two.points.collapsing

it’s a sweet afternoon here at my place. cubs are wailing on the pirates at the moment, there’s a perfect breeze blowing through my apartment, and i’m thoroughly enjoying the next book i picked up, the big sleep by raymond chandler. and the day’s just started.

the other night i got all political-geeky and stayed up late watching the al gore speech for moveon.org on my computer. i must have caught them at the right time because then they still had the full length video up, now it’s just lots of clips (which you should still check out). i thought it was a really moving speech. i don’t want to go on a diatribe or cover something that’s already been covered to death already, but i will say this: how great would it be to have a president who could not only use but understand the phrase ‘faustian bargain’? and we were so close. check out the page, it was a great speech.

the funny thing was i decided to watch it at around 1am wednesday night, when the apartment was all dead and quiet. i felt like a little kid staying up past his bedtime to watch scary movies — only it was me at my computer watching an hour-long political oratory. how far we’ve come, eh?

oh, and saw the shins last night at the wiltern, which was pretty great. they seem like a fun bunch of guys, and they sounded dead-on. i think i’m just burned out on them after listening to chutes too narrow non-stop for basically all of april. and those goddamn fiery furnaces opened for them, which i will never understand. why do they get so much attention? their singer can’t sing and their songs have no melody. as far as i know, that means your band sucks. except if you’re just trying to make an art-rock statement or something, in which case your band still sucks, you’re just trying to impress the staff at kcrw so some nerd can get up and rave about you while giving your intro. *coughbullshitcough*

ps: anyone know why the shins’ website is ‘darkcoupon.com’? that’s creepy.

pps: CUBS WIN 6-1! EAT THAT PITTSBURGH!

[now hearing this: some hey mercedes mix madness.]

underworld – don delillo – 4 stars

underworld, for me, was a bit of a glitch. normally i go crazy for books with great writing, but only when it’s used to tell a great story. i’m a huge fan of style, but only when it’s used substantially. or at least in a way that propels you forward through a good plot.

the thing about this book, though, is that it isn’t exactly plot-driven at all. after the prologue, the point farthest back in time, the rest of the book is spent going back and back in time until you reach where you started. so it’s less of a plot line than a gradual uncovering of memories and nostalgias. and while this factors heavily into the meaning of the work — which i will refrain from writing a critical essay on here — the story’s theme wasn’t a huge factor in my opinion of the book.

but while i wouldn’t say the story was profound in any life-changing sense, i think the thing that made this 827 page paperback worth lugging around for a month was its truthfulness. no, it didn’t reveal to me as a whole some hidden meaning of life. but in every passage delillo describes honest living details that make each individual page worth reading, and then turning in favor of the next. it’s not so much a style of flourish and flashiness as it is a general skill at insight.

so if you asked me ‘what was that book about?’ it would take me a long time to craft a response, and even then it probably wouldn’t really entice you. instead, i would probably ask to answer the question, ‘what was that book like to read?’ and i would say ‘i’m not sure i fully get the big picture, but i enjoyed it all the way through.’ and if you like long, challenging but rewarding books i would also say you should read it so we can decode it together.

memorial day weekend to me has meant sit on your ass weekend. i managed to get out of the house saturday night for a get together and some drinks at jen’s, and last night to go see godfather part II at the new beverly, but otherwise i have been here, relaxing. it’s been fantastic. even finished a book finally.

the best part for sure though was the back to back concerts thursday and friday night. i feel bad that my regular concert buddy joe was busy this week, because he missed the best two shows of the year so far. now that’s bad timing.

the cursive show thursday night at the troubadour was probably the fifth or so time i’ve seen them, so i knew they’re always good. i just love their sound so much and they really play a powerful show. now maybe tim was drunker or more energetic than usual, maybe a little of both, but they layed into their songs that night with some definite fury. even though the set included a higher-than-usual percentage of older songs i didn’t even know, it was top form start to finish and i could not get enough. lucky for me then that they also played way longer than usual, maybe over 90 minutes even. they’re still on the road with the plea for peace tour, so i’d say catch them if you can.

