Housekeeping And A Weekend Recap

well, my “birthday week” is officially over now, and it’s back to work…which basically translates to still doing mostly the same stuff i did last week, only now i will feel guilty when i’m not productive with my writing. which, thankfully, isn’t the case for today.

anyways, the weekend of celebrating was an outstanding one…arguably one of the best weekends i’ve had in a long, long while (though, really, this had very little to do with it being my birthday). some highlights include: seeing the shins play a free show at amoeba friday evening in support of their new album (which is outstanding by the way, and perhaps their best/most complete album yet), eating an excellent meal at the fabiolus cafe then spending saturday night at the bigfoot lodge with friends, and walking around downtown sunday afternoon taking some photos (some of which are now up in my pics).

the only downsides were the lack of sleep (certainly worth it), and the fact that the weekend is now over (but, i suspect that more activity filled good times shall be forthcoming).

in other news my january ‘06 mix is complete…for those wondering, in the end i opted for the cd version so that i can burn them for posterity. here below are the track listings to the approximately 78 min of january ‘06 goodness:

1. July, July! — The Decemberists, Live From Soho
2. Phantom Limb — The Shins, Wincing The Night Away
3. Gronlandic Edit — Of Montreal, Hissing Fauna, Are You The Destroyer
4. A Sentence of Sorts In Kongsvinger — Of Montreal, Hissing Fauna…
5. Australia — The Shins, Wincing The Night Away
6. I’m Waking Up To Us — Belle and Sebastian, Push Barman To Open Old Wounds
7. Take A Chance — The Magic Numbers, Take A Chance Single
8. Long Distance Call — Phoenix, It’s Never Been Like That
9. Fearless (live) — Ambulance Ltd., New English EP
10. You and I Are A Gang Of Losers — The Dears, Gang Of Losers
11. Sea Legs — The Shins, Wincing The Night Away
12. Hold On, Hold On — Neko Case, Fox Confessor Brings The Flood
13. Save Me — Jude, Redemption
14. Smiley Faces — Gnarls Barkley, St. Elsewhere
15. No Fit State — Hot Chip, The Warning
16. The Monkeys Are Breaking Out The Zoo — Belle and Sebastian, Colours Are Brighter
17. The Crane Wife 1&2 — The Decemberists, The Crane Wife
18. Sons & Daughters — The Decemberists, The Crane Wife

also, i neglected to mention and subsequently add Leonard Nimoy to the Celebrity List. Leonard was spotted 2 weekends ago at the Laemmle on Sunset as I was waiting to see The Last King Of Scotland. Which, was an outstanding film made slightly less enjoyable by the extremely loud and obnoxious person sitting directly behind me who spent the entire film laughing at inappropriate moments and adding unnecessary comments.

In fact i came very close to telling him to shut up, only to in the end refrain after my brother (because of how unbelievable the guy’s behavior was) suggest that perhaps he might be mentally retarded. As soon as the movie ended the guy immediately got up and left before this was able to be confirmed, so i will never know. But, given the plot to this past sunday’s episode of Extras, perhaps it was a good thing i bit my tongue…

okay, kids, time to get in a bit more writing before tv time.

Friday, 3 Days After My Birthday

so here i am 3 days into the start of my 28th year…it’s kinda strange being 28, though honestly i don’t feel a day over 27.

a lot of people this year, while offering their birthday wishes and congratulations, made the point of telling me that i am now old. and while i supppose this is a relative term (people have been saying — and i suspect will continue saying — this to me with varying degrees of seriousness since i turned 13), i can’t but help think it is in some ways now true.

granted, i don’t feel “old.” but seeing as how i’m now closer to 30 than 25, i guess it is something to consider. this isn’t to say that 30 is particularly old either, of course, but certainly nobody aged 30 or older is ever mistaken (despite any behavior that might indicate otherwise) for being anything other than an adult.

most of my friends are now either married or engaged or have forthcoming engagements in their near future. some of my married friends have children, and some have children on the way. and while again these are not necessarily indicators of old age (go visit your local inner city or trailer park for proof) it’s hard to argue the fact that the world around me is changing.

when you are a kid and even through your teenage and young adult years there is always a sense that life as an adult is something that won’t exist for many, many years, in a future time and place far from that which you currently inhabit. and that when adulthood arrives the world will have changed so dramatically that you will be able to look around and recognize that the things that once shaped and defined your existence are no longer there, and that the only conclusion to be drawn is that childhood is now long behind you.

