Author: briancollapsing

biggity bam. american gods is now behind me. i enjoyed it a lot. love that neil gaiman. his characters are so interesting, and even if the story isn’t profound, it’s just a joy to read. not that the story wasn’t profound, necessarily. i just think, i’m pretty sure, that i am bound to love anything that ever comes out of that man. not to be taken too literally, of course.

so it’s on to american psycho which comes recommended highly from multiple trusted associates, and on into the week. the problem with this week, is that i’m aware that it’s not even a full week, so no matter how much of a drag it might be, i have to realize that next week has a whole additional day’s worth of potential unpleasantness. i thought i’d come back from a long weekend all recharged, but i know full well that extra days off just make me that much lazier and less willing to do go through the motions. but at least, oh thank heavens, i’ve had time to read so far this semester, in the non-textbook, non-required sense. often times i think that books are my salvation in times when i can’t think of nearly enough things worth doing with my day, or really sure that i want to do anything at all with them. there are some things in my life i’m sure i could do without (maybe should do without), but on the opposite end of that spectrum is the pleasure of reading.

that was one of those “why did i write that out for other people to read?” moments. don’t mind the boy, he’s just a harmless bookworm.

now i wake up and eat breakfast. still tuesday. school. blech.

but at least today i don’t have class until 12:30 in the afternoon, so i can have a leisurely bowl of cereal (done), do some laundry (doing), and get in a little bit more neil gaiman before i go to class (going to do as soon as i finish typing). the book is still very gripping and i like it a lot, but i’ll be sorry in about 80 more pages when it’s over. (pouting face).

me and dominic are the coolest people ever. phases one and two of the secret mission are complete, with a super cool bonus mission thrown in. don’t worry i’ll tell you later.

in other news not related to secrecy, i must spread the word: the impossibles rock my block off. we saw them for the second time this weekend, and it was just as good, and they blew me away again, and i love them. they’ll be on tour for another month or so, if they’re coming near you, you betta recognize. also, one of the bands that opened for them, recover, was really exciting and talented and good. i liked them a lot and now i have one more cd that i want to buy. but darn this little thing called money that i seem to have a little shortage of. blast!

at least i didn’t have to go to school on monday. now i sleep. school tuesday. blech.

monday morning. agenda for the day includes maybe doing homework, and hopefully completing a secret mission for a good friend. if all goes well everyone will be just a little bit happier for the trouble. wish me luck, and i’ll fill you in once the mission is declassified in a week or so.

over and out.

back from a nice little trip to see jay and silent bob again, with mike and pat, who hadn’t seen it. i have to say, the catption that popped up when mark hamill entered (which wasn’t in the version i saw when we saw the early screening in july) was a little bit insulting to my cultural intelligence. isn’t part of the coolness of cameos like that feeling good that you recognize the person without being told, and appreciating them being snuck in as a small supporting character? and it’s mark hammill, who wouldn’t have known that already?

well, obviously someone.

this was great too: driving back to the freeway afterward, we went past a gas station. in the parking lot near the road, was a guy selling neon from the back of his station wagon, with a bunch of his brightly shining wares sitting on the roof of his car. all the greats were up there, from a green neon cactus, a pink neon flamingo, a blue neon martini glass. . . it was hilarious and we were glad to have seen it. a neon dealer. i wondered if he was always at that corner, or if he went from place to place, trying to sell his lights throughout the city, maybe the country. and neon dealers are WAAAAY creepier than drug dealers, if you think about it.

“hey man, you got a neon peace sign?”

“you know i do.”

i just played 45 minutes of raquetball.

you have to realize, this is highly unorthodox behavior. i can’t say for sure when the last time i did something you could call “exercise”. i’m sure it’s been months. even longer since i’ve done anything that could be called a sport, even remotely (besides bowling). it was a lot of fun too. i’m a beast.

so thanks are due to my girlfriend for convincing me to have a good time. sometimes i don’t know what’s good for me on my own. plus, she’s making dinner. excellent.

and later, the luckily-not-hit-by-a-car-like-i-feared pat will probably stop by, and we’ll get in that hanging out we were supposed to do back on friday. everything’s working out just fine, and tomorrow, no school. splendid!

gotta gotta get up. before you get down.

sadly, the month of solid rock is now at an end. the fourth weekend in a row with a rock-ass concerts has just passed by with an intense show by the impossibles. they still haven’t let me down any time i’ve seen them. i don’t know any other band that flips out more than they do while in the midst of some major guitar pounding. and the crowd reacts insanely to this, which was why everyone in that place was sweating bullets and packed in tighter than fat sardines trying to get close to the band. it was hot in there too, but it didn’t seem to prevent the majority of us from going nuts and jumping and dancing and having a blast. what a great time!

we arrived late and missed the first two bands, and saw limbeck which wasn’t much of a thrill, and left after the impossibles robbing ozma of our attention, but sweating like i was there was no way i was going to enjoy any more standing around that place to a far less exciting show. impossibles really should have gone last and played more songs, that would have been far better.

