Hardcore Dannbrown's Speilzone [Speilzone // Good Folk // Jam Econo] Hardcore Dannbrown [ website // Project Seven ] [ userinfo // Stand On Me ]

I'm so underground, I'm Chinese. [Friday, January; 25th;, 2002 // 4;:58p] [ mood // exanimate ] [ music // Rod Webber - "Love To Kick You" ] I know I've said this before a million times, but I hate work on Fridays. So make that a million and one. And be ready for a million and two next week, because I'm going to say it again then. Down and back and down and back just to down and back again is not my cup of tea. Totally forgot to take my cell phone with me to work. Didn't even realize it until after I got there. So when Vladimir arrived, I told him I needed to use the phone and made up some story about forgetting to recharge the phone battery by mistake and that I'd be calling on Vlad's cell today. They said that's fine, just make sure the wrong people don't see you sharing the phone. That's cool. On the (first) subway trip home, I ran across Ben. Yeah, Ben! Brotha man Ben. Brotha bass man Ben. He and a few of his co-workers were going out to lunch somewhere. They all got on @ Park Street and egressed exited @ Boylston. Wha?! That's only one stop. What, you all can't walk that far in the cold, you candy-@$$ed phuk¢azz? I'm only kidding, of course. I love the Benster. Hi. My name's Dann Brown. I find money on the street for a living. I'm not leaving until about 7 for tonight party @ the ASJ, but I've got stuff I need to do before I head out. I've got to shower and shave. I want to clean up around here a bit, too. And then I need to write down a reminder to get on the 71 bus when I reach Harvard Square. I've gotten on the wrong bus so many times when trying to get out to Watertown. Hips road. Buck-buck number 2! // jump on the horse

Kung-Fu (fu fu fu fu) Hamster. [Friday, January; 25th;, 2002 // 12;:36p] [ mood // working ] [ music // John Zorn - "The Taxman Cometh" (or is it The Taxman Arriveth? ] You see this big green check mark? That's me. And see this big red X? That's you. Buck-buck number 2! // jump on the horse

scent of a stranger. [Thursday, January; 24th;, 2002 // 11;:10p] [ mood // hungry ] [ music // Korekyojin - "Khajuraho" ] Went out and saw Sara(h)'s place tonight. This is sort of the running deal between the two of us.... since neither one of us is really all that adept @ entertaining the other in their place of residence, we always get together somewhere else and go from there. But, every time one of us moves, the other has to visit just once (maybe twice) to see the new digs. Tonight was my one and only trip to Sara(h)'s place in tropical Somerville. Turns out I did not have to take my ice skates, the rink right near by has some square public-skating hours. So we just spent the evening doing stuff around her apartment. I highly approve of the place, she made out really well - the place looks nice. And it was clean! Oh [Y]es! But we took care of that. She had three boxes waiting for her when we got back to her place (actually, the UPS guy missed her, so he left them with the next door neighbor... she picked then up from him), so we scattered tape and packing materials all across her living room floor opening them up. You know what happened? after I arrived @ Sara(h)'s place, I realized that I had forgotten to fax my airbills for today back to the home office. It's not that big of a deal, but when I first started this job, I was requested to have them faxed by about 6 PM, even though I usually do it around 3 PM, just to get it done with and off the list. Well, while I was @ Sara(h)'s, C-Note calls me around 5-ish and asks me if I've sent my fax yet. I quickly think on my feet and make up some story about going to a friends place and having to assemble a ceiling fan and it's taking way much longer than I thought. C-Note said that's fine, she was just checking. And that was that. Sara(h) was so proud of my fibbing-on-the-spot abilities. Later on, we went into the kitchen and I was so disgusted with the overflowing heap of dirty dishes in there sink and I offered to wash them all. Apparently, neither one of them likes doing it, so Sara(h) accepted without needing to give it much thought. It took me about a half hour to work my way through the entire sink, but when I was finished and Sara(h) has dried them all off and put them away, the whole room looked 1000% better. Sara(h) wanted to cut my hair, but I refused to let her. Her cats also wanted to scratch my face off, but I refused to let them. I stayed for about three and a half hours before leaving... walking back to the T.. I slept for just about the entire ride home. When I got home, I did what I said I was going to do - faxed my stuff back to the home office and then waited for them to fax me back my reports for tomorrow. When they arrived, I filled out my airbills and then replaced the toner cartridge in the fax machine. Last night's fax was almost too light to read I was so low on ink. I still need to buy a bag of chocolates for tomorrow. There's a party @ the ASJ and the theme is "Chocolate & Cheese." So the chocolate part is going to be a bag of little 3 Musketeers bars, and the cheese part I'm going to take my Rodd Keith I Died Today album, which is the (intentionally) cheesiest CD I own. I'm also going to take my Chocolate and Cheese album by Ween as a bonus. Buck-buck number 2! // jump on the horse

Why trains wreck. [Thursday, January; 24th;, 2002 // 1;:12p] [ mood // yawn ] [ music // Masada - "Tiferet" ] Repeat a lie long enough and sooner or later your concept of truth will blur. Last night, after I posted my previous entry, I went wandering around LJ -- hey, why not? What's the difference between going to bed @ 2:30 and 2:45? I mean, besides 15 minutes? -- and I stumbled across one of the most horrible journals I have ever read. I'm not even going to give you the link, it was late and I don't remember the name. It doesn't deserve to be linked, really - but all it consisted of was all sorts of racist garbage, anti-Semitic garbage, baitings & so on etc. And the posts that weren't bigoted were boasts about the drinking marathons among he (I'm assuming it's a he) and his friends. Wow, how mature. And, of course, there's plenty of that ever-efficient tool of the bigot: the lie. But honestly, I was too tired to get angry. The cool part was after I left that journal, the next random journal I visited has this gem as the very first line I read: "Some people are a waste of oxygen." Baby, you got no idea. So in response to all that, I've put nothing but Masada CDs in my stereo for the day. Aw yeah, got the Jew jazz crankin' y'all. Am I worn out from staying out late last night and not going to bed until a quarter of three? You better believe it. And how was it @ work today? Busy as phizznuck. Lightning quick, but hurried. Apparently, C-Note did hold up her end of the bargain and made the box of chocolate public, as Everett was able to confirm for me in the morning. Sara(h), I know you're reading this. I called your cell phone and there was no answer. If we're supposed to get together and hang out tonight, you need to call me so I know if I should bring my ice skates or not. I got my W-2s from my previous job today. Whee. I need to Z. Buck-buck number 4! // jump on the horse

The golden age of thin blood and thick smoke. [Thursday, January; 24th;, 2002 // 2;:23a] [ mood // shoulda been in bed hours ago ] [ music // Pavement - "Trigger Cut / Wounded Kite @ :17" ] I should be in bed. There no reason for me to feel compelled to post this now, but I'm staying awake as long as need be to get it done..... I was just talking to Allie about this earlier on the phone - about how the coolest things or the things that are the most fun or the most whatever you want to call it - it all seems to happen when it's not expected. Like tonight, where I finally got to meet one of my bosses. It was about 8:30, and I was talking to Manda and Jorn on AIM as well as listening to the Washington/Montreal game, (Rob Zettler scored a goal? Where can I get some of that action?!) when the cell phone rang. I quickly logged off the computer and disconnected from Prodigy figuring it was the home office telling me to free up my phone line because the fax was on its way. Well, I was wrong. It was C-Note on the phone saying that her and a couple friends were driving into Cambridge to see some show and did I want to meet up with them. I wasn't really doing anything else and I wanted to get out of the apartment for a while, so I said sure. They told me to meet up with them @ a club called Lounge Lizards. Gathering up my keys, my T pass, my cell phone and the now-infamous box of chocolates, I hopped on the train and went down to Hynes, where I went back above ground and caught a taxi to the club, considering I had no idea where it was. In hindsight, I realize that I could have saved myself some money by taking the subway to Harvard and catching a taxi to the place from there, but I didn't know that @ the time. So I get to this place and call Carolyn (I feel like I should call her C-Note now that I've actually met her face to face) on her cell to let her know I'm right outside the place and please retrieve me. Within seconds, she walks out into the tiny lobby they have there and we introduce ourselves and shake hands. She's a lot shorter than I thought she would be. And for whatever reason, I thought she was a brunette, not a blonde. But then again, all I had to go on was the voice. Anyway, she takes me back to the table she's @ and introduces me to the two friends of hers that made the trip with her, Kristen(?) and Molly. They've already got food on the table when I arrive, but the waitress stops by and asks me if I'd like anything. I ordered a ginger ale and a small plate of calamari. Hadn't had breaded deep-fried squid dipped in cocktail sauce in a long, oh-so-long time. It was quite delish. During the evening's shallow (in a good way) conversation, Carolyn jokingly inquires about the status of her box of chocolates, to which I take the box out of my coat pocket and produce it for her. She was pleasantly surprised. And I told her the deal: the box of chocolates was for the entire office and had to be taken into the office and all employees had to be notified of it's existence. I don't want to call tomorrow (well, later on today....) and get Luke or Everett on the phone and have them have no idea what I'm talking about when I mention this box of chocolates. After eating (and telling them about my nicknames for them. and playing for my food.) we went downstairs to see the show. Carolyn paid my 500¢ cover (I wasn't going to stay if she didn't front the finif) and we went downstairs to where this small band was playing. Could not tell you for the life of me who was playing, but I can tell you it was a bluesy roots rock combo that sounded good. Any free music is going to sound good, but this music really did earn that compliment tonight. Even the excessive smoking going on in the room couldn't sour my attitude towards the music. The guy played until about midnight, and shortly thereafter the four of us decided to leave. Carolyn drove me back to Harvard Square and I took the subway home. And now here I am. Well, actually I was here before, but I had to take care of my airbills for tomorrow (twenty of them - egads!) as well as actually take the time to type in this entry. Yeah, imagine that... this journal, contrary to belief, is not just a magical translation of someone's unbalanced id. No, there's an actual living, breathing human being that sits here and types all this stuff. Even when he (there's a hint! It's a guy!) knows that taking the time to sort it all out and get it in order tonight instead of letting it slide until the next day will leave him dead on his feet @ work the following day. OK, I'm getting too weird, even for me, I'm stopping now. An unexpectedly fun evening hanging out with C-Note (I knew I could still find the chutzpah inside me to call her by her nickname!). But my clothes reek of cigarette smoke. I must taken them off now and climb into bed. You're more then welcome to join me. Less than three. Buck-buck number 7! // jump on the horse