last night i was thinking about the concept of aging and of getting old, and of when (if ever) the day will come when i will look in the mirror and know with absolute certainty that this future has arrived. as i looked at myself in the mirror i didn’t feel old, but then i got into bed and turned on the television.

it was there that a news story appeared and the sense this future, that i had once thought would signal my awareness of adulthood, permeated my consciousness.

apparently, the military has just begun using a RAY GUN weapon that shoots a beam that makes people believe that they will catch fire.

wide-eyed with amazement i watched the news segment and thought to myself that if i could go back and tell the younger version of me that i was now living in a world with ray guns, younger me would tell me that this more so than the fact that almost all my friends are married (or soon to be) with kids (or soon to have) is definitive proof that the world i once knew is gone.

i have to admit it shook me for a moment, and a bit of fear crept into my mind. there’s only so long we can put off the responsibilities of adulthood, only so long that decisions can be made without serious concern to the long-term ramifications they might have. perhaps the time has truly now arrived when the finality of life as an adult sinks in.

thankfully, before my mind began to race too fast, the next story appeared…

a man with an acknowledged sexual fetish for female mannequins was sentenced to more than a year in prison after repeatedly breaking into storefront windows.

the man, Ronald Dotson, 39, was sentenced on charges of breaking and entering and being a habitual criminal. he had previously been arrested and convicted 6 times for b&e in the past 13 years (including one instance when police found him in an alley behind a women’s clothing store with three mannequins dressed in lingerie).

and suddenly i was at peace…

i may live in a world with ray guns, and i may in fact be an adult…but this isn’t something to be afraid of (well, maybe the ray guns a bit).

the one thing i think that most people fear as children when it comes to the idea of getting old, is the sense that you will have to lose some part of yourself in order to truly act like a grownup and exist in a grownup world.

but, i think that if i’ve made it to 28 with the sense that a story about a man with a fetish for lady mannequins is something hysterical to be watched and thoroughly enjoyed still intact, then i suppose that i should be okay from here on out (barring worldwide destruction due to ray gun technology) no matter what the future and life as an adult may hold.

Bam Bam

many of you know that for the better part of my life i was a professional wrestling fan. growing up i loved the action, excitement, and spectacle of pro wrestling with their larger than life characters and soap opera esque story lines.

in many ways pro wrestling is/was the modern day equivalent of the variety shows of decades passed. the blend of comedy, action, song and dance, and more made for a particularly enjoyable hour or two of television.

unfortunately, however, the life of a pro wrestler is often times a difficult one filled with emotional hardship and physical pain that comes from the constant wear and tear of travelling and performing around the world almost every day of the year. night in and night out these men and women put their bodies through tremendous amounts of punishment often leading to chronic injuries that are either a constant source of discomfort or worse, and they rarely get to spend time with their families and loved ones who they work so hard to support.

it is perhaps for these reasons (the physical and mental toll that the life requires) that many professional wrestlers over the years have turned to drugs (mainly pain killers) and alcohol to cope (i say this not as an excuse for their choices, but merely as fact). and as you might imagine (or might know) the use of such substances chronically leads to a large number of premature/unneccessary deaths among pro wrestlers.

and so it is with great sadness that i am here today writing about the too soon passing of another one of pro wrestlings all time greats. as yesterday Scott “Bam Bam” Bigelow was found dead in his Hudson, Florida home.

those familiar with pro wrestling (even casually) might recognize Bam Bam Bigelow by name, but more likely would recognize him by his massive size and his tattoo covered bald skull. he most famously feuded with and then wrestled Lawerence Taylor in a highly publicized match at Wrestlemania XI.

but my relationship with Mr. Bigelow runs deeper than that of a fan of his in ring work.

Scott Bigelow was born and lived for many years in Asbury Park, New Jersey (which for those of you unaware is the next town over from where i grew up). He could often be spotted around town riding on his motorcycle, and anyone who ever interacted with him would tell you that he was always especially gracious and kind, a lesson i learned for myself in the spring of 1997.

