Man On Earth

3:48pm: Some Of These People
As many of you know I started working in a hospital earlier this year as a polysomnographer conducting sleep studies . And as you can imagine my job is somewhat interesting , I see a lot of crazy things , and meet a lot of let's just call them " different " kind of people . But they're all my patients . I had decided up until this point not to speak much about my job , but some of the things I see are just too funny , sometimes sad , and other times controversial . Plus it seems that at certain points all I do is work . For example this will be my fourth night in a row and when your shifts are twelve hours night and graveyard it becomes especially demanding . Anyway , i'm not exactly a doctor , still I would never mention any names breaking any confidentiality or being unethical .

In the past few weeks my patients have included , but not limited to : a suicidal woman , a clinically depressed and derranged woman sent over from the local mental hospital , a 478 lb woman , a girl who had been shot in the head a few years previous , a seven month old baby
boy , a man paralyzed from the waist down , and last night a woman who stunk like NO patient had stunk before ! I mean like rotten cheese stink . Her hair was in dreadlocks , so perhaps that's where the smell came from , but damn ! Did I mention she was a bit mentally handicapped as well ? And these doctors , they want me use the cpap machine and mask on her ? A sleep mask that any normal person struggles with . I think this was a case of the doctor putting his bank account ahead of being realistic . This was never gonna work . No way she would ever use Cpap at home . It made for a horrible night . She was whining and complaining of leg pain , a pounding headache and her " head being cold . " Finally she pointed to her night bag and I pull out a snow beanie . A freaking snow beanie for her head when she was already sweating and the room was hot as hell as she made me turn off the air conditioning . But it worked . The snow beanie gave me the only peace I had during the night . Thankfully my other patient , an eighty-three year old man was quite pleasant and just there for a normal study and gave me no problems . I wonder what's in store for me tonight ?

Sleep Glossary
C.P.A.P. - Continuous Positive Air Pressure
Cpap is a machine that keeps your passage way open and let's air flow freely . It is especially helpful for people with sleep apnea .

2:27pm: Altadena Is The New Highland Park Is The New Silverlake
Tuesday night my friend Joe(Casper) and I went out to play some pool , celebrate his ninth month of unemployment , and the further deterioration of our parents finances who need to borrow more money from us . After a few games at a local pool hall in which I managed to annoy the the local gangster and Asian majority by playing about ten New Order songs in a row on the jukebox , (the only cd I would touch aside from an Oasis "What's The Story Morning Glory" which I don't particularly care for but can appreciate) , we stopped quickly for a pint at the Colorado and then decided to hit up our old home town of Altadena and the local bar by the name of the Rancho . But it wasn't the same Rancho from years passed . This one had girls ! And hipsters ! And Crepe-partiers ! Apparently they now have a Karaoke night on Tuesdays . Though it looked to me like it was more of a sing-a-long . Nevertheless , it looks like Altadena , which I love , is becoming the new place to be ...or at least it was on this night .

1:21pm: 100 Good Reasons
It's been awhile sice i've updated due mostly to a broken down computer and a friends' inability to fix it and/or pass it on to another friend . Not really a summer to remember . I get up , I go out , but nothing really happens . I did however do some traveling . This was new for me as i've never really had any ambition to and growing up my family was never in a position to . Consequently , i've spent most of my life here in Southern California never traveling east of Las Vegas . Anyway , I went on a trip to Northern Illinois by way of Chicago . I spent most of my time in the small college town of DeKalb which was hosting the town's annual festival called "Cornfest ." Though I did eat some corn and ride a mechanical bull in a drunken stooper , my friends and I spent most of our time in the local pub . We went to a party where I saw what may have been the worst collection of music i'd ever seen , but the host was cool and the locals were friendly some of which were nice enough to let us crash in their home . Evan introduced me to some of the locals , most memorable had to be Cam , the Canadian college professor who got drunk with us Sunday night before classes started Monday . I would have to say that DeKalb and the surrounding cities were not as backwoods as I had imagined . Though I suppose aside from the little strip malls and judging from the jukeboxes it could have been 1992 oppose to 2002 . I enjoyed my time in that small Northern Illinois town .

We spent Monday in Chicago . Nothing really stood out for me there . It felt like we could have been in L.A. in places , San Francisco in others . Perhaps some of the architecture stood out . I saw Lake Michigan as well . We spent Monday night rockin' and rolling at a restaurant which failed to produce a Chicago style pizza and later finished up a local Chicago bar .

1:15pm: Does Anyone Know How To Tie A Tie ?
A fitting end to a less than perfect week . A week in which the one time I go to a local bar in ages someone gets shot and killed in a bar fight not long after . A few days of training on a new computer system (polysomnography is now digital at the hospital) and a few nights with hellish patients ranging from the psychotically depressed to the EXTREMELY morbidly obese . Anyway , i've probably only worn a real tie a handful of times normally opting for the clip-on , but this tie was a Christmas gift and i'm pretty sure they expect me to wear it to their wedding . Yep , another wedding . Is everyone getting married this summer ? Or is it just everyone 'I' know ? At least there will be free alcoholic delights and good times at the reception , but I suppose i'll be needing it as I will be running into a lot of people I don't really need to see ? Well , maybe just ONE I really do .