beige rain. [Wednesday, January; 23rd;, 2002 // 7;:42p] [ mood // curious ] [ music // Capitals / Canadiens (IR - in french) ] The atomic number for nitrogen is SEVEN. Like, duh. Talked to Allie earlier. Well, what happened was I called her on her cell because I didn't know her work number, but she didn't pick up. I left a message on her voice mail and then jumped on line and sent her an e-mail telling her to get in contact with me. Which she did shortly after that. Ah, the wonders of modern communication technology. *mists* We talked for about an hour. Hey, I'm sorry I ended the call to abruptly, relatively speaking. I just can't bring myself to stand (or sit) there with dead air between us. It's not that I wanted to hang up and go, but once I start fishing for subjects, I cut it off. Don't worry, there's plenty of time. I can be such a dork, though. I sit there and yap on and on about the stupidest things. Like by ridiculously uneventful trip to Anaheim. But you sit there and listen to me anyway. Thank you. And I agree, I wish we lived closer to each other as well. At one point in our conversation, she mentioned that she had called me but no one picked up the phone. And I told her that I might have been there, but sometimes I don't answer the phone (especially if I'm not expecting a call) and let the fax machine pick up. Although it's rare, sometimes an outside person not connected with the office tries to fax me something, as in a customer who forgot to enclose something in their original application. Such a case happened this evening. Apparently someone faxed me a copy of their driver's license while I was out for a walk earlier - it was waiting for me in the printed sheet tray when I arrived home. The fax was addressed to "field courier." That's my official title, I guess. I wonder if these people realize that they're sending this information to a private residence? You know what I wish? Of course you don't; let me tell you. I wish John Zorn would form a rockabilly group and go out of a formal tour across the country. I love that rockabilly sound and Zorn is always saying in his liner notes how much he loves playing it, but the only time he ever seems to be playing it is on his obscure film score albums. I wish he'd form a regular band and record a couple albums (or more) of nothing but rockabilly. He does it so well, and I know it would sound great. One thing he needs to do less of, though, is reggae stuff. I dig reggae too, and so does Zorn - or else he wouldn't try to imitate it from time to time - but every time he delves into it, it doesn't sound all that good. All the little reggae parts in the Naked City stuff he wrote just isn't very compelling and it doesn't hold my attention much. I'm currently listening to the Washington Capitals v. Montreal Canadiens hockey game on the internet radio station. The broadcast is in French. I'm sure this would be much more fulfilling is I actually knew French, but.... hey. jump on the horse

jale, jale, jale.... [Wednesday, January; 23rd;, 2002 // 1;:49p] [ mood // lethargic ] [ music // They Might Be Giants - "Window" ] This entry is going to be short, too. I'm dragging. The T broke down twice on my way to work. Two separate spats of just sitting there for 10 minute stretches. And, as I've said several times before, it may not seem like much to you, but in what I do losing 10 minutes here or there (or anywhere) can make or break it for the entire day. That's what happens when you have a 10:30 deadline ever single day. Amazingly, @ least to me, I was able to process all my applications with time to spare. Though C-Note gave me a hard time when I called the home office 15 minutes late.... "What? Didja oversleep?" I tell ya, she must really not want that box of chocolate. And then, on the T ride home, I get to watch a kid fall out of his seat on the train. Fell right on his head. His mother scooped him up and held him, but really he didn't cry or anything. He squealed a bit when he fell, but as soon as mom picked his up, it was like nothing happened. Hey. Before I forget, two people on my friends list are celebrating a birthday. So to girlxlovesxmoz and aoife28 - have good ones. Please. Have fun. Be safe. Unless you think they're mutually exclusive. I listened to that Rod Webber CD the stranger handed to me as I was leaving Passim last night. The guy even has his own website. Fo shizzil. Have fun reading the tiny print, I could do it. Anyway, the CD itself? It's a nice novelty. Much quieter than I expected. I thought it would sound like this thundering, grungy sort of thing, but it's just this guy singing and playing the acoustic guitar with a bassist and a drummer backing him up and an occasional random instrument buried deep in the back ground (like a melodica or something). Actually, the first track, "Love To Kick You", is pretty good - a cute if simplistic song with a catchy chorus. "Cute" isn't really what I look for in the music I like, but it works here. I've listened to that track a few times now. The other three songs? They try to maintain the cute vibe, but end up just being annoying instead. So one good song out of four. Not bad, considering the price. And I've been paired up with another user by another user. This time, pandora had paired me with listening. Will add, and report back in a week. I'm going to do this as well in the future, but I'm not going to pick random people from my list. I'm going to think about who's who and who seems right. Plus I have to consider that about half my friends list already knows each other because they were all introduced to LJ through me. Oh, did I say this was going to be a short entry? I meant it @ the time. Buck-buck number 7! // jump on the horse

[Wednesday, January; 23rd;, 2002 // 8;:11a] [ mood // silly ] [ music // Ween - "Joppa Road" ] What's the atomic number of nitrogen? I'm just asking. Buck-buck number 2! // jump on the horse

Time is nature's way of making sure everything doesn't happen all @ once. [Tuesday, January; 22nd;, 2002 // 11;:53p] [ mood // tired ] [ music // Ornette Coleman - "The Blessing" ] Harvard Square. It had been a long while since I had been there for any real purpose. When I set foot in Passim this evening, it was the first time I had been in there since December 18th, 2001. That is a long time between visits, all things considered, for me. Last week I was off in Worcester watching Blue Goddess. The week before that I was sick in be with a sore throat and a headache and congestion like all get out. The week before that they were closed due to New Year's. The week before that they were closed due to Christmas. But Passim tonight served it's purpose - it got me itching with the desire to play bug, as I hoped it would. Now hopefully I can stay motivated to finish polishing up these two songs I'm working on. One's weird and one's really weird. So how was tonight? Well, it stinks sitting @ your table by yourself and everything goes on around you, but I @ least got all the things I wanted to do while I was down there done. Let me backtrack a bit.... when I arrived @ Hvd Squ, I dropped my stuff off @ Passim (notebook, magazine, gloves) and walked over to Staples and got the supplies I needed... pens, post-it notes, fax paper and legal pads. I discovered I had a spare toner cartridge that Jorn gave me when I took over his job, so I didn't have to buy one of those. Here's something disturbing: the same people who own Staples own the L.A. Kings. By purchasing my stuff there tonight, I help pay Jason Allison's salary this season. *shiver* Oh well. I ended up spending 1945¢ there this evening. Then I walked down the street and stopped in Other Music to see if I couldn't score a copy of that Spillane CD that I found out was scratched (the album's title is actually Godard/Spillane, but nobody calls it that). No such luck. And you know something? OM's "out"-music section, the section I always head to first and make most of my purchases from has severely declined since I first was introduced to this place last year. There used to be four entire rows of CDs in that store dedicated to nothing but odd recordings of unclassifiable stuff - the ultimate in niche marketing, I suppose. Now there's just one shelf left dedicated to it. It's quite disappointing. I'm gonna hafta put tha smackdown on deez beyotches. They didn't even have a decent selection of John Zorn albums there. I hope it's a blip and not a trend. The actual open mike itself was it glorious self as always. The place was packed and it surprised me when I'd look around and see so many faces I'd never seen before. And several new people playing that I'd never heard before. But I did get to see a few familiar people: Kelli Egan, Terrance Haggerty, Julie Rosenthal (whose music is about as exciting as a dial tone), and of course I stuck around long enough to watch the ever-inimitable Jet J. Jet J played a song tonight that I had never heard before. It was called 'Heart Attack' and it sounded really good. He didn't sing in his falsetto, which is kind of a plus. I wrote down some of the lyrics: Hope ya listen to what I have to say Because tomorrow ain't gonna be like yesterday No, girl, don't hold nothin' back Or ya might just have a heart attack. As I walked out of Passim, some guy handed me a free CD. I'm looking @ it right now. It's by a guy named Rod Webber. It's a 4-song demo disc, but I'm not in the mood to listen to it right now. Maybe tomorrow. And before I forget, spiritual came up with an excellent idea and has paired up people on her friends list and told us to add them and give it a week and report back to her if we're going to keep them added. Will do. I am paired with leviadams. An early complete guess/prediction: I'll keep the person added. I'm too easy going of a person to be judgmental based strictly on what someone says in an online journal. Unless there are some really egregious things in said person's journal. Which I've already scoped out on: and there isn't. So, again - a very good idea that I might just steal down the road. Well, I'm really tired, what with all the staying up late and going across town and back in the subway, which always wears me down, so I'm going to sign off and head to bed. Less than three. Buck-buck number 11! // jump on the horse

