2:15 On a Saturday Nite

You know what? Sobriety is way overrated. The weekend is passing by in real-time, every boring minute ticking by, and all I can think about is Monday morning and returning to a job I hate for another long work week. At least when I'm stoned I can entertain myself with little effort and planning. Fuck adulthood; it's overrated, too.

I drove out to gravely point late this afternoon. There's a park there, just north of the airport, where you can watch the airplanes land. They fly right over head. It's right next to the Potomac, so it was windy and cold today, but I've been wanting to go back to take some pictures since I first visited there in the early summer during a bike ride with Tim.

It was mostly worth it just to get out and do something. I made it there shortly before the sun started to set. I got a few decent pics but most were crap. No surprise there—I'm way out of practice. I ended up with a few grainy as hell shots and way too many pictures of the sky and crap. I got a couple of the planes and some random stuff that seemed interesting at the time. See them on page 3.

Tomorrow is a birthday dinner for my dad. Some Thai place in Shirlington. I ended up getting him two history nerd gifts, since that's the only kind of nerd you could consider this guy to be. Let's see...one is this biographical book on Shakespeare. Then there's this very exciting Winston Churchill DVD. My god, you gotta see the part where he declares war and shit. It's fucking amazing.

What else is amazing? Hmm, that this song still accurately describes what I am looking for after like fifteen years? No, that's just retarded. I love it.

note to self: stop spending money, asshole.

this week's record purchases

Can: Tago Mago (reissue/remaster)
Julian Fane: Special Forces
The Places: Call It Sleep
Apples In Stereo: Look Away + 4*
Iron & Wine: “Passing Afternoon” EP
Brian Eno: Before and After Science (reissue/remaster)*
Jesus and Mary Chain: Psychocandy (import)*
The Rosebuds/The Close: split 7"
Mogwai: Ten Rapid (2x10" reissue)

*used

Fish Eye

Pffft...and to think, I was going to start taking meds just for the sexual side effects.

I brought my camera to work this week, in the hopes of taking some video of this goofy running dude who regularly appears on the street below my office, but the bastard hasn't come around much lately. According to Rob, he was out there the other day when I came in late. Bah. I will get tape of this guy someday. You should see him; he jogs in the middle of the street in this spandex body suit and spins around in place for like 10 minutes with traffic whizzing by while shouting shit like “DC! WOOF! WOOF! DC!...”

I got a few other shots, though. There's this oddly painted truck I see around the block, for example. Maybe some other random crap I'll post in the photos section.

Speaking of photos, my dad sent me an email today asking for xmas gift ideas, and I've come up with two so far: a new coffee maker (boring!) and lenses for my digicam (expensive!). I know nothing about camera lenses, especially when it comes to judging their quality. Do you? Canon brand lenses are all sold separately and without the required adapter, so I did some research and found a good deal on what might be a big pile of crap. Who knows. There are these different combo deals. For example, one comes with wide and tele lenses (with adapter), a few filters, and small tripod. Huh. Maybe I'll just ask for a 512MB CF card instead, which would be not nearly as fun, but much simpler for Dad to pick up.

I still haven't decided if I'm going to the show tonight. I'm not a huge Blonde Redhead fan really, but I enjoyed the last album a good deal. Oh, I probably won't go since I'm a total pussy when it comes to going to shows alone.

Damn, I have to figure out a good recipe for coconut rice/sticky rice this weekend. Got a big potluck on Monday. Any suggestions? Sara, if you're reading???

That reminds me: I quit poking smot this week. I don't think it'll be permanent, but I gots to get my shit together. Too bad I hate to drink! This weekend's gonna blow.

I'll leave you with this (copped from the dorks at EM411): Repercussion

De-bearded, Re-bearded

You know, when I decided to go beard-less a few weeks ago it was for a few different reasons. 1: I was bored with my facial hair after almost a year of wearing it. 2: I was tired of maintaining it and keeping it groomed. 3: I thought it might make me appear less threatening. Ok, so mostly it was reasons 1 and 2, but 3 seemed like it would be an extra bonus. No dice.

This is evidenced by what happens during my nightly trips home from work on the Metro. Picture it: I'm sitting alone, quietly reading the paper. There is perfectly good empty seat next to mine. For some reason, all other seats are filled before the seat next to mine. In fact, some people would apparently rather stand than sit next to me. This doesn't happen every single day, but it happens often enough to make think...

That does it—I'm growing that shit back, you assholes. And guess what else? From now on I'll also be burping and farting, talking to myself insessantly, scratching my balls, and playing noisey games on my cell phone all while smacking my lips as I chew a fat wad of gum. How ya like me now, muthafuckas?!

But seriously, a beard out of spite? Not exactly. I just kinda miss it. While public opinion on the issue is a mixed bag, I know how I feel and it just ain't right. Let the growing begin!

Uhh...on the up-side, unexpected visitors can be fun. Brook Lynn called me early in the evening yesterday to ask how I felt about her coming up. She had to get out of town. I told her I was up for it, so she quickly packed some shit and hightailed it up here to arrive at around 10:30 or so. She's leaving tonight after dinner since she has to work tomorrow, but it's certainly been nice to catch up with her. She's moving to Alaska next year!

