So it's that time of year agian when the dogwood trees bloom . . . and for some reason, they make everything smell like there is a guy out and about abusing himself and spreading his man seed all over the sidewalk.

For real, these are the second smelliest trees, aside form the infamous Gingko trees. they are the stinkiest trees.

Some pretty cool artwork, from Tara McPherson. I especially like her posters for Beck, Cat Power and Suzanne Vega

Here is a freaky looking video, with a kinda cool but equally freaky tune . . . I'm not sure who the band is though.

Who knew Kissing was good for curing the hiccups? As well as a wealth of other ailments . . .

Sushi fans, cartoon fans Join Forces. My Favorite is the Power Puff Girls one . . .

Hello All.

I hope those of you who celebrate Easter had a good 'un, And I hope everyone had a good weekend.

Today, the first monday after Easter, is Dingus Day. There will be clebrations at the Bloomfield Bridge Tavern tonight. Alas, i won't be able to make it, since I've got some portfolio work and some writng to do for Wednesday.

April 15 is this Thrsday folks . . . just a little heads up.

May 7th is No Pants Day.

Candian news: Cattle Burps, and the importance of animal bones in the great North

Some weird French cartoons... even if I knew French, i doubt if I'd know what they're saying. #1 is dumb, #2 is ok, #3 is kinda funny, # 4 is dumb.

This is probably the hottest bird i've ever seen. Oh! Sexy sexy . . .

As they say, these chicks rock. I think the little blue guy they rock out with is really Jon Spencer from the band Blues Explosion. The SWEEEEEEEEAAAAAAAAAAAAT!
. . . of the Blues Explosion. This is the band who reminds you of their name in nearly every song when they say "Blues Explosion." And they make for some rockin' rock n roll music.

And no, dear reader, I am not interested in any manties for myself, thank you.

The Ultimate in Emasculation . . . for a gift giver at least.

M C Paul Barman is back with a new album.

Lyrics may be explicit (and funny): "It's a porn utopia, cornucopia of warm fallopia"

Andrew Beaujon writes some cool, simple songs with a subtle something. something like some cool lyrics. Yeah, and he's written what's possibly one of the funniest song lyrics I've heard in a long while: "Baby yer so cold, you got a popsicle at end of the stick up yer butt, hope you don't die alone another succesful New Yorker." The website this came from is a good source for music you've never heard before. they even have a Boxstep single on there!

This weekend saw my birthday (30th) come and go. Thanks go out to matt and tony and kath and kelly for buying me a steak dinner, and much thanks to the 15 lucky women who helped me get halfway to my goal of kissing 30 beauties for my birthday. You know who you are, you minxes. :P

Here's a silly ad for Sports Betting in Europe

Hey Sci fi fans,Asimov readers, and tech heads . . . this movie coming out inthe summer looks pretty cool

For those of you who just like cartoons, here'sone from Steve Martin. i like th tiger best . . .

The music of Mark Geary is good food. He's like Damien Rice meets Josh Ritter when he was feeling a bit like Paul Simon. Go check him out!

Here ya go, Skippy . . .

This is probalby some of the wierdest,sorta creepy sorta funny picspage i've seen in a while.

Margot Quan Knight

I like the series called a Girls' Best Friend and "Bad Worm" best . . .


And this is kinda funny.... a brief biref version of the Lord of the Rings

Internet Explore is a bitch. No, it's a dirty, old, egg-suckin' bitch dog in heat.

I wrote out this rather concise, well crafted blog post, some links and cool ideas in it . . . and of course as I near the end of the post, POOF!!! That dirty old egg-suckin' bitch dog in heat vanished into thin air. Gone. With all my eggs . . . or blog stuff.

Go see Eternal Sunshine of the Spotless Mind. Tell me what you think. I dug it, but was a little confused will have to see it again, sorta like in Memento and in Being John Malkovich.