The Hydrogen Crew. (circa 1985.) [Tuesday, January; 22nd;, 2002 // 1;:48p] [ mood // cold ] [ music // Guided By Voices - "Sister, I Need Wine" ] The day after a holiday is always a little crazy. This one wasn't. This one was way too crazy. It wasn't horrible and everything got back in order quickly, but this is what happens when everyone isn't on the same page. I had one no-show, two that I had to pawn off to Vladimir because I had reached my limit on the amount I can submit in a single day, an two that were on my pick up list but the home office neglected to give me shipping and address information. So I had to make a bunch of calls and run them through the ringer getting everything I needed. But, like I said, everything turned out all right. We have a new person answering the phone in the home office - when I called this morning, someone I didn't know answered. Lucky girl is going to take part in the box of chocolates I'm sending the home office. But I'm only sending it if they stop slippin' on me. +PARAGRAPH DELETED+ I stayed up late late late late last night and read some old journal entries. Wow, I was not the same person back then. Twelve months, six months, even as recent as three months ago, I was such a different person. I was so angry @ myself and miserable. And then, all of the sudden... 180 degrees. What happened? I don't even know. Somewhere in mid-November I ditched the zero and got with the hero (man, I've been wanting to use that line for months!) and it's been smooth high riding ever since. It happened before I met Allie, before Kristin came up to visit, before I saw DJ Logic, before Nick started to show up, before I discovered GSN, before all of that. There it is. Earlier I was pondering all the shows and concerts I've seen. And it dawned on me that the band that I've seen the most often: The Neville Brothers. Granted, I've never paid to see them - my mother is a big Aaron Neville fan and would go to see him every year he played @ Wolf Trap, but she never would want to go by herself, so I'd go with her as long as she purchased the ticket. I saw the Neville Brothers 5 times that way. Other groups I've seen more than once? I've seen Metallica three times. I've see Napalm Death three times. I've seen They Might Be Giants twice, and didn't pay for either time. No, really! The first time my brother bought me a ticket to see them as a birthday present, and the other time they played a free show outdoors in downtown DC right in front of the old post office as a radio promotion. And both times I've seen TMBG, it's been less than a week after they had released new albums. The first time I saw them it was 4 days after John Henry and the second time it was 2 days after Factory Showroom. Going to Passim tonight. Not playing, just watching. I still need to find someone to sing the words to the new song. I'm not doing it myself. Yeah, and LJ told me it was your birthday today oatmeal, so I'm wishing you a happy birthday. If you're old, then I'm... uh... older. jump on the horse

Running Wild Rubber Band. [Monday, January; 21st;, 2002 // 4;:44p] [ mood // cheerful ] [ music // Naked City - "I Want To Live" ] We've had mixed snow and rain all day today. The temperature keeps wavering around that magical 32F. Earlier I got a little comment-happy. Ahem. That's what happens when yr bored. I might get a little add-happy later on. I just realized that with the demise of billiam, I don't have any more journals that I'm lurking around. Every journal I read is on my friends list. I'm going to scour my friends' friends lists for more interesting people... do a friend a favor! Introduce a friend to a friend! Friends are fascinating things. It's odd, people are more relaxed around their friends that they've had the longest, but they are the most themselves around newest friends. New friends like you for who you are, as opposed to old friends who like you for who you were when you first met them. Strange how that works. Obviously there are no classes today for the college kids. People across the alley were up partying half the night, like the true spoiled brats they are. Whoa. Sorry about that. A rare moment of judgementalism. faithealer told me last night that I was addicted to Game Show Network. This is kind of stating the obvious, but yeah. =-) You have no idea how happy I was to find out I got home in time to watch both The $100,000 Pyramid and Tattletales. Yeah, here's the deal with that. It was funny (to me, @ least) I didn't get out of bed and get ready for my short work day until about noon... which usually I'm already home from work by that time on a non-holiday. So I left and went downtown to get my pickups - everything was there, I called the home office to let them know such and went home. Got home just in time to see the Dick Clark. When that went off, I packed it up again and went grocery shopping. When I had finished that and got home, Bert Convy was just walking out on the set. Perfect timing. [Y]es, I am hooked. And I don't care. =-) I was listening to my Spazztic Blurr CD through the headphones on my portable CD player (oh, I forgot to mention them to you earlier evilshell - another band you might like. Grindcore songs about the Flintstones, the alphabet, and eating @ Burger King). It was the first time I had ever listened to them through the headphones, and I caught a few new things buried in the background of songs that I hadn't noticed before. And now that I'm thinking of music... I discovered today that my Spillane CD by John Zorn has a scratch on it and skips. Near the end of the second track it starts to skip and can't play beyond that without mistakes. Blah. I'm going to have to buy the Tzadik re-issue of it which actually doesn't have the other stuff on the CD, but that's OK because the other stuff on the Elektra version of the CD isn't really all that good. (Forbidden Fruit is one of the most boring compositions he's ever done.) But then again, I guess that's what happens when you sign on to a major label: they insist you write your suckiest music and demand that it be released. Thankfully, Zorn's tenure @ Elektra only lasted three albums: the aforementioned Spillane, the even worse Spy vs. Spy, and the not half-bad first Naked City album. Then he left and formed his own record label and it's been kick @$$ ever since. At least I've got my Bribe album by Zorn to listen to. That album is a bunch of cues, outtakes and unused parts of the Spillane session. It sounds like the soundtrack to some smoky detective film, as it's supposed to with a title based on the life of Mickey Spillane. Oh! And I got a tenuous release date for the new Naked City album: February 26th. The same date that Fred Frith's new album is to be released. I remember going to an exhibit @ Boston University the first time I lived in Boston with Sara(h) to see artwork by musicians. They had, among other things, drawings by Patti Smith, paintings by Vernon Reid, clothes designed by Kim Gordon and photographs taken by Fred Frith that he had used to make compositions out of by instructing the musicians to follow the photograph and do certain kinds of improvisations based on what they saw in the photo. They had a recording of it there and I listened to it. It was so-so. conducted improvisation (Lawrence Morris called it "comprovisation") can be such a hit-or-miss thing, it all depends on the improvisors. And what constitutes a good improvisor? Well, that's all just a matter of taste. The people I find to be good improvisors (William Parker, Charles Gayle, Keiji Haino) and bad improvisors (Ikue Mori, Elliot Sharp, Buckethead) might be completely flip-flopped with someone else's view. There are even times when I find John Zorn to be a little predictable with his improvisations from time to time, but I think that's mainly because I've listened to so much of his music I have a pretty good idea how his mind works and how he thinks/approaches playing his music. To shift gears completely, way back when, I used to write a lot more short entries. And I used to ask question not in poll form just to see what people would respond with. But that was back when very few people read my journal, so I went back and dug up a couple of those one-liner questions and revamped them and now I'll pose them again. Poll #16782: Open to: friends, results viewable to: all Where is your taskbar? Top, bottom, left, right, or floating? View Answers When you say that you're sleeping in, what time do you mean, more or less? View Answers Maybe I can find some more of these later. Less than three. Buck-buck number 4! // jump on the horse

Dart, Ware, and To have. [Sunday, January; 20th;, 2002 // 10;:14p] [ mood // content ] [ music // Stars / Blackhawks (IR) ] Has anybody seen or heard from gigglecam? I haven't seen a post on my friends list from her in days. I went to check her journal and the latest post is dated tomorrow @ 8:30 in the morning. That makes no sense. Maybe her journal specs are mixed up? Her website is still running smoothly.... Hey! I want to hear from you! What's going on? Boy, Mike Ilitch sure does have a talented checkbook. The Detroit Red Wings: the best team money can buy. And even if you don't live in the Detroit area, you still get to follow them all season, because ESPN & ESPN2 are broadcasting every single game of their this season. (it sure seems like it.) Called the A&A earlier. Both of them are sick. Amy had both an ear infection and an eye infection last time I saw her and now I think both of them have the bug that's been passing all through the area as of late. The same thing that I had last week. I offered to go down there (up, really, if you get map-technical) and make them some soup. But they had their neighbors Ben and Dennis there to help them out, so they told me not to worry about making the journey out today and we'd all get together sometime when everyone was healthier. I don't feel nearly as bad wasting my time playing Might & Magic 7 as I do when I play Heroes 3. I bet that has to do with the fact that I know all of the entire storylines in MM7 (because I've played through it so many times) as opposed to H3 (where I'm still discovering all the finer points of the storyline). But either one that I have cranked up is annoying while the sun is setting, because of the glare I get when the sun reflects off of the windowpanes on the other side of the alley and right on to my computer screen. Got a call from Sara(h) earlier! Hadn't talked to her since before the New Year, so we had quite a few things to get caught up on. She finally quit her job. Thank heavens. She so needed out of there... but I will miss slagging on Jonathan with her. We agreed to meet up this Thursday. She (supposedly) cleaned her apartment now that she has plenty of free time and this is something I simply have to see. We might get to go skating that night too - she's going to look into what hours the ice rink hear her place is open and let me know if I should bring my skates with me or not. Now they have "Greed" on Game Show Network. I hate that. The whole reason I watch GSN is because I want to watch those old game shows. The reason I want to watch the old game shows is because all of those new wave game shows (all the Millionaire ripoffs, and Millionaire itself) SUCK. Get this garbage off the air and give me more Match Game. So who has tomorrow off? I do! I do! Well, pretty much. I'm going to have to go downtown sometime during the day tomorrow just to pick up my packages, but all I'll be able to do with them is take them back home. I'm going to go grocery shopping after that. Maybe stop by Staples and pick up some work stuff I need, too. Buck-buck number 4! // jump on the horse