1997 was my senior year of high school, and as a vice president of our school’s DECA (business) club it was my job to help raise money to support the unexpectedly large number of club members who had qualified for nationals to be held that year in Anaheim, CA.

we (that is myself, our president, Jason Fromer, and several other members) had chosen for a fundraiser a “Battle Of The Teachers” event that would pit members of the faculty from different departments against each other in numerous “athletic” and “cerebral” events (dress em up relay, dizzy bat spin, tug of war, a trivia contest, etc).

we spent weeks acquiring local business sponsors to offer prizes for raffles, and hours convincing teachers and the administration to not only allow us to move forward with the plan, but to also participate (which basically meant making asses of themselves for our cause).

thankfully, things progressed relatively smoothly, and as the event approached we thought that we had things pretty much under control. but, of course, being the ambitious young men and women that we were, we thought that perhaps there might still be a way to ensure a greater success for the fundraiser.

now at the moment I can’t quite recall how the idea was raised or who raised it, but somehow we came up with the idea to see if we might be able to get our local celebrity Bam Bam Bigelow to agree to help us out and appear as a “guest referee.”

so, one afternoon after school (having failed in our attempt to acquire a contact phone number - being unlisted) Jason Fromer and I drove to Mr. Bigelow’s then known place of residence (and by known i mean rumored) and rang the doorbell.

a young woman (who we later learned to be his wife - since divorced) opened the door, and we asked to speak to Mr. Bigelow. at first she played coy, but after explaining our purpose in seeking out his help, she admitted that we did in fact have the right house, but that Mr. Bigelow was currently out of town.

she invited us inside and I remember the large amounts of Bam Bam paraphernalia that adorned the walls, honoring his numerous achievements from around the world. we then continued to further explain who we were, what we were doing, and why we wanted his help. finally, she said that she thought that he would be interested and she gave us their number to call back later in the week upon his return.

when we did finally speak to him and once again explained who we were and what we were doing, he instantly agreed to help us out and appear as the guest referee. then on top of that he also suggested that we charge money to people for autographed photos with him and that we keep and use all the money to help as well.

after relaying all this to our teacher and advisor, he insisted that we offer him some kind of appearance fee for being so generous. but, Bam Bam refused, saying that he was happy to do whatever he could for us, and that one day his son (who was in our school system) would be attending our high school, so he felt obligated to do what he deemed no big thing.

but, still our teacher felt somewhat uncomfortable in that we might be taking too great an advantage of his generousity, not to mention part of how he made his livelihood at the time(selling memorabilia - at that point he wasn’t wrestling too much) and so eventually, after we persisted, he suggested that a 6-pack of beer would make us square (and our teacher agreed to provide it), and so we were set.

the night of the event arrived and having done our job in promoting Bam Bam’s appearance that week in school, what we had projected to be a mildly profitable endeavor suddenly became a huge success.

hundreds of students, parents, and friends lined the gym’s bleachers to watch the teachers battle it out for department supremacy, and Bam Bam played the role of guest referee to perfection (even going so far as to at one point film a comedic wrestling segment with some of the people from our school’s tv program, spartan update, where he crushed one of the reporter’s wrestling alter ego in an impromptu match). at the intermission he set up for photos and autographs, and the money rolled in.

by night’s end, we had made almost enough to send everyone to Anaheim (eventually, appealing to the school board for the remaining amount - and receiving it, in part, due to the effort we had displayed in organizing the fundraiser).

unfortunately, due to my responsibilities as one of the organizers, i never got the chance that evening to get an autograph or a picture with Bam Bam, and for a while I always regretted not having it as a keepsake.

but, now, looking back, it’s easy to see that i got something worth a whole lot more than a photo and an autograph that night. i got something that i will have with me to remember the man and all that he did for me and the rest of us, even if it can’t be framed and hung on a wall…a story to tell.

RIP
Scott “Bam Bam” Bigelow
9/1/61 - 1/19/07

Certainty

there are two types of people in this world. people who believe there are two types of people in this world and people who don’t (perhaps you could argue for a third type — people who don’t care whether or not there are two types of people…but i think if pressed these people would eventually fall into one of the two aforementioned categories).

this is pretty much the only certainty i have been able to definitively reach in the now fastly approaching end to my 27th year (tuesday the 23rd, for all those potential well-wishers who might have forgotten).

everything else is still tbd.

some people will tell you that the only certainty in life is death and taxes. this is not only not a certainty, it’s a cliche, but it is also (as far as my logic goes) false.

as far as we know death is certain, but this is only because as of yet every person ever born has died. this isn’t to say that at some point someone might not die, or that science may discover a way to “cure” death. it just hasn’t happened yet. but who knows what the future may hold.

taxes on the other hand are something that everyone is subject to, and that most people pay (not always happily), but certainly not something that everyone pays.

take for example ed brown.

ed recently was found guilty of tax evasion and is now currently holed up with armed supporters in his fortress like new hampshire home (sigh, i’m really looking forward to seeing this one play out).

it’s people like ed who keep the the wheels of this blog turning, and who help further my certainty of the above mentioned statement (and coincidentally, i would guess that ed would fall under that category of people who do believe there are two types of people in the word — people who unquestioningly pay their taxes, and people who don’t).

so keep up the good work ed (and by good work i don’t mean tax evasion, rather just keeping us regular folk on our toes), the world of uncertainties is counting on you.

