Author: brian

internet-free living situations wouldn’t be so bad really if i could just keep up with the blogging somehow. i also miss reading them, which i don’t even really have time to do at work here. so this is just another quick update. tonight we have to be fully out of the old apartment which means i can’t even go back to use the laptop there, and will have to make friends with a campus computer lab for the next week or two until the DSL man hooks us up. boy will that be nice.

until then i’ll probably still be scarce. the house is looking to be outstanding though. some minor touch ups are needed, and i need a few things to make it officially homey (such as a coffee table, a dresser, and other such basics), but overall — quite satisfactory. and i feel so adult having our own non-university-owned place finally. i’ve even recently purchases such terribly mature items as:

–a vaccuum

–a futon

–a towel bar for the bathroom

also 8 cinder blocks to raise the couch behind the futon up high enough to see the tv over the futon for official stadium seating arrangement for movie/tv viewing, but i don’t think that’s so much a mature purchase as it is just a brilliant one.

[now hearing this: shiner – lula divinia]

quick update between loads from old room to new room:

thursday–off work; moved all day.

friday–went to work, came home, moved all night, then saw my very favorite girl briefly. (sigh).

saturday–in progress. moved for a few hours. beach trip and barbeque planned for this afternoon, because i need a damn break from all this moving. then: more moving.

yeah, not a lot worth sharing. in a week or so though, once everything is squared away with this new place, and i’m sharing a big house with my favorite people in the state of california, things are going to simply amazing.

so that’s a plus.

[now hearing this: nothing, because my computer is the only thing really left here in the old apartment (which still has an internet connection, whereas the house will not have DSL for another week or two)]

call me a slacker. go ahead. i make no apologies. it’s too bad i am not keeping current on the goings on of my blog-friends, but i will catch up shortly.

i’ve just been busy. i mean, two concerts in two nights of possibly the best pairing of the year (hey mercedes/piebald) which totally blow me away, and one of which gives me a bruised eye from knocking heads with some little rocker — that’s important stuff. and it keeps me away from my computer. as does packing on the night before we move into our new house tomorrow morning. i’m indescribably excited about this. hot damn.

may be around less though this week, we’ll see. new house doesn’t have internet access set up just yet. but until then, how about a new song of the week? i know i’m awfully inconsistent about posting these, but maybe it’s better to keep you on your toes. this week’s is from the casket lottery off the cd survival is for cowards. i’ve been listening to this cd a lot lately, because it’s heavy and pretty and a perfectly appropriate post-breakup album. just check out the lyrics. and although “since you” isn’t a good example of the heavy part, it is pretty and very post-breakup. not to mention just fantastic.

see you soon.

[now hearing this: piebald – if it weren’t for venetian blinds it would be curtains for us all. and the name is only the beginning of how good this cd is. frankly, i think i could have seen that show five nights in a row instead of just two and still enjoyed it. damn, that was a lot of fun.]

another weekend, another trip to the beach. the number of pretty girls seemed to be lower than normal — perhaps saturday, when we usually go, is the young women day, and sunday is families and older people day. no matter. it was still gorgeous, relaxing, and enjoyable. and i think my torso is getting more tan than it has been since i was a little kid running around shirtless all summer playing hide and seek in the hot illinois afternoons. i’m so sexy now you wouldn’t believe it.

oh, and speaking of me being sexy (laughter here), i have failed to make it public to some people that i got a haircut a while back. a big deal haircut, of the type where you stand in your bathroom and use a little buzzing thing to shear off all but a half inch of hair all over your head. and since i know everyone that doesn’t have the privilege of seeing me frequently really needs to have an accurate mental picture of me to keep in their heads as they read this, here is the photo documentation of my first self-given haircut. it was a little like the scene in the tenenbaums, only minus the attempted suicide. this happened about 5 weeks ago, and i only now developed the pictures (coincidentally i got it cut again just the other day, so now i look just like this again anyway).

they’re chronological, from the first few snips to the pile of hair in the garbage afterward. and boy do i look hot. (more laughter).

i bet you totally want me now.

[now hearing this: hum – you’d prefer an astronaut. it’s almost done and “songs of farewell and departure” is playing and if ever there was a song that just oozed calm reflectiveness, this is it.]

it wasn’t until this morning that i realized what a terribly long day yesterday was. not in that it just drug on and on — well, part of it did — but that it was just so full of stuff, and just went on for a very long time. mathematically, i didn’t realize until today, it actually lasted a whole 22 hours, which is pretty long for a day, i think.

i got up around 7:45 as usual for work. i went to work, and that part did seem to drag. i swore to my coworkers that although it was only 5 in the office (we close at 6), it must be at least saturday afternoon everywhere else in the world, because it seemed to all of us as if time had slowed to a crawl in our vicinity for some reason. it just would not become quitting time.