A re-discovery. (not Ryan Leaf.) [Sunday, January; 20th;, 2002 // 1;:29a] [ mood // surprised ] [ music // Naked City - "Obeah Man" ] I just found the leaf that wouldn't take 'no' for an answer. I had forgotten all about this. Of course, that was the whole point - re-discover it later and remember what happened. Buck-buck number 2! // jump on the horse

the password is YEEAAAHHHH!!!!! [Saturday, January; 19th;, 2002 // 8;:17p] [ mood // mellow ] [ music // Capitals / Canucks (IR) ] I've spent the last hour searching the web for a decent picture of Allen Ludden. A good one, back before he had grey hair. No luck. All I can find are the older, late 70's pictures of him. Allen Ludden - old school. I added a few more interests onto my list. Unfortunately, I've topped 150 now, so to make room for these new ones, I had to delete a couple. It's starting to snow. Big, fluffy flakes and slowly falling down. And I know it's going to stick. This is good. I taste a trip to Roggie's in my very near future. You can call a spayed a spade, but two wights don't make a wrong. Buck-buck number 5! // jump on the horse

You ready to crank this mutha out? [Saturday, January; 19th;, 2002 // 12;:56p] [ mood // underground ] [ music // Camper Van Beethoven - "One Of These Days" ] All these people sucking blood, it's a miracle we don't run dry. Buck-buck number 2! // jump on the horse

Committing suicide on your webcam? How blase. Do something interesting, like extract all your teeth with a pair of pliers while on your webcam. [Friday, January; 18th;, 2002 // 11;:13p] [ mood // good ] [ music // Mordred - "Larger Then Life" ] First things first: In memory to my dead homiez, I have changed my name. Say hello to Hardcore Dannbrown. Peace to the Diabolical Bizzilliam. I was gone for 5 hours. No, I will not tell you what I did. But I'm doing so much better right now. And here's a quick list of such and such - draw your own conclusions. it's cold outside. it's warm inside. good books own. good music ownz. Temple Beth Zion ownz. ice skating ownz. chocolate ownz. Yesterday? Yesterday I had a panic attack. It just so happened I was online when it occurred. But now it's lone gone over. I feel like a chapter or episode has ended. Like now I'm supposed to kiss the girl or ride off into the sunset or say how my plan would have worked if it wasn't for those meddling kids. I'm not going to lie and say everything is all better now. It doesn't work that way. But I will say that I've reclaimed the correct perspective on things. This is real life. You best just follow the advice of Reverend Run and back up off the ropes, punk. Buck-buck number 6! // jump on the horse

kid gloves. [Friday, January; 18th;, 2002 // 5;:21p] [ mood // working ] [ music // Brutal Truth - "Pork Farm" ] First of all, thanks to those who replied to my last message. I'll be getting back to all of you later on. And I know there were several people who read it and didn't have anything much to say, even though they knew where I was coming from. That's fine. I do that a lot - read entries but don't comment. It's not a big deal. I've got my head on much straighter right now. Everything that looked so daunting a mere 12 hours ago doesn't look nearly as bad now. I'm going to do a major cleaning of the apartment as soon as I'm done here. After that, probably go out for a while, maybe down to Harvard Square. I doubt I'll be on the computer (or even @ home) much this evening. Of all the things that I thought was going wrong, one thing that I knew was still running smoothly was my work situation. Today I was the only courier that had any real workload. Vlad had one, the Turkish Delight had one, Delicious D had three. I had eleven (which rhymes with spefeven). After work, Vlad suggested the two of us go over to Boston Beer Works (the one on Canal Street). He just wanted some sour cream & onion fries, but I was starvin' Marvin so I went with him and got lunch there - one of their specialty sandwiches (called the Nor'eastaner) which was a grizzled chicken breast with canadian bacon and melted cheddar. It was all right. Not the best I've ever had, but it was very filling. I also drank two ginger ales. Vlad had his fries. He was also on his third beer by the time I left. He had to stay down there because he had to go to the consulate today. I helped him a little bit with that work before he told me he could handle the rest and said whenever I wanted to leave, I could go. So I gave him a 1000¢ bill and headed home. As soon as I got home, I faxed my stuff back to the home office, got all my materials together and sealed them in an envelope and went back downtown to mail it off. I told you I hate Fridays. It's go home, turn right back around and go back downtown and then go home again. So here I am. To the one person: I really did use the word snorfle today. Vladimir picked it up and was telling everyone about it. To the other one person: I really do want to make you a tape. We'll talk and I'll get suggestions and brainstorm. In unrelated events, look what I found.... I had forgotten all about this banner. There was another (a red, white and blue one) that we used much more often. Oddly enough, I don't have that one saved on my hard drive. Buck-buck number 7! // jump on the horse

really, it was only a dollar. [Thursday, January; 17th;, 2002 // 10;:30p] [ mood // chill ] [ music // SOB - "Repeat @ Length" ] Hi. My name's Dann. I find money on lying on the street for a living. I'm 57 oomplastragillion dollars richer now. While I was out walking tonight, I passed an intersection where both lights in the crossing light were on. It said both WALK and DON'T WALK. That's not physically possible. And phu¢k... I just read.... billiam is no more. Man, it's always the good ones. First homeless_man goes down (journal deleted, even!) and now billiam will never be heard from again. I don't care if the story is fake or not - the guy's journal was such a trip to read, I'm going to miss it. I'm speechless. I've got nothing else to say. Buck-buck number 2! // jump on the horse

You'll never know what I know / I'll never make it clear. (v.LONG) [Wednesday, January; 16th;, 2002 // 6;:12p] [ mood // bitchy ] [ music // Ruins - "Brixon Varromiks" (Symphonica version) ] It would figure the day I'm the most tired, the day I'm the crankiest from a lack of sleep, the day I'm whatever you wan the third item in this list to be is the day I get stuck with work crud the longest. I go down, I work, I go home, I get called to go back and ask a question, I ask my question, get the answer and pass it along, I'm given the OK to go home again, as soon as I get home, I get called back down again - to ask the exact same question again. And you know what? We're not any closer to helping this guy out now than we were two days ago. INS is being a pain in the can and I swear to G!d I'm not going to bother talking about it anymore. What a tragedy, huh? Look, it's all unimportant. The thing that frustrated me more than having to make 3 subway rides back and forth is that I wanted to get all my thoughts out about last night and I'm just now getting that opportunity. So here goes.... I left my pad around a quarter of 5 and made my way down to Harvard Square, but not before being tapped on the shoulder from behind by Al. A change path crossing. So we rode down to Harvard Square together before splitting up. From there I walked over to where Alyssa works. It took me exactly one hour to get from my place to where she was. Didn't stick around there long, I guess she was just waiting for me so I could help carry some stuff back to her car and we drove to pick up tp and scolvin before heading back to A&A.; We stay @ ethyl and allthefishies for a little while. We had to gather stuff up and Alyssa needed to take a shower. (was I supposed to say that?) By about 7, we were all set and headed out the door. Three cars total carrying equipment and people. There was about eight of us total (not counting the friends who showed up @ the place on their own after we got there) making the trek out to Worcester. We almost got lost and it took us one illegal left turn to get there, but we finally made it to the spot in Worcester. Well, what can I say about Worcester? Worcester's Worcester. Textbook example of the smell and feel of urban decay. Though the place itself - called the Java Hut - wasn't bad @ all. It came across to me @ first as a very silly place, but turns out it had a very relaxed atmosphere. Just don't get the Psycho Blast drink while you're there. After setting up, Blue Goddess took the stage around 9:30 and played two (2) separate, unidentical sets. They had a little trouble with the sound system that was brought for them, but technical difficulties aside, they played very well. And that includes the fact that Amy was battling sickness and an ear infection all day. She did well considering how hopped up and loopy on medication she was. The only real criticism I had was the band took too much time between songs. They kept letting any momentum from the previous songs slip away with the banter in between. A very minor gripe, something that can be easily fixed. Near the end of the evening, they selected me to walk around with a hat and collect donations for the band. I didn't realize that the group didn't have any set pay for the show - the only money they took home with them was anything generously donated to them by members of the audience. So I went around with the hat and explained this and collected money. I ended up getting 4646¢ for the band. I'm pretty good @....ahem.... extracting money from others. By 11:30 they were done. We all helped tear down and load the stuff back up and headed home. Bass-man Ben drove me home and dropped me off @ my place. Like I said before, I got home way past my bedtime, and it took me about 45 minutes to do all my prep work for the next day (which had to be done then - not enough time to do it in the morning) so I am still way behind on my sleep and all the grouchier for it. Before I head out, a quick run down of everything I thought of while I was away from home today (don't sleep, it's a short list): Advanced ballistics & the Orb of Inhibition. Snagged from the Daily Howler.... The success of the politically conservative authors who publish with Regnery Publishing is very impressive. What I found most interesting is the company's claim that its authors can get 200 to 300 radio talk show interviews—during which, I am sure, they complain about how the "liberal-dominated media" exclude conservative opinions. I guess irony isn't dead after all. Snagged from the Washington Capitals website.... Center Trent Whitfield was claimed by the New York Rangers Wednesday afternoon in the Waiver Draft. The Washington Capitals have recalled defenseman Nolan Yonkman from the Portland Pirates of the American Hockey League to replace Whitfield in the line up. No offense, Trent, I'm not going to miss you. How's that for double-meaning? Snagged from Tzadik's website.... Naked City - "Live Vol. 1: Knitting Factory 1989" After over ten years, Tzadik is finally releasing an exciting series of live recordings by one of the most unique and infamous bands ever: Naked City. Featuring Bill Frisell, Fred Frith, Wayne Horvitz and Joey Baron this was a true downtown supergroup brought together to realize John Zorn's twisted compositional vision combining jazz, movie soundtracks, rock, rhythm and blues, hardcore punk, cartoon music, country and western and just about everything imaginable—often all in the same piece! This first volume is a beautifully recorded document of the band early on, performing live at the club that served as home base from their very first concert series in 1988 to their very last in 1993. Captured here performing the repertory of their legendary first recording many months before they entered the studio, this is Naked City at its gritty/fast changing best. New solos, wilder improvisations and some original compositions and covers that never appeared on disc make this an absolute must for all the Naked City fans around the world. Phu¢k yeah! I knew Zorn was sitting on some old recordings of Naked City (as well as some Pain Killer stuff, too) that he never released. This is one of them. I was lucky enough to get my hands on a copy of a live show they played in NYC, but this is different from that performance. Finally! Something musical to really look forward to! This album is going to kick butt! I can't wait to hear some of the stuff that never made any of their albums..... jump on the horse

