dune. Mask doesn't give a fuck. She's a street rat at heart and will steal your food if you're not waching. To this end, she stepped up on my plate to sniff around and wait for me not to be paying attention. So I put some Cholula on my finger and gave it to her, figuring she would freak out and leave. Not the case. She licked it all off my finger then curled up in a ball at my feet and got comfortable. She hasn't moved and let me finish my meal in peace. Weird.

Addendum: I watched this tonight. I think you should too.

2/17/07

Apparently, the terrorists are winning.

2/16/07

I'm drinking my first cup of coffee in almost a week. Boy is it yummy. I ate my first real meal yesterday (a cheeseburger with potato chips). Progress. I still feel like I have a knife in my back, and had to cancel a studio session with a student, but I'm definitely getting better. The rash is even looking like it might scab up tonight! No more contagium (look it up kids)! This has really put a damper on my work for Tunenami and As Yet To Be Named. I did manage to read the first book in Anne McCaffrey's Harper Hall trilogy (makes me wish there were real dragons, although Mask and Gandalf have been acting like fire lizards all week), finish Warcraft III's single player game, and watch a few english-language movies in my collection that have gone neglected. These are all things I can do with out having to get up too frequently. I usually change the dvd every eight hours when I have to take my medicine. I've slept a lot. So much so that I had to stretch yesterday just to walk to the kitchen. My 80 year dad could likely outrun me in a race right now.
Anyhow, this whole thing has taught me something. I really need to get better focused. I don't want to say too much here, but I need to make some changes in my life. This illness was brought on by stress, and I need to have a plan to alleviate that. The first thing I'm going to do is get financially solvent. I have my credit card half paid off. Once that is cleared in a couple of months, it will be used only in an emergency. Since I have the debit/credit I'm going to be using that to pay for things instead. It'll keep my interest payments down. I'm freezing that credit card and not activating it. Basically, it's dead to me.
The next thing I do is build my savings. I want to have at least enough in savings to carry me thru three months worth of bills. All the repairs I need to do to the house will need to be on the cheap and preventive maintainance type. Hopefully no more than a grands worth this summer. I need to tar the flashing on the roof, fix a gutter so it doesn't leak, build a small sidewalk from the front deck to the driveway, seal the front deck, build up the ground around the foundation of the house and fix all the window wells, and, if there is any money left over, replace as many basement windows with block glass as I can. Also, Abe and I are going to do a garden and he's going to teach me to can. This will help a lot. I just need to clear that back corner as soon as spring hits and build my compost heap.
The studio is off for now. It's too much of an investment to make in this climate. I'll be making two gear purchases that will help me get some work done: a reamp ($250) and one effect pedal or analog synth (haven't decided yet on what but I have some ideas; no more than $300). I likely will not be recording anyone else unless they can work in a more intimate setting (ie acoustic/in the box direct).
Anyway, I'm talking too much and really need to get back to my coffee.

Addendum: Ok, that was scary. I just lost power in the house for about two hours. The tempature dropped five degrees in that time. Grrr.

2/15/07

I have shingles. It sucks. Bad. Anyhow, you should read this. I listened to the moron for a bit yesterday. What a retard. You should do yourselves a favor and listen to this guy flounder like a 10 year old caught shoplifting and trying to get away with it. I really believe we did enough to hurt Iran back in the 50's and should never be allowed to talk about them unless we're willing to apologize for the harm we've done to their sovereignty. Not to mention their secular community. What a dick.

On a more personal note: Congratulations to Scott Beal and his Mlive article.

2/3/07

(Added to on 2/15/07)

In an interview on MSNBC (the MS stands for Microsoft) Bill Gates today defended Vista. He makes the claim that "security guys break the Mac every single day. Every single day, they come out with a total exploit, your machine can be taken over totally. I dare anybody to do that once a month on the Windows machine." He really is grasping at straws here.Is the Mac OS exploitable? Yes. Is it to the same degree Winows is. Not even close. The fact of the matter is, that OS X, out of the box and freshly installed, has most of the exploitable services turned off by default. Windows is still based around an old creaky code base that is going on 15 years and has to be configured by the end user after installing to be safe. I deal with end users and they don't understand the word "configure." They look at you doe-eyed when you try to describe the file system in the hopes that they understand where exactly their files are. ugh. You can read some more enlightening comments on Slashdot. The following is my favorite:

"It wasn't a double-dog dare, so he's not serious."

2/1/07

The world is a little less funny and a whole lot less informed as of today. Molly Ivans has died.

Addendum: Molly being interviewed about the brewing Clinton "scandal" on some Fox "news" program in March 1998 (courtesy of his Royal Rudeness): "If we had devoted this much time and this much space in the newspapers to the single most important problem in American politics today, which is the money that finances campaigns and the way the people that get elected respond to that money, we would have solved the problem by now. We would have the people of this country so outraged, they would be demanding campaign finance reform. What are we doing? We're talking about the president's dick. It's ridiculous."

1/29/07

Saw Volver yesterday with Randy. Fucking amazing!

1/22/07

*Cute moment* You've been warned. I woke up this morning with Gandalf in his customary place on the upper right corner of the bed. Mask on the other hand had taken up the middle and sprawled out. I was in a ball. If she wasn't so cute...anyhow, later on I had packed my saddle bag for work and went out side to start the car. When I got back, she had parked herself ontop of the bag and looked at me as if to say, "You're not going anywhere." She didn't look exactly comfortable. *Cute moment over*

1/20/07

One more reason I don't eat a lot of pork (if at all). I have one weakness: Pepperoni on pizza's. Fortunately, I'm broke enough now that I won't be eating out that frequently anymore.

Went and saw Pan's Labyrinth with Randy this morning. It has a slightly better story than The Devil's Backbone, but lacked the intensity of it. I never really felt unsafe. Even so, it still blows everything else in the theater out of the water. Definitely not for children, but as Todd McFarlane once said, "We're adults longer than we are children."

1/18/07

"There are religious people who are not content to say, "Oh, well, my religion doesn't allow me to use contraceptives, but I'm quite happy for anybody else to." Instead, we have religiously-inspired prohibitions on aid programs abroad, including in areas where HIV AIDS is rife, prohibiting aid going in any for