Oh and—have you heard? People are still fighting the fight...
Voters to challenge US election (Guardian)
Kerry's "Early Concession Betrayed the Trust of the Voters" (Democracy Now!)

Also: I'm debating whether to see Blonde Redhead on Friday. Help me decide!

I Don't Get It

I haven't gotten laid in what seems like a few years. Yeah, i'm pretty surprised, too. what's the deal? Sure, i'm grumpy and a little broken-out; that's not all the time. Ok, so my car is about fifteen years old and completely busted and filthy; i spend my money on other, more important things (like cee dees and lonely take out dinners). You can smell the desperation a mile away. Big deal. That's not necessarily a turn-off, is it? So i have few flaws. Believe it or not, i also have a lot to offer...

I've got the latest issue of Tape-Op magazine here, for example. That's right—not just a mere music magazine but a fascinating look at things such as how to build your own microphones and what makes a great pre-amp sound so good. That's pretty interesting, isn't it? I also have plenty of neck hair. It's coming up on winter, you know. Guess who won't have a cold neck when it starts snowing. Come to think of it, i have hair basically everywhere it isn't traditionally desirable to have hair. Yeah, i'm pretty unique. What else? Oh yeah! I've got a cute kitty cat. How about that? He's great. He's my buddy. But i wonder: Why is he the only pussy in my life?

Seriously, though—i think this calls for me to do something that is way overdue: i need to start paying for porn. Although i've made it this far without dropping a dime on smut, it's unfortunately a case of desperate times/measures. Problem is, i've completely lost track of what's good. I mean, what are the kids buying these days? Should i start downloading or buy some dvds? Is there a way to edit out the anal sex scenes in those things?

Well, i've got some googling to do, my friends. I'll leave you with one last thing—a little something for the ladies out there who don't know what they're missing. just something to think about. (repeatedly, on a daily basis, until you come to your senses)

From an Opening Between the Legs of Hell Comes..

a mildly retarded little girl learning about periods (sorta NSFW)

this is disturbing in i don't know how many ways and truly begs the question: WTF?!

Misogynist, Misanthrope, Whatever

Colombia reveals plot to assassinate Bush (Guardian, UK)

why not try again, guys? you can crash at my place. seriously—i live like less than 10 miles from dude's house. bring some coke, k? thanx!

ok, how about our friends to the north? apparently, bush is afraid of being booed by the canadian parliament. booing is good...but how aboot some killing? just one time. come on. let's let dickhead be pres and make this administration show its true colors.

while on the subject of hatred, i ask: what inside me, when i pass an attractive female on the street or notice a cute girl in a bar, causes me to immediately think yeah, whatever. fuck you?

is it some sort of preemptive sour grapes? a self-defeating defense mechanism? am i really so maladjusted that i'll opt to appease my fears of rejection with unspoken insults and curses? whatever it is, it's laughable and pathetic. what i stand to gain from this behavior, i have no fucking idea.

you know those bitter, lonely old men you see eating alone and grumbling to themselves as they walk down the street? that's what i'm turning into.

Sandwiches You Will Like

damn, another late nite post. my sleep schedule is a little muffed up, but i suppose four days of sleeping in until 1PM will do that. all-in-all it was a good weekend. the holiday was definitely nice and cozy and i got to see a few friends who were in town. i also caught a few shows and upgraded our home entertainment experience here in the house. i didn't come in contact with any ex-gf's (of a possible three), which is just as well. [the holidays + ex-girlfriends = no good for me]. above all else, the weekend's activities and the time off of work kept my mind off a few things which have lately been screwing with my flow.

weekend highlights

• wed: hung out with Carmen, her bf, and her friend Chinye at the house and later stopped by the Galaxy Hut for a taste of hump nite.
• thurs: deliciousness at my mom's in hoodbridge where my brother and sis-in-law dropped serious gourmet treats such as goat cheese and garlic mashed potatoes and apple crumble with homemade maple ice cream. oh, and if you haven't already tried it, i highly recommend brining your turkey; we've done it that way the last few years with truly excellent results.
• fri: caught alcian blue at artomatic in DC with leigh. they were loud enough to make the sound guy repeatedly ask them to turn down. great shit despite there only being about ten people at the show. before and after, i hung out with leigh and her bf at galaxy hut and the black cat, and closed the evening with some late nite brefast at bob & edith's.
• sat: saw my friends the plums play an awesome show at the hut. they did a great cover of the clean's “at the bottom.” it's one of my favs so i was interested in seeing how they would pull it off. a successful rendition, their version of the song was faster and more aggressive. at the show, got to chat a little with derek, adam, and stacy.
• sun: had lunch with two of the housemates and later bought an a/v receiver for the TV room in the house, making the leap to stereo sound. it's a budget model, for sure, but it sounds great compared to sound of the television speakers and has room to grow if i want to get nuts with surround sound. plus, i got it for cheap because the box had been opened.

i added some pics to the photos section. still more to come there. next up, i'll need to start working on the music section. when it hits, expect minor league music reviews, mixtape artwork and other such nonsense.