Line Item Ego. (v.SHORT) [Wednesday, January; 16th;, 2002 // 1;:22a] [ mood // sleepy ] [ music // Nirvana - "Stay Away" ] Just got home. I still have to fill out all my airbills. It was an eventful evening, but I don't have the time to enumerate right now. I'll give you the full lowdown after I get home from work tomorrow. I should be able to remember everything. But, for right now, a short list of thoughts: Will torment lost souls for food. Kittens & ice cream! Tuh Aval. Seduced by flavor. "Who's a rock star? You are. You're a rock star." Buck-buck number 2! // jump on the horse

join the CSMFAA! [Tuesday, January; 15th;, 2002 // 2;:02p] [ mood // excited ] [ music // Wrathchild America - "Draintime" ] Last night I couldn't find my pipe. I had set it down someplace unusual (read : wrong) place when I was talking to Allie yesterday and had no idea where I left it. I spent 15 minutes searching for it before locating it on the floor underneath the lower left corner of my bed. I must have set it down on the bed and forgotten it was there and knocked it off later on, but I honestly don't remember either one happening. I can be cruel. It's so easy to get songs stuck on Vlad's head. Today I went in singing "Stay" by Lisa Loeb. It was funny seeing a bulky, muscular bouncer sing two lines of the verse and then swear @ me for getting it stuck in his head. I went out singing "Everybody Plays the Fool" by Aaron Neville. It was even funnier seeing him sing the chorus of that song and then swear @ me. Ah, the torture continues. You know what's annoying? When I'm all finished @ work and all I have to do is call the home office to give them tracking numbers and they're busy when I call and say to wait for them to call back. I'm not allowed to leave until I get the OK from them. On the really ridiculous days, I can end up just standing there waiting for over a half hour. I didn't wait that long today, but only because I left on my own and went across the street to Half Time and got lunch there. Technically, I'm not supposed to go anywhere before the OK, but I figured I'm just across the street, if they need me to go back to the agency, it's not going to take me long. Actually, I think I know why it has been taking them so long to call me back as of recent. They are shorthanded in the office right now. First of all, Emcee Squared if away in Seattle right now (he's a grunge rocker). I think some other people in the office are on vacation right now and I'm guessing someone quit recently because I haven't talked to them on the phone in a long time. Of course, I'm just hypothesizing here. But that's what I think is going down. What's important is that I actually did get my call back. There are days when Vlad never gets called back. I implore - which is more important? Giving information on orders you may or may not get, or getting information on orders already taken and submitted? At least that's what Vlad says to me. Anyway, after work, I stopped by For Eyes and got my glasses tightened as advertised. I also went next door to Newbury Comix and just looked around but didn't buy anything. There really hasn't been anything as of late that I've wanted to get. Not too many CDs that really interest me have been released. But I guess in a way that's a good thing. A good thing for my wallet at least. Then I hopped on the T and went home, stopping @ the bank to deposit my most recent paycheck. When I got home, a nice surprise was waiting for me @ my door. Finally, my pre-printed airbills arrived. An entire box of 1,000. I'll be set for a while. This beats the last time they sent my airbills and only sent, like, 300 or so. What would you call the person @ a bingo game who announces the numbers as they're drawn out of the hopper? A ball caller? How would you like to have to put that on your tax forms every year? Buck-buck number 4! // jump on the horse

3-D? Me 2. [Monday, January; 14th;, 2002 // 10;:41p] [ mood // frustrated ] [ music // Minutemen - "My Heart and the Real World" ] First things first - I wasn't able to get the camera today. The one I wanted, yet again, is out of stock. Apparently the one that I'm interested in purchasing is rather popular and sells out quickly. In a way, that's a good thing, because @ least I know the one I want isn't manufactured by some obscure company that no one has ever heard of and when it breaks it's not going to take 8 years to get a replacement part or whatever. The sales clerk said to try again this weekend. So it looks like I might have to venture all the way out to Lechmere on a weekend after all. Though I tell ya, after that, I took a look through the VCR section and almost bought one instead. Don't get me wrong, I would much rather get the camera, but if it get to be too much of a hassle, I'm opting out. It's been tough getting logged into LiveJournal. I had to type this out on my clipboard and cut & paste it afterwards. I had so much on my mind, I wanted to get it out right away before I forgot any of it. Talked to Allie earlier today! Yeah, around 3-ish she called me from work. We talked for about an hour about this and that. Nothing too deep, but lots of fun. It was nice to hear her voice again. She called me from her work... hey! it's free that way! yeeaaahhhh!!!!! All I did was yap my trap and drop my pipe. What a weird game between the Bruins and the Capitals tonight. It was nice to actually watch it on teevee instead of just listening to it on the internet radio. The Caps new defensive system of 2 forwards and 3 defensemen (as opposed to the normal 3 forwards and 2 defensemen) makes for much lower scoring, tighter games, but we've been able to win (or tie) every game so far that we've used the system. Tonight's game went scoreless all the way into overtime until Dainius Zubrus scored 13 seconds into overtime to win the game 1-0. Adam Oates assisted on the goal and it turned out to be his 1,000th career assist. Ordered Wing It barbeque boneless wings while I was watching the game. Man, I hadn't had their food in a long time. It was so good. They don't have ginger ale there, so I had them bring me a can of Pepsi instead. The empty can is sitting in my pile of cans to be recycled -- it's the only non-green can in the entire stack. Hey! Either member of Blue Goddess - whichever one reads this first - call me! I need to know when (and where) you want me to be tomorrow if I am to be a part of the caravan beyond redemption and help you move all your equipment to the show in Worcester! Someone once told me that when you're feeling overwhelmed, it's a good idea to make a list of everything you need to do. That way you have a concrete copy of everything on your mind that you need to get done and you can watch the list get shorter as you do things and cross them off the list. I did that tonight. And you know what? I'm feeling better already. Tomorrow I am going to get my glasses tightened as well as buy my ticket to see Howard Zinn in February. Buck-buck number 8! // jump on the horse

[Monday, January; 14th;, 2002 // 1;:54p] [ music // Pain Killer - "Buried Secrets" ] I just thought I'd take this moment to let you know that the music I'm listening to right now thoroughly kicks the ass of the music you're listening to right now. Buck-buck number 2! // jump on the horse

You're a goat. [Sunday, January; 13th;, 2002 // 10;:33p] [ mood // smiling ] [ music // Mega Man 2 - "Airman" ] Even on days when there ain't jizzack going on, I still find things to write about. I didn't know there was hockey on. I turned on the teevee and Dallas was playing Minnesota with less than a minute left in the game. Drat. Now NFL Primetime is one. I'm not a football fan by any means, but I never miss watching the highlights on Primetime. Why? Two words: Chris phu¢ken Berman. He's so good, he makes football highlights interesting to watch. Earlier I went out for a walk. I didn't even realize that it had snowed for a short time! That, and the temperature had dipped below freezing, so the sidewalks (and roads) were icy. Sliding is fun, but falling isn't. That's why all I did was slide. The batteries in my walkman died while I was out there, I replaced them when I got home. This evening turned out to be all right. I talked to both Jorn and Allie for a while on AIM. Two people who are excellent @ making me smile. And after that I had been debating whether to make some butterscotch pudding or go a little further and bake a chocolate cake, but I ended up just saying what the heck and doing both. The cake turned out good. I haven't had any of the pudding yet. Next week I've got plenty to do. Got to get my glasses tightened, get a haircut, go grocery shopping.... Tuesday is completely booked - I'm heading off to Worcester to see Blue Goddess play live. I know there's some other stuff, too, but I can't think of any of it right now. Buck-buck number 8! // jump on the horse

500 or 5,000? [Sunday, January; 13th;, 2002 // 6;:23p] [ mood // lazy ] [ music // Friction - "Red Light Dumb" ] I was so hungry earlier, it actually hurt. My sleeping patterns are out of whack. I bet I'm going to be really dragging myself around tomorrow @ work. Decided against going all the way to Lechmere to see if that digital camera was in stock. Too long of a trek for me on a weekend. I'm going to be in that area tomorrow, so I'll stop by and check after work. I tried to call Allie earlier, but I got a busy signal. Maybe I'll try again later on tonight. I'm dull. Buck-buck number 2! // jump on the horse

Vincent Price, where are you? [Saturday, January; 12th;, 2002 // 9;:33p] [ mood // bouncy ] [ music // Masada - "Ziphim" ] Once every so often -- a little more than a month... maybe 2 months, maybe a month and a half, maybe one month three weeks and an unspecified amount of days hours minutes and seconds, something happens that helps me put things in perspective. Not necessarily a major event, but something. This time around it was the cold. I feel so much better right now. I went out for a walk earlier and it felt like such a renewal. Listening to the Caps/Panthers game. It's in the second intermission right now. We're ahead, but I might turn it off early - I'm getting antsy again and I'll probably go out for another walk. I filled out my airbills earlier, so I won't have it hanging over my head tomorrow. Right now I feel like I could take on the whole world. But I won't bother, because it's beneath me. Because I gotta groove on freedom, baby. Just like the good books tell me to. If it ain't here, it ain't important. I know a lot of people who need help. jump on the horse