This is a band called Schrodinger's Cat. Check out their page, go to the games section, and play the s-cat game. It's a bunch of sound samples from their songs . . . pretty cool schtuff!

I ran across the here, at the SXSW (South by South West) page. It's worth poking around there, too. Probably gonna be something you like, seeinghow there's all kinds of music there.

This morning's commute was like no other.

I got on the bus, and the driver said "Don't worry about the fare . . . " to me and the other passengers getting on board.
Strange, I thought.
As we crossed the bridge heading towards Oakland, made a right onto Forbes and approached the merger of Forbes and Boulevard of the Allies, we were forced to stop. Two cars in front of my bus was the police motor cycle blocking traffic for
the fallen firefighters funeral procession that was just coming into Oakland.

Firetrucks . . . and firetrucks,

and firetrucks,

and firetrucks.

and firetrucks,

and firetrucks,

and firetrucks,

and firetrucks,

streamed by with lights a-flashing, adorned with black banners, black wreaths, black cords, and uniformed firefighters.

There must not have been a single district, borough, township, or municipality that didn't send a representative truck or engine. Folks from Ohio were there. It was nearly thirty minutes of continuous emergency vehicle parade. I thought this was every little boys dream, a half-hour parade of firetrucks, every shape size and color.


Truly a sight to behold how firefighters honor their own. Be proud of the men and women who protect us an come to our aid in times of need.

Viceland has some dumb stuff, but the dos and donts make it worth checking out once a month, and this article on Canada is totally worth reading. Especially if you know anything about Canada or ever went there.

The Bata Shoe Museum in Toronto, Ontario is supposed to be pretty cool. A guy I chat with on the bus some mornings told me about visiting there with his SO/GF this past week on Spring Break. I think you shoe freaks should go check it out.

A good weekend this past one... talking like Yoda, mmm? I saw La Jetee and San Soleil at the Melwood. You can still check out this double feature tonight....

I saw My Architect last night, and although it was a little rough in spots, it was good.

St Patricks Day stuff in Market Square was fun, as usual. Hungout at Becko's place afterwrds, with a bunch of cool folks. and no hangover yesterday, very cool, no headache, nausea, just a little stupid was all.

Please say a prayer or take a moment for reflection for the fallen firefighters. Charles Brace was the dad of Chuck Brace, an alumni from my fraternity.

Bloggers of note . . . be you "relevant" or not, congrats for getting a write up in the paper.

Anyone up for movie-oke? It may be here soon. Perhaps our friend Rich can swing something thru his work? Or maybe the Rex ? they still have movie capacity there.

This girl is way cute (I think it's the hat), and apparently pure evil. I haven't quite decided yet if an eyepatch would make her hotter . . . regardless, I'd sure like to buckle her swash. Funny, if you look, sometimes you find what yer looking for: here's your girl with an eyepatch.

Oh, had I the scrilla to scrape up a trip to Tarifa Spain and go Kiteboarding. Looks like Daedalus if I ever saw him...

You can tell a lot about your lover by how they eat their pancakes. do they stack 'em? spread 'em around? use butter? syrup? a fork? or maybe their fingers?

And now somebody thinks their choice of chocolate has lots to tell as well. For the record, I prefer dark chocolate. the 70% cacao is about my threshold for that. when you get into the 90th percentile, I'm out dude. just a little too bitter. I have to wonder how this one eats her pancakes, and what kind of chocolate she prefers?

I learned something today, something about this record label called Elephant 6.

See, sometime about four years ago, Rich Engel introduced me to a band called the Neutral Milk Hotel. They are a little quirky, trippy, maybe even moments of beautiful dissonance (it is possible). Then last January or February, Josh Seybert introduced me to the band Of Montreal. They are a little quirky, trippy, maybe even moments of beautiful dissonance (it is possible). Their main songwriter, Kevin Barnes, strings together some very different sounding chord progressions, and the contributors make a sound like . . . nobody else. so last week, I dropped off Coquelicot Among the Poppies to Gabriel, a guy I work with. I told him it was maybe the strangest album I own. Today, he beckoned me off the elevator, and said, "Here, give these guys a listen. They're called The Olivia Tremor Control. They're another Elephant 6 group," he said to his girl Kim. And they're all apparently part of this Elephant 6 label. Pretty cool, eh?