then friday, the sweet sweet sounds of the mountain goats, who i’d never see play live before. since tallahassee came out i’ve been seriously in love with this guy though, so my eagerness had been growing all week. the two opening bands pretty much wasted my time, so that didn’t help, but as soon as the mountain goats (i.e. john and his bass playing accompaniment) started i was fully engaged and energized. with a catalog of hundreds of well-written ballads to choose from i don’t know how that man writes a set list, but i was in heaven. the songs from we shall all be healed sounded great, and the dozen tunes i’d never even heard before all pleased me just as much. when he played an extra-soft version of “shadow song” i almost wanted to cry, and when he came back out for an encore of “no children” i cheered pretty loudly. maybe it’s a little pretentious that they left stage three times and came out again for more encores, but i wasn’t about to complain at getting to hear more songs. the best of which was probably the ‘HAIL SATAN’ chant-along in ‘best-ever death metal band out of denton’.

sadly, i think that pretty much wrapped up his tour for this year so i can’t encourage you to go see him in the near future, unless you will be in chicago on june 4th, in which case GO! DON’T MISS IT! NOW’S YOUR CHANCE, DON’T SCREW THIS UP!.

but for the rest of you, i recommend instead you check out the pay day song, a new track they played called dance music, recorded here from a live spot on kexp. most excellent.

happy memorial day all, i’ve got some grilling to do.

can i possibly list all the reasons why today is great? honestly, things are looking really good going into this weekend.

firstly, i spent all last night bowling and drinking with coworkers (and as usual, for free) and rolled 116, 130, and 107, which are all respectable. i figured out that you have to keep the right beer-to-bowl ratio going to get optimal scores. after a couple my second game got really smooth; but then i had a few more in too short a time and my aim was off and i couldn’t pick up spares anymore. i was so proud of myself for getting in the hundred club all three times though — now that’s athleticism. i didn’t even have much of a hangover.

and tonight’s the cursive show at the troubadour! i am excited. especially since i missed them at coachella knowing i would get to see them again so soon. i’m even wearing an especially hip shirt so i fit in with all the emo kids. then tomorrow is the mountain goats at spaceland. shit man, and that’s all before the long weekend gets into full swing.

in other fortunate news, i got two lovely gifts today as well. remember the story about the odd but pleasant surprise of the free sneaker booth at the coachella party we went to? well they came in the mail today, proving it wasn’t a hoax that was too good to be true. they even sent the right size and color, and they look and fit beautifully, meaning good things do happen to people who wait in lines without knowing why. and at lunch, justin handed me his irock ipod adapter, meaning i can finally listen to the bri-pod in the car again. mine had shorted out a while back and he got a stereo that makes his unnecessary, to my benefit. i ought to buy that man a cheeseburger, he made my day for the third time.

now if only it were 5:30 instead of 3:30 and i were sailin’ out of here, i’d be in the best mood of all.

did i ever have a good weekend. dom was in town and we drank and ate and played cards a plenty. sure, i lost my 20 bucks and didn’t even finish in the upper half of the poker tournament saturday night. sure, i drank more cheap whisky than i needed to. but that’s part of the recipe for fun, now isn’t it? and technically any amount of cheap whisky is more than a person ‘needs’, so who’s counting?

so let’s focus on the positive. mike’s kegbot is fully functional and so is his custom card table (with red felt!), which are both awesome. now we can track our drinks via computer and lose our money in style. then i had some delicious and needed tito’s tacos — at washington pl & sepulveda for angeleans, and very worth the trip, trust me. as well as some, uhh, arby’s too. i know, i know. justin was so kind as to remind us the next day of the homer simpson quote: “i’m so hungry i could eat arby’s!”. and it’s true, but the trick is not to think about it, just pour the ar-bq sauce.

plus at the end of last week i got my hey mercedes mix cd’s in the mail. they’re great! i have to say this is one of the coolest things i’ve heard of a band doing for their fans. i’m impressed and incredibly pleased. can’t wait to see that braid show in july, either.

countdown to three day weekend: begin.

yep. that’s what one year at this here company gets old brian. i’ve been a functioning adult for a whole year now, and i have the bamboo to prove it. isn’t that a cute thing to find at your desk after a trip to the copy room? no, the back of the card that says ‘happy 1st anniversary’ did not say, ‘…you get a raise!’, i am sad to say. all i get so far is my first potted plant. let’s see if i can keep from killing it!

on a side note, when i said the streets album was a couple weeks away, i was obviously taking in bad information from somewhere. i swear i saw june 8th on this or that site, but i was totally wrong, because it is out and i already have it. mike was kind enough to grab a copy off the shelf for me during our last amoeba trip so i wouldn’t accidentally get in line without it. a true pal.

decent album, more on music soon if my weekend revels (dom’s in town from SF!) don’t keep me from the computer outright.