Aww, you forgot to say 'thank you!' [Saturday, January; 12th;, 2002 // 4;:23p] [ mood // awake ] [ music // Carnage - "Crime Against Humanity" ] Yeah, I slept for a long, long time. 13 hours is as Rip vanWinkle as I can get. But I woke up without a sore throat, with no headache, and no congestion. Obviously my body needed that rest. I am thankful that I didn't have to end up seeing a doctor over all this. That would have really annoyed me. I don't like it when I have to go to a doctor, I much prefer to be able to take care of myself. But hey, that's all behind me now. I'm looking forward to getting back to normal for real now. I said that before and then fell ill. This time I'm serious. I've even got some candles lit right now. I spent most of the day cleaning the entire place up. That is to say the time I wasn't sitting here @ the computer playing Heroes of Might & Magic III. But really, this place had become a mess, so while I had the Flyers/Rangers game on teevee (good one, eh, hockey fans?) I vacuumed the rugs, emptied all the garbage cans, washed all the dishes, scrubbed the top of the range, made the bed, and picked up all the clothes that had found their way on to the floor (clothes tend to not make it to the hamper when your lethargic under the influence of cold medicine). It's amazing just how quickly things deteriorate when you don't have the energy to pay attention to them on a daily basis. Tomorrow I am going to head back to Best Buy and see if that digital camera I wanted is back in stock. I hope so. The guy working there said it would be about a week for the next shipment to get there. Sweet. Pics for my journal. Aw yeah. I've got to go soon. I know my fax is going to be on the way. Catch up with everyone later. Buck-buck number 4! // jump on the horse

I'm not Sammy Davis Jr, but I play one on TV. [Friday, January; 11th;, 2002 // 9;:21p] [ mood // high ] [ music // The Smiths - "Rubber Ring" ] "My definition of a free society is a society where it is safe to be unpopular." -Adlai Stevenson This week might have been a blur, but it wasn't a spazztic blurr - I can attest to that. Thanks to all my friends who have verbally pinched me to remind me I'm alive. But don't sweat the baseball team, there best is yet to arrive. On NyQuil right now. NyQuil? CrackQuil is more like it. I have Russell Stover chocolates! And you don't! *sticks out tongue* Ben[t]. Buck-buck number 11! // jump on the horse

(lower) [Friday, January; 11th;, 2002 // 6;:54p] [ mood // groggy ] [ music // Stereolab - "Les Yper Sound" ] This is going to sound weird, but I hate Fridays. I know, I know. But Friday is always my longest day. I always have to go back downtown right when people are leaving their jobs for the weekend. It's annoying. And by the time I'm done with everything I have to do on a Friday and get home, I'm in no mood to go back out or anything. I'd much rather go out during the week when it's less crowded. Of course I have a skewed viewpoint on the whole topic, but that's it. I did amuse myself on the ride down, though. I always take my headph0nes with me on Friday and I was sitting on the T listening to Cathedral when a pair of middle-aged women dressed in business attire got on @ Copley flipping through notebooks and talking real loud. "blah blah blah quarterly figures blah blah we need this deal blah blah." So I cranked up the volume on my headph0nes as much as I could. They moved. Good thing I was listening to Cathedral, it wouldn't have worked with a quieter band. I was talking to all sorts of friends on AIM earlier. I know something about Manda you don't know. But I'm not telling. My thoughts are disjointed. Bear with me. I feel like I'm missing something. It's because I'm out of my usual routine as of late. The holidays have a bit to do with that, so does the lingering sickness. And while I'm thinking of that, I want to thank everyone who showed concern for my illness. I'm OK. I'm going to keep taking the NyQuil pills though until I'm done with them because I like the way they make me feel. =-) But I'm not hooked on them, no way. But still, I feel out of sorts. I need to get back into the swing of things. In the immortal words of Charlie Brown, "I gotta rock." I still haven't gotten my next stack of pre-printed airbills from the home office. The slack-asses. I just won a Thomas Mafpumo CD on eBay. jump on the horse

Whassamatta U. [Friday, January; 11th;, 2002 // 12;:19p] [ mood // relaxed ] [ music // Blue Goddess - "Without You" ] Last night was more than acceptable. [Y]es. I can deal with those. Quite good. Every day this whole week I've had a solid work load. Today as well. I still have to fax my stuff back to the home office and then put together my package to mail back to them, but I'm going to slack off on that for a few hours and rest instead. I like how my cold symptoms seem to rotate day by day. One day I can't stop coughing, the next it's just a sore throat, etc... Today, my body has chosen to be congested. I need to go to CVS and pick up some more NyQuil. Today I got Vlad to sing "The Wheels of the Bus Go 'Round and 'Round" @ work. I wonder if it's still stuck in his head? Weekend? Weekend for recovery. Right now, coffee. Buck-buck number 5! // jump on the horse

you can't stop me. [Thursday, January; 10th;, 2002 // 5;:01p] [ mood // listless ] [ music // Nomeansno - "The Graveyard Shift" ] Going to school does not make one educated. Going to a house of worship does not make one religious. Going into a garage does not make one a car. jump on the horse

I hereby christen you: "The Flying Wasp!" [Thursday, January; 10th;, 2002 // 1;:30p] [ mood // tired ] [ music // Naked City - "Dead Spot" ] Caps did win last night. But it's not really an accomplishment beating the worst team in the league, Columbus, 6-3. Peat scored, Jagr scored, Oates scored, Gonchar scored twice and Colin Forbes scored playing in his first game as a Cap. The game was also the first game of the year for Todd Rolhoff and Jean-Francois Fortin (gee, is he french canadian?) Today was the smoothest day of work I've had in a long time. For once, there were absolutely no hang ups. No packages that didn't arrive. No problem with any orders. No weird circumstances. No nothing. Perfect. I think I'm finally over the last of this sickness. I'm not coughing or congested or achy. But I took some NyQuil pills with me to work and took them anyway for S&G;'s. So I'm really tired right now, but hopefully after I lie down a sleep for a little while, I'll wake up feeling better than I have in a week. Jorn had his brush with fame today, reading a letter of recommendation from Kathie Lee Gifford. Would you believe I processed a passport application for Dick Cavett today? I did. Wow. Buck-buck number 11! // jump on the horse

[Wednesday, January; 9th;, 2002 // 8;:56p] [ mood // good ] [ music // De La Soul - "The Magic Number" ] ZZuvaRuins: Have you talked to Amy since you got home? Allie B234: A little. She was at work when I called, so it was just a short conversation. ZZuvaRuins: ah. I haven't talked to her since new years - I just want to make sure she's not upset @ me for what happened on NYE. Allie B234: No, she's not at all. She IS disappointed that **** brought a date, but she's not upset at you at all. ZZuvaRuins: OK. Yeah. I just wanted to make sure, you know? Allie B234: We talked about it a little. Amy is cool about that. Allie B234: She's just happy we had a good time. ZZuvaRuins: ok. I was a little worried, because... well, just because. Yeah, I had an excellent time. Allie B234: Good! I did too. You know, I am not usually that forward...In fact, I am normally very shy, but I kinda liked ya, and figured it can't hurt to try. Allie B234: *blushing profusely* ZZuvaRuins: I was surprised @ first, but I'm glad you decided to. Because I don't know if I would have done that on my own. Even though I wanted to. Allie B234: I am glad I decided to, too. ZZuvaRuins: Hopefully, we'll get to see each other again sometime soon. ZZuvaRuins: Maybe next time I go back down into Maryland. Allie B234: Well, I am sure I'll be up to Boston again soon, at least once I can accrue some vacation time again. Allie B234: That would be cool. ZZuvaRuins: Though I don't know what that would be.... Allie B234: I definitely want to get to know you better. Allie B234: What or when? ZZuvaRuins: when. ZZuvaRuins: good catch. Buck-buck number 2! // jump on the horse

Buy My Snake Oil. [Wednesday, January; 9th;, 2002 // 5;:49p] [ mood // amused ] [ music // Biafra/Nixon - "Buy My Snake Oil" ] I'm getting tired of being legendary and broke And I'm too damn weird to hold no straight job My checkbook's feeling unfulfilled Being that old underground diehard won't pay the kids' dental bills My dad says I gotta learn to compromise So I figure now is about that time Now that I've run out of things to say That alone will make my music pay Buy my snake oil I used to be so angry But I ain't getting any younger Now I'm eager to please C'mon and buy my snake oil Til the well runs stinking dry I'll be your Rondo Hatton I'll be you Dwight Frye I'm mighty jealous watching my old roommates getting signed The world owes me a living - I want my taste of the pie Meet my new band: Tits, Ass & Money! The most watered down, meaningless music I have ever made! Sing about myself instead of what's going on A company tells me how my records should sound I'll do anything my manager tells me to Every inch a rockin' dude Random shuffling, same old cards 'Bring on the Night', 'She Done Me Wrong' I love my penis and I love my car Man, it's such hell being a star I'll tour until you wish I'd go home Moan about life on the road 200 overdubs sounds sincere From now on every album sleeve - just a great big picture of me Buy my snake oil Critics cheer how I've 'matured' Got top management behind me, man Phone rings like never before "I grew up on your stuff, man It means so much to me I can hear it jingling now In commercials selling beer...." Got wiggle-girl videos In heavy rotation If I dye my skin white enough I'll buy me the elephant man And remember.... you get what you pay for And if that doesn't work I've got another idea Now that I've signed on the dotted line I'll call my music "Alternative"® Same word those lovely people used to hype the Knack in 1980 Join the college-dollar emo-jangle Spoiled white music for spoiled white people Pat those slackers on their heads To stroke and profit off their fears "Yeah, man, it's OK Feel sorry for yourself all day Like sucks cause it ain't easy Happiness should be handed to me...." Buy my snake oil Cleansed of vision and sense I bet your bottom dollar You'll let me get away with this I'll be your pregnant junkie Help you sell cigarettes Or a lonely, tortured muscle thug That no one understands Punk without rebellion We'll call it Grunge® for you I'll dress just like Don Henley And sing just like him too Boo hoo-oo hoo hoo-oo-hoo Boo hoo-oo hoo hoo-oo-hoo Boo hoo-oo hoo hoo-oo-hoo Boo hoo-oo hoo hoo-oo-hoo (Repeat until Burger King espresso arrives) "Down by the stream where my baby left me I stand in my flannel shirt looking confused A voice in the bushes says, 'You've got that look - I'm from Geffen Records, how'd you like a million bucks?' Whoa-oh-oh poor pitiful me Born white in the world's richest country I can't have my way, life is so depressing And nothing's more important then me.... and my girl." And if that still doesn't work I've got another idea -- Give in and ride the punk nostalgia wave for all it's worth Recycle the names of my old bands for endless reunion tours Singing all those hits from the good old days About how bad the good old days were And the orthodox fundamentalist faction of the crown will yell, "Hooray! How politically correct! He quit trying different ideas at last! Obeying those same old stodgy rules Punk used to rebel against!" Buy my snake oil This is all I've got to say Unless this is your radio Looks like you already have Keep on buying my snake oil Til the well runs stinking dry I'll be your institution Until the day I die Who cares if inspiration's gone? It's safe in this here stall I give my fans just want they want And nothing else at all! And remember.... I did it all for the scene. jump on the horse