Has anyone seen one of these ads yet (courtesy of Exit Stage Left) ? The first three of these refer to 9/11, and Mr. Bush, this is in poor taste. The fourth one makes you look like a beter candidate.

Hey Dr. Seuss is getting his own Stamp!

A page from the Guardian, about Mel Gibson's film . . . and it's a fun read. Trust me. And this one is silly silly silly

She Called it Torture

"Do you ever have a dream where you're with a dream-hottie, they're maybe not even a real person, but someone from the cast of your dream characters. You're hanging out with them, laughing, having fun, and so on. Maybe you are both sitting on a blanket in the park, or maybe on the couch in their living room. They have you lay down on your back; they're beside you or above you. And you know you want to kiss them and they want to kiss you, but for some reason they wait . . . and they hover . . . just above you . . . you may even feel their breath softly brushing over your lips. But no kiss, not yet. They move closer to your mouth, lips parted ever so slightly, eyes closing into smiling slits as their gaze moves from your eyes to your mouth and . . . BLINK!
You are in your bed, and you are alone.
It's Tuesday morning, moments before your alarm clock goes off.
Your dream-hottie, real or not, is certainly not there, just about to plant one on you. And as you drift back into dreamland after hitting the snoozebar, you may be in the same park, in the same room, or wherever you were moments before waking, but that person is simply nowhere to be found."

"That's torture . . . " she sighed, pulling me closer and then she kissed me.

A pretty good weekend overall:

The goodness started Thursday evening, as many good weekends do: I had dinner with my friend Meredith at Tram's Kitchen. Friday I had a nice apres-work nap (also known as stacking Zs in some circles) and then met Jim and Chris at the Inn Termission for some beers and pool. Saturday, i went skiing with Barb, Jack, and his brother Mark. that was pretty sweet. And yesterday, when I woke up, mylegs were a little sore, so I went to the gym, did a little lifting (it's been a while), swam laps in the pool, and then went to visit my mom. While in the gym, i worked my tripceps (oneof my favorite groups to work) but maybe a bit too hard? This morning when I woke up, I cou;ldn't really move my arms. so That means I have to go back tomorrow and lift again to get 'em back in place. Exercise is good food.

And so is Boxstep. My pal Sarah Siplak signs with Boxstep, and they have a CD jsut coming out now. Gotta like whenyer pals are seling CD's here and over in Europe as well. Rock on Sarah!!!

Here you will find some grisly poems to read,
and some lovely pictures go with them indeed.

Peering from behind death's velvet curtain,
The author, of course, is one Tim Burton.

For these I must thank the girl on the bus,
The one so pretty she'll make you cuss.

And if you wouldn't venture a guess,
I'll go on and tell you, her name is Jess.

The word is kind of familiar, in that I've encountered it before, but never knew what it meant. Think ... MacGyver.

Bricolage - (French, 'doing odd jobs'). A characteristic (according to C. Levi-Strauss) of the early human mind, in contrast to modern scientific thinking. But bricolage is entirely rational (i.e. not pre-rational) in its own way. He introduced the term in The Savage Mind. A bricoleur is one who improvises and and uses any means or materials which happen to be lying around in order to tackle a task: 'The bricoleur is adept at executing a great number of diverse tasks; but unlike the engineer, he does not subordinate each of them to the availability of raw materials and tools, conceptualized and procured specifically for this project; his instrumental universe is closed, and the rule of his game is to make do with the means at hand.' In the making of myth, bricolage is the use of whatever happens to be 'lying around,' so that myth is both rational and improvisatory.