Marathon Man

when people decide to have a conversation with each other during a movie it is not only annoying, but also rude.

however, when one person has a conversation with themself during a movie it is just plain weird.

and yet this was the situation i encountered this past weekend while seeing a showing of Perfume: The Story Of A Murderer. As throughout the entire movie, the woman in the row behind me and my brother continued to have a running stream of commentary (mostly semi-coherent, non-sequiturs) come out of her mouth. I have yet to decide whether this made the movie better or worse.

in other news, i am finally caught up to speed on battlestar galactica. this was accomplished in part due to yesterday’s season 3 marathon on the sci-fi channel. that’s right, yesterday i did absolutely nothing but watch 10 glorious hours of battlestar galactica (well, not quite 10, because i got to fast forward through commercials — thanks tivo).

needless to say, that this is a lot of tv watching for one day, even for me. but, i didn’t stop there. i also took a break at one point to watch the knicks game, and then later in the evening after my brother got back from class, the evening was capped by the final two hours of the season premiere of 24.

by that point in the evening my eyes hurt and my brain kinda felt like cottage cheese, but as jack bauer will tell you, sometimes sacrifices have to be made (he kills and tortures people indiscriminately, i watch 2 more hours of tv - same difference).

anyways, in light of my recent binge, i feel the need to be more productive than usual in the next couple of days, and so for now…

i’m ghost.

We're Not Gonna Protest

yesterday evening on my way home i encountered an iraq war protest induced traffic jam on los feliz blvd.

now, trust me when i say i dislike george w. just as much as the next guy (unless the next guy happens to be a born again republican), and believe me when i tell you that there would be almost nothing more pleasing than to see an end to the needless killing and chaos that is the current state of things in iraq.

however, one of the things that would be more pleasing is not sitting in traffic needlessly.

look, don’t get me wrong, if you could somehow guarantee me that sitting in traffic would mean an end to the war then i would (probably) grit my teeth and bare it. but this isn’t the case. there is no way that last night’s traffic jam and/or protest will have any affect on this administration’s policy in iraq.

so, i don’t really see the need for you to set your protest up in a high traffic area that will only prove effective at disrupting the evening commute (as opposed to say the forthcoming troop surge — said protest’s apparent goal).

then again…maybe these protesters are unknowingly on to something.

perhaps, their intention was in fact to disrupt traffic and to piss everyone off.

while some might consider this strategy dangerous, as it runs the risk of annoying and thereby alienating supporters of their cause. maybe, just maybe, the protesters realize that if there’s one thing that all people (regardless of political ideology) hate, it’s sitting in traffic.

perhaps the protesters secret agenda is to now disrupt the flow of traffic as much as possible until only one logical conclusion remains.

the traffic jams will continue until the war ends.

this, the more i think of it, might actually be an effective way to end the war. imagine the outrcy from millions of americans if their daily commutes were disrupted constantly.

if this is your new strategy, then i guess i take back what i previously said.

and to you now, protesters, i say…well played.

In The Mix

a big, hearty welcome to burt young (aka paulie) the latest celebrity to join my list. burt was kicking it at the baggage claim outside the jetblue terminal of burbank airport last thursday evening. my brother and i spotted him as we were waiting for his (my brother’s) luggage.

the rest of the weekend was pretty low-key. the majority of it spent watching football and season 2 of the wire.

i also finally got around to seeing pan’s labyrinth, which was, as i expected, outstanding. had i managed to see it prior to compiling my top ten list it would have definitely earned a place of recognition. anyways, as you might guess, i would highly recommend it.

i also just finished reading an outstanding book called “love is a mixtape” by rob sheffield, a music journalist who writes for rollingstone and other music-oriented publications. the book is an account of how music has played a role in his life, specifically in regards to his relationship with his now deceased wife renee who died 5 years after they were married (at the age of 31).

anyways, along with being a touching statement about love and loss, the book also talks about and made me think about the fact that (sadly) the mixtape is basically an extinct relic from a time long ago.

sure, we still have ipod playlists, which are definitely the modern equivalent. but i think, at the risk of sounding like a character from high fidelity, that there is something to be said about the lack of care and consideration that goes into compiling an ipod playlist as opposed to a mixtape.