Hello, young lovers. [Wednesday, January; 9th;, 2002 // 2;:31p] [ mood // the medicine makes me loopy ] [ music // Guided By Voices - "Ghosts of a Different Dream" ] I decided not to call the doctor today. My cough has improved noticeably and as long as I can tell that whatever this is is running its course through me, I'm going to keep diagnosing and medicating myself. I'll continue the NyQuil/Sudafed regimen for a few more days and we'll see how it goes. I had trouble getting online earlier. For some reason, the Prodigy number I normally dial automatically was out of service, so I had to locate a new number in the same area and connect that way. Strange. The package I mailed to my mom arrived today. So now the holidays have officially ended. Everyone has their gifts from me. Work was a breeze. I did have to go to the consulate and pick up one visa I has submitted last week, but it was only a 15 minute wait and I was out of there fast. I almost got called by the home office to go back to the agency but they apparently got sorted out whatever it was while I was talking to C-Note. So I just went home. And, you know? That's it for now. I'm going to take another decongestant and climb back into bed. Catch up with you all later. jump on the horse

[Tuesday, January; 8th;, 2002 // 10;:00p] It figures that the day I'm all spaced out on medication is the day I have to write the name Zbigniew Mikutajtis. No lie. Buck-buck number 5! // jump on the horse

Big phu¢ken Q. [Tuesday, January; 8th;, 2002 // 9;:36p] [ mood // doped up ] [ music // Spazztic Blurr - "Mexicali" ] I took a cough suppressant about an hour and a half ago. It didn't really stop me from coughing, it just make it hard enough to cough I stopped trying. I tried to fill out my airbills for tomorrow and I couldn't do it. I wasn't able to write straight. I need to get them done before I go to bed though. I'm talking to thren and faithealer on AIM right now. Sort of. I am not able to concentrate on our conversations very well. Sleep is gonna happen right about soon. Buck-buck number 6! // jump on the horse

....'in around. [Tuesday, January; 8th;, 2002 // 6;:01p] [ mood // grumpy ] [ music // Goober & the Peas - "Hot Women (Cold Beer)" ] Would you believe that I still am carrying around this chest congestion? I'm going to give it one more day. As slow as it is, it does seem to be progressing out of my system. But I'm getting impatient. If I'm still coughing like this by tomorrow afternoon, I'm going to call a doctor and have him give me Aquatab or something really strong like that. I was congested like this one time before and it turned out I had a minor upper respiratory infection and needed to take antibiotics to get rid of it. So we'll see. Because of this cough, I'm going to skip Passim for this week. I don't want to be sitting in the audience trying to stifle my hacking and phlegming. I think it would be much better for me to just stay home and keep treating my congestion. Lots of warm liquids and the occasional Sudafed. And I won't be going next week either because I'll be in Worcester @ the Blue Goddess show. Which means an entire month will have passed before I set foot back in that place. Damn. At least I'll be totally ready with the song I want to play when I do finally get there. I had a long day @ work today. But that's fine, when you look @ the ratio of long work days I have compared to short work days. That ratio looks something like this: (short work days) A LOT : NOT A LOT (long work days) Anyway - after I did my usual app submissions, I had to hang around for a little while longer for the noon time pickups. When I got them, everything checked out and I took them over to FedEx and mailed them out and then headed for home. When I got home, I watched an episode of The $100,000 Pyramid and then decided to do that pesky grocery shopping I had mentioned a few times before. When I got out to the T stop, I realized that I had forgotten my T pass back in my apartment, but a train was arriving up the hill, so I said screw it and just paid the dollar to ride. I took my call phone with me, but I left my courier bag in the pad. Part good, part bad. One stop before where I would get off to go to Star Market, the cell rings and it's the home office telling me I needed to go back down to the agency. I figured it would take me too much time to go back home and get my bag and then go all the way to downtown Boston, so I just stayed on the train and rode it all the way down. I actually fell asleep once during the ride, but that's not important to the story. When I got to the passport agency, I was basically asking questions and trying to recall things strictly by memory. I did fine, considering it's a rather confusing case. I'll try and keep the industry jargon down to a minimum, but the main swerve of the issue here is we're trying to help a guy get a passport who has lost his old one about 6 months ago in a house fire. The problem is he wasn't born in the United States, but rather claimed citizenship through the naturalization of his parents back when he was 10 years old in 1958. He lost all of his records in that fire and now he can't provide enough evidence that he's a citizen in order to be issued a passport. We're trying to work with the agency to find a combination of documents that he would be able to get in order to prove this. The poor guy is trying to travel next week, but I don't know if he's going to be able to. Luckily, the guy who was handling the couriers today was a cool guy and he's going to try and pull the customer's record and see if there's anything there - like proof of the previous destroyed passport issued in 1972 (computer records only go back to 1978) - that they could use to prove his citizenship. We'll see where this saga goes tomorrow. After all the talking and questioning @ the agency and the home office was satisfied with the answers I had, they let me go home and on the way, I decided to do the task I originally sent out to do in the first place: buy groceries. It was a short list. I've already carried it all home and put it all away. As if that wasn't pretty much obvious. Now somebody say something that will cheer me up, because this day has grouched me out. ------- This is meant for one person, but I think everyone should read: When you say, "In case you haven't noticed, I'm strange," I have no snappy reply. But here's the deal - what really matters is whether you apply these things you think make you strange towards your strengths or let them be used against you as weaknesses. I'm certainly not unique when I say "I have my own idiosyncrasies." We all do. Everybody is strange in their own way. Maybe me more than other people, maybe not. But it shouldn't ever be anything to be ashamed of. I'd even go so far to say that is these 'strange' things that make other people interesting. So when you say "I'm strange," all that does is excite me. I want to find out what exactly you mean by that. Boy, I hope the right person reads this. ------- All right, that's that. Carry on with whatever it was you were doing. Buck-buck number 6! // jump on the horse

[Tuesday, January; 8th;, 2002 // 7;:44a] Don't ever teach your parrot to say, "Here kitty, kitty, kitty." jump on the horse

The little old lady from Pasadena only goes skydiving on Sundays. [Monday, January; 7th;, 2002 // 10;:36p] [ mood // cheerful ] [ music // Guided By Voices - "Lord of Overstock" ] Ain't been yet. And still. Niotacklat. Ever get in the shower and just not want to get out? I was like that earlier. All nice and warm. I started singing. Belting, really. I had GBV turned up on the opposite side of the wall and was crooning along with Rob Pollard. And throwing a lot of "yeeaaahhhh!!!!!'s' in there as well for good measure. My bathroom is opposite the mini-hallway that leads to my apartment door. I'm sure anyone who was walking by my door would have heard me singing, but I don't care. After that I went out to Roggie's and got a steak & cheese sub. Man, I have been so slack the past few days about fixing my own food. I never did go to the grocery store today, the weather kept looking like it was going to get nasty. Right now there are very thin crystlline snowflakes falling gently outside. About a quarter of an inch rests on the ground. It looks great out there. Listened to the Caps game for a while (but not for long - not when we play like that) and talked to Allie for a while on AIM. I need to get my glasses tightned. Maybe tomorrow. Right now I'm just chewing on the pipe. LJ had been up and down all evening. Hopefully I can get this posted. jump on the horse