i have to say this though, to try to get the word out. if you, or anyone you know, is in the habit of taking their shirt off in the sweating crowd of concertgoers, please, please, please tell them that it’s totally disgusting. sweating people in shirts at least have the layer of fabric to keep their sweat on their own bodies. topless guys slamming around in the crowd are the worst, because my forearm, in attempt to block them from totally rubbing all over me, has to slide against their slippery, sweaty bare skin, and i have to be fully aware that my arm just got coated in some other guy’s sweat. AAAAAAH! it’s not something i like to have happen. and you can’t tell me they don’t know that people have to touch them like this, it’s a crowded club. yuck. gross gross gross. major concert pet peeve. that and girls with big, huge, poofy amounts of hair that they don’t tie up or tie down or anything that stand right in front of me and bounce and make me eat mouthfuls of fluffy awfulness. gaaaaah…

alright enough complaining already. another high point: we called josh way down in australia last night to wish him happy birthday. it was great talking to him and we all miss him and we’re bad friends because we haven’t sent him presents yet (although mine are wrapped and waiting to be sent at least). plus i even played him a tiny bit of the arrogant worms song “happy happy birthday song”, which we’ve sort of started a tradition of playing instead of singing happy birthday, and dancing around all crazy. he appreciated that too.

today, well, who knows what. i’ll have to relay that information as it becomes available.

i’ve been really slacking here lately and not writing much, but maybe it’s better that way. quality not quantity, again.

last night i didn’t really do anything. i sat around the apartment and read, listened to music, talked with whoever was in and out throughout the night. it was okay though. my only concern is that my friend pat was supposed to drop by, but never did. i hope he didn’t get hit by a car or kidnapped or something. but i’m going to bet he didn’t.

if something bad did happen though, boy won’t my face be red.

today’s the first football game of the year and everyone’s off to see it. not me though. i may be off to see the barber, but football will have to go on without me. no matter what i do i just can’t be interested. i think i’m school spirit impaired. to some that may make me seem like i’m no fun but i’d like to think that i’m just too cool. the trick is convincing someone else that’s actually true.

here’s something i laughed at. last night we noticed an abc 7 news van on the corner of our street and 28th street (fraternity row) on the way back from a jack in the box snack run. we being dominic, dustin and i. so we turned on channel 7 news, since it was on right about the time we walked into my apartment, to see why they were so close to home. well, the second or third segment into the show, a piece on college binge drinking comes up, and there’s a newswoman reporting live from the corner we passed only 15 minutes ago. there are about 8 of us hanging out in my apartment at that point, and once we realized she was right down the street, dominic and my roommate mike bolt out the door running to that corner. of course, after a few seconds of introduction, it’s not showing her anymore, just her voice-over between interview clips taken from earlier that night and some stock footage of people pouring pitchers of beer and what have you. so after hearing one guy say “yeah, i’ve drank every night this week… college is fun…”, a medical guy say more than four drinks an hour is binge drinking succeeded by an interview with a guy saying “yeah, i could do about, say, seven drinks in an hour, probably”, it cuts back to the newswoman saying “this is [newswoman’s name], signing off for abc news”. and right after she says that, right before the camera cuts away to the anchorperson, mike and dominic stroll casually by on the sidewalk at an angle towards the camera. mike turns to the camera and gives a big, goofy grin too. the 6 of us back in my apartment all cheer and laugh loudly. it was pretty funny. i guess they had to sprint to make it there on time. crazy thursday nights at usc, i tell ya.

okay, so maybe you had to be there.

for anyone who only reads this on weekdays, i’ll make this plea now: wish josh a happy birthday before it’s too late! he turns twenty on sunday. he’s almost all growed up. i’m sure if you were in australia, far away from your pals and your family, you’d like a birthday email too.

happy birthday josh! i love you in a very sincere but very not homosexual, non-threatening way. and presents for you are in the mail, because everyone else wants to send stuff at the same time but didn’t have their act together on time. now i will dine.

it’s looking as if instead of posting morningtime and afternoontime like i did all summer at work, i’ll probably not have much to say when i wake up in the morning (or feel like saying it), so post afternoon after class and maybe more later at night. i’m sorry if that interrupts your reading schedule, but quality over quantity. you’ll have to read someone else’s nonsense when you get to work in the morning. or just read mine from the night before.

in case anyone is keeping track besides me, i was just notified that we now have collapsing friend #8 out there. and his name is brian too, which is a fine name. if i keep this up, i’ll soon have a vast network of cohorts throughout the country. in business school they call this sort of thing networking, but i see it as potential floors to sleep on someday in emergency situations. not even that, in all honesty (although i’d certainly offer my floor, or couch, to anyone who needed it). but having interesting things to read, and supposedly having interesting people read this, both strike me as strong positives. exchange of ideas among distinguished peers = good.

and go read bipolar if you don’t already.

in light of reading some of you bloggers’ baseball stories, i’ve come to think i would be a very different person today had my father raised me a cubs fan instead of a white sox fan. you cubs people are awfully dedicated, and here i am, long since having lost all interest in the white sox (whom i loved as a little leaguer) or baseball, hell, organized sports in general. just imagine what could’ve been. do the dodgers play the cubs? maybe i could catch that game and change my life, rooting for some good old midwest tradition.

i got a job today, but told the very nice lady i was waiting to hear about the job i interviewed for last week. so tomorrow i get to make the tough decision between a good but hard job and an easy but maybe boring job (same pay), unless job number one guy calls and tells me i didn’t get it, in which case i get to make a very easy decision between the two. tonight, though, i relax and read my neil gaiman, so i can continue on soon to american psycho which i purchased today to motivate me.

i have to go return some videotapes….