mostly this would be due to the fact that a playlist doesn’t require you to make your selections with the same restrictions (and therefore the same skill and precision) that a tape does (i.e. 45 min per side).

that said, i am making it a goal of mine for the upcoming year to compile monthly “mixtapes.” now, granted, these will still be done on and for my ipod, but i plan to craft them in the same way that one would a tape. meaning that i will try and break them down so that they (the playlist) doesn’t exceed 90 min, and so that they could also be further seperated into two 45 min sides (or perhaps i may opt for the cd route - meaning 80min run times and (obviously) only one side — the reasoning behind this choice would be to preserve the “tapes” in a format other than just on my ipod for posterity’s sake).

in a way that is very similar to (some of) my reasonings behind starting this blog a year ago, i think that monthly mixtapes will (some years from now) prove not only insightful, but also enjoyable in a nostalgiac sense allowing me to look back on and see how certain songs were playing a part in my life during this time.

Year 2

so this is the new year…

i hope everyone had a good new years and i hope everyone is enjoying the first few days of ‘07 (i did and i am respectively).

this is actually quite a momentous occasion for my blog. for those of you keeping count, this is my 100th post (cue whistles, bells, confetti, horns, etc.).

this blog began a little over one year ago now in December 05, and i have to admit i’m slightly surprised that i have managed to maintain it with (relatively) frequent consistency throughout the past year (i.e. enough to equal 100 posts, or 1 every 3.68 days or so).

hopefully, this coming year will bring more blog worthy topics to discuss as well as numerous anecdotes to entertain you all. i suppose i might even to be so bold as to suggest, that perhaps i may even increase the frequency with which i post (maybe getting it down to 1 every 3.5 days or something).

of course, there are forces conspiring to prevent this all from occurring. and i must face the prospect that a) i will not only be unable to achieve the maintaining of this blog for the entire year but b) i might be dead before the year is out.

now, let me assure you, my legions of adoring readers, i have no plans to die in the coming year and i promise that nothing short of death (or perhaps serious incapacitation) will stop me from blogging.

however, word has come that 2007 may bring with it death to us infidels in the form of mass killings through terrorist attacks…or at least so sayeth pat robertson

that’s right. apparently god and pat recently had a chat, and god informed pat that the later days of 2007 will be marred by a major terrorist attack, affecting millions of americans in major cities.

“I’m not necessarily saying it’s going to be nuclear,” Mr. Robertson said. “The lord didn’t say nuclear. But I do believe it will be something like that.”

wow.

first off, i’d like to say that this is a downer. not exactly the way i had envisioned starting things off in ‘07 (or ending things either, i suppose).

obviously some questions immediately come to mind:
1. do terrorists consider la to be a major city?
2. would downtown be the most likely target for any attack on la?
3. do i live far enough from downtown to survive said attack if it were of the nuclear variety.

undoubtedly, the answer to the first question would be yes. presumably, there would be a yes to the second question as well. as to the third, i’m not sure — though my initial guess would be in the words of the magic 8 ball - outcome not so good.

so, i suppose this puts a serious kink into any future plans for 2008 and beyond…but, i guess what it also does is help to give me a new sense of purpose to ‘07.

maybe, now more so than ever, there is the need to approach each day with the vigor and appreciation that it might be one of the last. to understand and embrace the fact that life is a gift not to be wasted or squandered.

in some ways this blog…year 2…could end up being the final, lasting testament to my life, my accomplishments (or lack thereof), and to how i lived knowing that mass killings were mere months away.

presumably, this should make for a much more interesting blog this year…as i will hopefully get out and live a life with greater adherence to the above mentioned principles (which would then transitively provide more interesting things to blog/read about).

then again, i suppose there’s the chance that 2007 will just be more of the same for me. more sitting around watching lots of television and films, spending the majority of my time at the computer writing, going out occassionally, if at all, and blogging about things that really aren’t that amazing to begin with (albeit in an entertaining and enjoyable manner).

maybe i’ll just continue to live my life exactly as i have been the past 27+ years or so. maybe, i won’t let the terrorists and their impending attacks affect how i go about my existence, and perhaps this will be my final lasting memory.

how in the face of death, i laughed at the terrorists and said - i like being lazy and not going out and doing too much, and fuck you if you think that i’m gonna radically change how i live just because you’re going to be killing millions of us (potentially including me) later this year.

then again, i suppose there’s the chance that god didn’t speak to pat robertson.

i guess we’ll find out…