They call me the Wordless Wonder. [Monday, January; 7th;, 2002 // 12;:48p] [ mood // miffed ] [ music // Karaboudjan - "Plan 714 Till Sydney" ] We didn't get any overnight snow accumulation. I could hear the rain hitting the window throughout the night, but it never progressed beyond some sleet and all it did was make the ground wet. Phooey. When I got to FedEx, I finally sent off that holiday package to mom and brother. It only cost 869¢ to send it. Yeah, it's late holiday gifts, but my family doesn't care and late gifts are better than no gifts @ all. Work was extremely hectic and fast-paced, but I got through without any scratches. I was really rushing through everything because I wanted to get out of these as quickly as possible so I could head over to Best Buy. So as soon as I submitted my applications, I hot-footed it back to North Station and caught the first train out to Lechmere and went to the Galleria where Best Buy is. Good news! They carry the exact make and model of digital camera I want! Bad news! They're all out of them right now. I asked the service dude who was helping me if I could purchase one on backorder/layaway and he said that it would be much better for me to just return later on this week when they get them back in stock or to buy it online @ bestbuy.com. I asked him if I would be able to use a gift certificate if I bought it online and he said 'no.' So that rules that out. I'll just go back @ the end of the week. I'm a patient person! I've waited much longer for much less important things! I am still coughing a bit. I can feel the fluid in my chest. The sore throat is gone, the aches and pains are gone, even the stuffy nose is gone, but I still have this disgusting drip in the way far back of my throat. I'm going to keep taking these decongestants and see if I can't soak it all up. If it doesn't get any better over the next couple days, I'm going to make an appointment with a doctor. This is really annoying. It's kind of odd, when I'm outside and moving around, it doesn't seem to bother me much @ all. But as soon as I get inside and sit down, it starts to act up again. Maybe it's the fresh air. I suppose I could keep my windows open. I could also get a plant to keep the air in my apartment fresher, but we know that isn't going to happen. Gotta head out to the grocery store sometime later on today. I crave ice cream. Oh, and happy birthday to my friend akane. Less than three. YEEAAAHHHH!!!!! jump on the horse

a yo-yo caught in a tree. [Sunday, January; 6th;, 2002 // 5;:36p] [ mood // hopeful ] [ music // Buzzcocks - "I Don't Mind" ] Reading though my friends list, it's comforting to see that pretty much all of them are as bored today as I am. There ain't a darn thing going on. Maybe I'll take another shower later on. I talked to my brother earlier. There's mixed sleet and snow down in Maryland right now. Which means it's headed this way. I'm going to keep the blinds open and one eye peeking out the window to see if any flakes begin to fall. Leo also told me that one of my nephew's, Brandon, got expelled from school for 10 days because he brought a knife to school. What an idiot. It's a good thing I get along with that family. I mean, I'm glad my brother married into that family because they really are good people, but they've got too much money. They can't think rationally because of it. Brandon gets expelled, but how can you really say anything when just one week earlier, his father gets arrested for stealing some scaffolding. I won't complain too much, it's not like I have to deal with them like Leo has to. I love my family, but sometimes I just want to grab a few members and shake some sense into them. I need to go to the store tomorrow. I ran out of both deodorant and ginger ale today. Also, if work turns out to be a short day tomorrow, I am going to stop by Best Buy and finally get that digital camera that I'm been thinking about. I also finally have my package home all put together and taped shut. I'm going to mail that out tomorrow morning. Buck-buck number 7! // jump on the horse

disjointed thoughts. [Saturday, January; 5th;, 2002 // 10;:16p] [ mood // drained ] [ music // Ramones - "She's The One" ] There ought to be more low income housing. And more songs about science. ------- Concentric circles on my back. ------- I'm out of airbills. I'm going to have to get some blanks from FedEx on Monday. I'm also going to have to get on work's tail again to mail me more. ------- 'Eleven-seven' turned out to be good luck after all. ------- Working for the iceman. ------- I used to be wired with nothing to do. Then I found something to do and became tired. ------- Talked to Manda earlier on AIM. Also talked to Allie for a while on AIM, too. Good idea - keepin' it short, keepin' it real. ------- I miss you. jump on the horse

Bruins 7, Capitals 4 [Saturday, January; 5th;, 2002 // 7;:26p] [ mood // dirty ] [ music // Sweet Tooth - "King Carrion" ] What a nice day for hockey. Not too cold out there; was able to go outside with just a jacket and no hat or gloves. Even the crowds weren't too bad. The Bruins outplayed the Caps in every aspect. Thornton had a hat trick, Guerin scored twice, and so did Zaumner and Murray for Boston. Simon had two, Pettinger and Zubrus each one for Washington. It was a fun game to watch. 11 total goals and several fights. Zettler v. Thornton (no decision), Sacco v. Boynton (tie), and Peat v. Stock (which looked just as good live as it did on TV I bet). I was wrong on where I thought I was sitting. I misinterpreted what my ticket said and thought I was going to be in the mezzanine section - not so. I was 5 rows from the ice right behind the player's benches. I was sitting right next to where the Caps walked out from the locker room. So who knows, maybe I really did make it onto TV. With this game out of the way, I can begin to root for the Bruins a bit more now; it's obvious to me that the Caps are not going to make the playoffs (and Ron Wilson will lose his job because of it) - @ least they won't if they keep playing like that. I never realized just how poorly we play defense now that our top 2 defensive players (Johansson, Konowalchuk) are out with injury. It's painful to watch. Well, that's it, really. I didn't have anything else planned for the day. I busted out my pipe, but I don't have (or want) anything to light inside it. At least my minor illness has gone away. jump on the horse

[Saturday, January; 5th;, 2002 // 12;:02p] "Prefix" has no suffix, but "suffix" has a prefix. How about that. Buck-buck number 1! // jump on the horse

What I say. [Saturday, January; 5th;, 2002 // 12;:30a] There's a million and one nuances you missed. Make that a million and two. My hair is phu¢ked up right now. jump on the horse

matching hats, Do Not Enter. [Friday, January; 4th;, 2002 // 11;:04p] [ mood // okay ] [ music // Aphex/AFX - Powerpill - "Pac-Man" (Original Full Version) ] Dude, this CD that Dylan gave me owns. Almost 10 hours of Aphex/AFX/etc. music on mp3. There's so much good music here, it's almost not even fair. I'm feeling better. I'm still coughing a bit and the sore throat is still there, but it's fading fast. I have a lot of energy right now. I might even go out for a walk sometime later on this evening. Which is great, because I had figured I would pretty much be a shut-in for the evening (and maybe for the entire weekend) nursing this would-be cold. I ironed out the problem on my calendar page. I was having trouble with the year links and the "//" separator. I could get it to make a separator on either one side of the link or the other, but not both. Well, I finally figured out how to get it to put it on both sides. Persistence pays off and it's all centered and framed and we are all happy. I decided to take the polish off my nails earlier this evening. I can't wear nail polish if I'm going to be practicing my bass. It chips off and if it's not going to look 100% perfect, I don't want it on. It's funny, I'd been wrestling with the idea of whether or not I should call Allie this weekend and she pulls the reverse punch maneuver on me tonight and called me instead. We talked for about a half hour and in closing, I promised I would keep in touch. She said she was down with that. So that's cool. Later on I called Jorn just to see what was up, but we only talked for about 10 minutes before his chinese food arrived and I didn't want to occupy his dinner time, so I let him go. The idea of chinese food sounded good to me, so after I hung up the phone, I walked down the street to Chang's and got some Szechwan shrimp. Because I love that spicy flavor. Seriously. They could make Szechwan flavored ass and... well, OK, it would probably still taste like ass, but I like Szechwan flavor. Let's just leave it at that. Buck-buck number 2! // jump on the horse

Anything you want, baby. [Friday, January; 4th;, 2002 // 4;:13p] [ mood // maybe sick, maybe not ] [ music // Green Day - "When I Arrive Around" ] I'm teetering on the edge of sickness. I'm doing pretty good right now, compared to how miserable I was last night. I had a bad cough and my throat was sore and swollen and my body was stiff and achey. I could only sleep in short fits and spells. I'm much better now than I was before, but I still am not 100%. My ears are still plugged and my body still hurts a little but @ least it doesn't hurt to swallow anymore. I took both a Tylenol and a Sudafed today as well as huffed some of that Chloraseptic stuff and I'm going to rest up for the weekend to kick this bug. But, like a good trooper, I went to work as normal. Fridays are always my longest day, and this one was no exception. I didn't have a lot of applications to submit, but I did have to go to the consulate and submit one visa application, and that always takes up a big chunk of time. Before I went over to the consulate, though, I stopped by the box office @ the Fleet Center and bought myself a ticket for tomorrow's hockey game between the Boston Bruins and the Washington Capitals. I'm sitting in the mezzanine section behind the players benches. It's going to be a nationally televised game - 3 PM on ABC, so if you want to see me, look for the guy that looks like me. When I got home from work (but before I went back downtown to mail my weekly materials back to the home office), I found a sorry we missed you! package slip in my mailbox. I knew what it was, so I quickly unloaded all my stuff and went down to the local post office and picked up my box of cookies from Manda. My goodness these things are very rich and very sweet! But they're really good. I've eaten only one so far - partially due to my feeling ill and partially due to my poor stomach can only consume so much sugar @ once! =-) But thank you, Manda - they're excellent. I also got the craving for some eggs after I returned home, so I hard-boiled three of 'em and ate 'em with a little bit of salt. And that's it for now. I'm going to crawl back into bed and try to get some sleep, but I should be back awake and online later if you want to seek me out. Buck-buck number 8! // jump on the horse

2 Band-Aids & a prayer. [Thursday, January; 3rd;, 2002 // 7;:01p] [ mood // touched ] [ music // Helium - "Superball" ] I don't like it when people objectify others. People are not things. People are thinking, feeling entities. People are not static. They progress and change over time. And that also means they are allowed to change their minds. I don't like it when people try to 'be right' and prove everyone else is 'wrong.' Differing opinions are what makes life fascinating. Imagine how boring it would be if we all thought the same way about everything. If you can't seem to get along with people who don't think like you, then the problem is you, not them. I believe in the clarity of the human mind, both individuality and collectively. I believe we can wield tremendous power over our own lives, if we'd only exert the force. There is great potential in the human race. Occasionally we may need a little push here and there, but not so much that we become dependant on that push. I believe in friendship. I believe in laughter. Both the blessing of disarming your so-called foes with it and the ability to laugh at your own self and not take oneself too seriously. I believe in truth. With the truth, you can't be stopped no matter what. I believe in love. Love will kick the butt of anything that stands in its way. Only when I grasp these things am I perform the most noble act of giving these things to others. This is what's important to me. The rest is cool and all that, but this is what counts for real. jump on the horse

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