[now hearing this: the streets – a grand don’t come for free.]

friends and readers definitely know that i like to geek it up here and there. despite my sleek, attractive, ultra-hip exterior, there’s a nerdy teenager still inside me somewhere that’s never going to leave. this is the part of me that gets really really excited about video games, comic books, and star wars no matter what the ramifications on my image to women or the adult world.

it’s this part of me that is already looking forward to the next playstation mega-blockbuster coming this october 19th, grand theft auto: san andreas — which i had suspected was the next installment, only this time los angeles themed. but today i was reading an early report in a yet-to-be-released issue of game informer that contained this quote from the game’s head honcho…

“san andreas is not a city — it’s a state. probably the most interesting thing you need to think about for a second is that we’re not setting the game in a version of los angeles or san francisco or las vegas, but all three — with the countryside in between … each of these cities is relatively the size of vice city, and will be fully open to the player” … all in all, houser estimates that the entire game area is four to six times as large as the entirety of either of the previous entries in the series.

and here i am scooping my jaw up off my desk, because look at it this way: you know when you’re just dying to see a big movie you just know is going to be great? and you finally see it, and it’s spectacular, and for those two hours you’re sitting there tingling, just high on entertainment? yeah, i’m probably looking forward to a couple films this year that way too. maybe spider-man, maybe the new michael moore movie.

but with a video game that size, we’re talking maybe fifty, sixty hours of that feeling of purely perfect captivation. seriously, my geek-pleasure levels overload at the thought of something like this. i have to sit down and drink a glass of water.

essentially, this is a warning not to expect me to hang out with you october 20th because i will be stuck in front of my TV not unlike the guy from the ring, only much happier and not dead.

“…mars is the god of war, that’s why we have martians…”

i overheard someone say that while i was getting a bagel this morning at work. i think there’s a hole in his argument somewhere, but i focused on the cream cheese and managed to make it back to my desk without laughing at him.

i’m sick of not writing enough. i’m going to see how many days in a row i can write, even if it’s just one funny or interesting thing i heard or read that day. maybe if i can go a whole month of daily writing i’ll reward myself with some new cd’s.

not that i shouldn’t be indulging anyway. it’s been weeks since a record store trip and there’s a new piebald out yesterday i totally forgot to buy (will fix that tonight, don’t worry). just as exciting, a new streets album comes out in a couple weeks. you can stream it from that site and realize you should be excited too.

[now hearing this: air america on the web. when they gonna set up another LA station? i want that shit in my car, you lazy liberals!]

overall i’d say our baseball trip was a lot of fun. we sat in the first row behind the right field fence, the hot dogs were delicious, and everyone had a good time. sure, the cubs played pretty badly and could not pull it together, but the dodgers are doing pretty well this year so maybe the best team won. these things happen.

but some stadium advice to anyone who may not know, in the form of a quick story. we get through the ticket gates and head straight for the vendor because the game doesn’t start for 20 minutes. don’t see the beer prices so i ask the woman which direction the beer stand is. and she laughs at me.

really? she asks. oh, this is the ‘family section’. there is no beer in the family section. and they won’t let you out into the other part of the park with your tickets, so you’re just out of luck, sorry. (more laughter). hey, at least i saved you guys 50 bucks at 7 dollars a beer, huh? (more laughter).

i turn to my friends with a ‘did you hear that?’ face and they all just shake their heads at me in unison.

so my advice to the dodgers: i bought tickets to your game via a website, a veritable fountain of information available right in front of me throughout the entire process. when i clicked on the outfield for my seating choice, which was definitely labeled ‘right pavillion’ and NOT marked ‘family seating’ in any way, there should have been a message in HUGE RED LETTERS saying NO ALCOHOL IS SERVED IN THE PAVILLION SECTION AT DODGER STADIUM. i honestly felt duped.

oh, also, i wasn’t thrilled about the guy behind me calling sammy sosa a ‘fag’ either, but that isn’t your fault i guess.

good night anyway though, if you can believe it. summer has arrived.

i’m going to a cubs game tonight!

i haven’t been to a major league baseball game since i was in elementary school. when they went on strike way back then, i gave up on baseball. maybe tonight things will kick back in and i’ll learn to love again after all those years. even though it’ll be at dodger stadium instead of the windy city, i imagine a hot dog and a beer will still be just the ticket to get summer going in my head.

watch me just over the right field fence, baseball fans…