12:31pm: 24 Hour Party People/Musical Bibliography
I don't know that i've ever danced so much at a club . That was one of the best d.j. sets i'd ever heard . Last night was a record release party at the Echo of the soundtrack for the film " 24-Hour Party People ." A night basically made up of British Indie music pre-1992 . We met up beforehand and to get into the spirit dressed for the occasion . Lars made a "Rat (Ned's Atomic Dustbin) toupee , Eric wore a baggy long-sleeve , Evan a Ride t-shirt , and it was decided I would wear the "Reni(Stone Roses) hat ." It was slow going at first as the crowd was only starting to grow , but as "L.S.D." (can't remember the name of the band) came on we knew it was time to get the party started . Lars and I followed baggy-fanatic Ericpoptone out to the dance floor . The floor was filled soon after and it seemed as though we danced the whole night . The only failure was Ericpoptones ability to score some ecstasy in the previous days . Well I guess I failed to talk a t'l'o'm'e , but that happens often .

Sometimes I wish I was born sooner than later as I missed out on some great music of the eighties and the whole baggy genre . You mean there was more to Brit music than Duran Duran , Pet Shop Boys , and Depeche Mode ? It makes me laugh when I think about when as a boy I wanted so much to be like Simon LeBon . I think I knew the lyrics to EVERY Duran Duran song by the age of ten . Oh , then there was the whole fascination with rap I think a lot of suburban white teenagers went through at some point especially in Northern California where I was living at the time and the EVERYONE was into local legend "Too Short." It started a little earlier for me . I think my favorite rapper was Doug E. Fresh at the time . My curiousity didn't last and was definitely long gone by the time I moved back to Southern Cal and "gangsta rap" came on the scene . By then had found Morrissey , then moved on Suede , Gene , and the rest .

5:01pm: His 'N' His ?
After soccer , a little time spent at Josh's B-B-Q , Evan and I went to the first night of the "new" club over at the Shortstop called "His'N'Hers ." And no sooner than five minutes after walking in I was approached by yet another guy at that place while waiting for a drink . Asking me things like what kind of soap do I use because I smell really nice and fresh and do I like to dance . I told him I would dance with him later , but I really just planned on avoiding him . Later , some other guy walked by and grabbed my ass while out on the dance floor . Last night has got me thinking what is it about me that makes me attractive to guys ? Evan thinks it's the white Addidas , Patrick , Lisa's friend who is a cross between Keanu Reeves and Chris Kleine thinks it's my innocent look , I would like to think it's just the places I choose to go , but it happens everywhere . Maybe I should let Xtine and Lisa fix me . But I kind of like my Ben Shermans and Addidas , and don't plan on growing my hair out like every other "Silverlake hipster" anytme soon . I'll figure this out eventually . It doesn't really bother me too much , but i'd rather it be girls .

3:45pm: Work Is A Four-Letter Word
Is this week ever going to end ? I need a drink .

6:17pm: I CAN'T Have Both
Just as I was planning a roadtrip up to Santa Barbara to see the Mozzer September 5th , along comes the Rozzer and Gene to play here at the House Of Blues on the same night ! Who does the booking and what the hell is their problem ?! Now I have to choose between the two . Probably my favorite artist and favorite band . Unbelievable !

5:12pm: Strange Kind Of Love

What Goth Are You?

Thank you to realessence for the survey .

2:13pm: We go to more gay and lesbian clubs
For not living an "alternative lifestyle ," we go to more gay and lesbian clubs than...

Rock'n'roll Monday with Tracy & The Plastics at Milk . It was quite the performance . I've never seen anything like it . It was enjoyable . Lead singer Tracy actually had visual bandmates and would dialogue with them throughout the show . Anyway , I was taken with a girl I had seen the week previous at Spaceland for most of the night . Though there was question of her sexual preference . I was wondering about the proper etiquette in terms of finding out . But i've decided next time that perhaps i'll just go and actually talk to her (if I do see her which often does not happen as L.A. is pretty large) and not worry about it . Later there was Rock'n'Roll Monday's second act at the Short Stop , but by then I was done . Recovering from a Birthday weekend , soccer injury , and general fatigue . I sometimes wonder if i'm drinking too much as alcoholics seem to run in the family . Brian's rule of "only drink when you go out" is not working very well because it seems as if i'm going out every night .

Special thank yous to godawful for birthday drinks and bottomless shots and ericpoptone for my special birthday cd compilation entitled "Drama Queen ," which I took home today .

10:09am: Sharp...Throbbing...Pain
Everyone was right and I was wrong . My ankle is still bad , swollen up . I turned it during soccer at Elysian Park yesterday . Ice , elevation , and ABC's .

Last night was another famous crepe party , and my second . Many people met , many drinks drunk , and none of the bottles even made it over the side of the wall during someones drunken beligerance ! The crepes were pretty good and it felt less like " the Roost at someones house " this time . Josh and co. are really good people . What a cool place !

12:45pm: Why I Was Born
I still have no idea ...however I turned twenty-five years old yesterday . I don't know how I feel about it but I am intrigued . What exactly is it of which Martin Rossiter speaks ? "Never Alive Until Twenty-five." Hope to find out soon .

9:29pm: The Program
What Am I Waiting For ?