once i was free though the good stuff began. after darting home to grab some food and pick up my buddy joe, we drove back up to the roxy (which is the building directly next door to my place of business, oddly) and caught the ben kweller/my morning jacket show. boy was that a good one. i don’t believe i’ve heard more than one my morning jacket song, and that one probably only a few times, so that was a great surprise. they were enjoyable and seemed to be enjoying themselves, although i think i would prefer to listen to their music in a rocking chair as opposed to standing in a club, i decided. and during their set there were three girls sort-of in front of me that did an awful lot of jumping up and down and seemed to know all the words to every song, which i thought odd for a band like that. ben kweller was pretty great but his set seemed short. maybe it just flew by because his songs are so good. i’m not sure if i was so into his first selection, covering “i can’t help falling in love with you”, but the rest of the show was grand.

the only drawback was my regrettable social dysfunction. see, this is why i will be single for a long long time: a very attractive girl can be standing a few feet away from me, and i can catch her eye, and we can smile at eachother, and i don’t say anything. but wait, it gets worse. she can end up standing directly next to me later on in the evening, after smiling at me more earlier, and we can be standing there rubbing elbows and swaying against eachother to the music for the entire duration of ben kweller’s set, and i stilldon’t say anything. but wait! it gets much worse! she can end up right in front of me on the slow procession of the crowd out the door, and smile at me basically face to face (which i return); and then once we’re outside waiting to try to say goodbye to someone from our school we ran into at the show, she can be standing alone waiting for someone also only a few feet away; and then once we’re walking down sunset to get back to my car she can stop to get into her car which is parked there at a meter and i can basically brush right past her while we make eye contact . . . and i STILL don’t say anything. how’s that for socially handicapped?

she was great looking too. and at a ben kweller show which is a pretty good headstart on probably turning out to be a cool person, i feel. so it was pretty vital that once we got back here around 1am that i went to a party and started drinking. which turned out to be the best idea i’d had all day and quite fun, and let me talk to a bunch of nice people some of whom were cute girls which did make me feel at least a little better. someday i will learn how not to be a putz, but in the meantime there is vodka. it not only makes girls less intimidating, but it seems to make me want to have deep and personal conversations with my roommate once we get back from the party that go from about 3:30 to 5:30 in the morning. good stuff, but 22 hours is still an awfully long day. today will necessarily be shorter.

[now hearing this: the flaming lips – yoshimi battles the pink robots, which i stand by isn’t as good as soft bulletin or clouds taste mettallic, but which i seem to listen to at least once a day anyway, which i think is a signal that putting out a cd not as good as two masterpieces (in my mind) doesn’t mean it isn’t still fantastic.]

last night, a night of firsts. i got off work and put down a deposit on my first real piece of furniture. i already own a few bookcases/cd shelves which are close, but this time it was a futon. so still the first furniture i can sit/lay/sleep on, which makes it feel more official. we are moving into the house in a week, gotta have that sort of thing around.

also my first trip to an irish pub/restaurant. out in santa monica, california, which seems very unmatched with that style, but it was a good place. i declined the fish and chips and settled in for my first ever pint. only bottles or cans before, which i never really enjoyed. but i have to say my first experience with guinness was much better than previous ones with the american beers which will always remind me of the smell of urine. sorry beer fans. in addition, my first time drinking on a wednesday night before work, although one pint isn’t much to worry about. good times.

sadly though, also the first time it physically hurt me to note how beautiful my ex-girlfriend/current hopefully best-friend/cause of heartbreak/still favorite person in the world — really is. i used to take pleasure in that sort of thing and it’s still great and all, but now it just stings. pretty unfortunate how that works out, i’d say.

it’s worth forging through though to maintain some kind of relationship. i imagine a threefold pain if i were to let her fall out of my life completely, so i should be grateful for the pangs. it’s worth the trouble.

she just looked so attractive…

[now hearing this – pavement – slanted and enchanted, purchased recently for 6 dollars, used, at my personal paradise. i plan to someday, after i become fabulously wealthy, to account for a sizeable percentage of their sales as a single customer. oh, and this is a really good cd i’m embarrassed i didn’t own it before.]

less worth sharing than usual. work is decent. life is coasting along. i’m playing it cool.

and things are alright for now, which is enough for today. just taking it easy and trying to stay afloat.

briefly –

another beach trip yesterday. slightly sunburned, but a great time. got the best parking spot ever.

another trip to amoeba yesterday. new flaming lips not as good as soft bulletin. too much electronic noises. still excellent though. in love with the song “do you realize??”

another boring sunday. might take a trip to the futon shop to check out future bedding/couching options and their impact on my pocketbook.

another song of the week. save a life from hey mercedes. cannot wait for the rocktastic pairing of their show with piebald’s. i’ve seen both before and both bands just know damn well how to have fun on a stage. two nights in a row and i’d go back for more if they didn’t have to move on to other locales.

enjoy your day. enter the xXx essay contest (see below). that should be fun.

[now hearing this: hey mercedes – the weekend e.p. from whence the song of the week has come. you should really buy this. bonus track/cover song is just terrific.]

some pretty funny stuff can happen at work. sure, no one else in the office might appreciate the humor the way i do, or maybe they have sense enough to keep it to themselves, but i had some good laughs at least twice today.

the first was at this guy that works in our office. he’s a black guy with dreadlocks, a little shorter than me and bulkier too. not fat, just meatier than me. that’s not much of a feat though really. anyway, he’s a pretty okay dude generally. no friction there.

but today i walked in and went to my desk, situated myself, etc. after about 20 minutes or so, i got up to get some water as i normally do, and noticed this time, since the dude was standing up instead of sitting behind the big front desk/counter, what he was wearing today. i was able to contain myself initially, but that was pretty difficult in the face of a grown man wearing a black, sleeveless v-neck made of velvet. yes, VELVET. yes, sleeveless v-neck. i had to rush around the corner to keep from laughing right at him though, and share my laughter with the other intern. i asked her if she’d seen the guy’s outfit today, and how it was pretty funny that he decided to dress like a trapeze artist before coming in to work today. i think he might have heard me though — i have this problem with not whispering when i should. might be related to my hearing damage from rock concerts. but anyway, i spent the day wondering if he was pissed at me because i told the other girl how stupid he looked.

and the second thing that cracked me up is much funnier than that. see, at work we keep track of what companies do what promotions with what movies. so i was checking out the contests associated with xXx today, and nearly bust a nut when i came across this one. that’s right kids, enter now to win a trip to the filming of the xXx sequel (already a green-lit project, you’ll be glad to hear) for four nights, brought to you by the starz movie channel, in the XXX ESSAY CONTEST!

i swear i didn’t make that up! there’s an essay contest for this movie! can you imagine? i’m sure the response will be overwhelming, too, because i know that most of the vin diesel fans i know have stacks of creative writing laying around their studies, and are dying for a constructive outlet for their literary prowess. and who couldn’t wax poetic on the great topic of “your most Xtreme Xperience”, and in 50 words or less! that’s not so much an essay as a brief paragraph. i mean, i’ve used 102 words in this paragraph alone up to this point. obviously only the very best writers will stand a chance, because they’ll have to practice such strict economy of language in their Xtreme masterpiece! and i wonder if exclamation points count as a word or not?…

well since i would love more than anything to win this trip and the acclaim associated with this literary recognition, i have actually chosen to make my own submission to the “Xperience of your lifetime” contest. i have shared it with you below, but you have to promise not to steal it and win the fabulous prizes for yourself (runners up get signed movie posters from the vin-meister himself! what a hunk!).

brian’s entry to the “what was your most Xtreme Xperience?” essay contest, which will definitely score him a free xXx baseball hat and probably make him famous eventually too:

first i must ask myself: what is xtreme?

catching the sickest air?

busting the fattest trick?

or does it really matter, as long as i keep it real?

one thing’s for sure. i’m sure not as xtreme as vin diesel.

i mean, he’s pretty much the dope shit.

(cars exploding).

pretty tight, huh? it was sort of missing something (and only added up to 48 words) until i added that last line. now i think it’s pure gold and you suckers are gonna wish you had found out about this contest before i did.

maybe after i win and visit the set, they’ll realize how xtreme i really am and i’ll get to be vin’s sidekick in the next movie. oh man would that be sweet. i can see the tv commercials now:

vin: i live for this sh–

fast cut to brian

me: it sure is xtreme in here!

heh heh. pure gold.

[now hearing this: ben kweller – sha sha. not really xtreme, but i still hope that his show at the roxy doesn’t sell out before i get paid and can afford tickets.]

did you know that golf has an official mascot? he’s a big goofy golfball with arms and legs, wearing green plaid pants and a green plaid golfing hat, and sporting some serious scottish mustache/eyebrow action. his name is billy mcgolf (i’m telling you, that golfy mcgolf joke would have been more fun), and he’s supposed to be helping kids get more interested in the game at a younger age.

the only problem is if you go to the website, they don’t play up the fun aspect of the game at all. nevermind that you’re whacking the hell out of a little ball: the flash intro has slogan’s like “it’s fun to play by the rules” sliding across the screen, along with words like “integrity” and “etiquette” . . . what the hell is that? what kid, if he even knows what those are yet, is going to be drawn to a game where the selling point is being polite? or that brags about how fun it is to play by the rules? it’s like they want kids to start being boring old men before they’ve even started growing facial hair (to look just like their hero, billy mcgolf!).

they also have a billy mcgolf version of whack-a-mole, and golf tips for kids, written very accessibly for the age group, with phrases like “i’ve challenged myself to be sportsmanlike and courteous…”

man, that sounds fun.

[now hearing this: canned sounds of kids going “yaaaaay!” on the billy mcgolf site…both creepy and funny.]