Courtesy of my pal Kurt, and of course the folks in Britain, I offer you these three items:


http://flash.trojangames.co.uk/tgames/movies/movie3.html
http://flash.trojangames.co.uk/tgames/movies/movie2.html
http://flash.trojangames.co.uk/tgames/movies/movie1.html

They are not obscene, just funny . . .

Whether I'm dateless or not, this approaching 'holiday' ranks low on my list
(below Columbus Day, but above Flag Day, maybe on par with Arbor Day?), and yet somewhere in the depths of my being, it does have something more than commercial appeal.

I guess . . .

I mean, it worked as an excuse to kiss a girl one night many moons ago: '"Well, no girl should go without being kissed on Valentines day," I said. And then I kinda ended up dating that girl. Hmmmm . . .

So I'm posting a couple items of interest, one for either sex, you can determine who gets what, or you can take both if you like, I won't know and it won't make a big difference to me either way. I'd hope it's not completely obvious that I'm dateless fo the weekend . . . anyways:

1. Gentlemen Beware: During the month of February in a leap year (like this year), it is kosher, kopacetic, considered fair game, in England (and their colonies?) for a woman to propose marriage to a man. Ok, wait, it's really just the last day, the 29th, so be ready. Although traditions and what not are looser now, or it could be anytime this month or this year or .... whenever. Ballsy, eh?

2. For those who are less interested in words, I offer you this link: Sweet Kisses Enjoy!

So Pennsylvanians, even if their convenience stores don't sell hooch, are still big time boozers. check it out . . . Pretty soon, we'll all be subscribers, eh?

Speaking of drinks n'at, I kinda like this Tiki Lounge place on Carson St, and apparently, it's a style of place popular with folks, dudes at least, all over.

Even though there's the little known spot in Friendship (a 7-11) that sells six-packs, for the most part, you can't find beer or alkeehol in a convenience store. But this makes me think , ... could it be true? that perhaps the Commonwealth is catching up with our neighbors? Eh . . . doubt it.

And then that's it for Bingo? Sheesh ...

Even the British politicians are looser than ours here in PA.

Some good fotolog pages to check:

Criminal; Debdamone; Roberta666; Biti; NERVOCRIATICO; MacWagen (aka Dan Buczinski?)

And Punxsatawney Phil says blah weather for the next six weeks . . . as if we needed a doped up groundhog to tell us that....

I want to go see Bubba Ho-tep, it's playing out at the Oaks Theater in Oakmont. THis movie features Bruce Campbell of Army of Darkness fame, and it's supposed to be top notch. Anyone wanna go? My car's down for the week (at least) so you'll have to drive.... :P

Here's the scoop, it's a limited engagement (from the Oaks webpage):

Bubba Ho-tep
SUN & MON @ 3:15, 5:15

TUE, WED, THU @ 5:15, 7:30, 9:30


PITTSBURGH EXCLUSIVE! Based on the Bram Stoker Award nominated short story by cult author Joe R. Lansdale, the stylish and funny "BUBBA HO-TEP" tells the "true" story of what really became of Elvis Presley. Bruce Campbell ("Evil Dead," “Army of Darkness”) and Ossie Davis ("Do the Right Thing") star as two elderly residents in an East Texas rest home plagued by an evil Egyptian mummy. Apparently Elvis (Campbell) actually switched identities with an Elvis impersonator years before his "death," and has now lost his desire to live. But when Elvis meets Jack (Davis), a fellow nursing home resident who thinks that he is actually President John F. Kennedy, the two old codgers sally forth to battle the mummy and rescue the other residents from losing their souls (as well as their lives)! At once a hilarious comedy and outrageously clever horror flick, "BUBBA HO-TEP" is a unique exploration of aging, dignity and the meaning of life.

It's like some local talent's Citizen Kane. but who in Pittsburgh would be Orson Welles? Ok, it seemed a bit hoi poloi (for the rock n' roll set at least) but i'm sad to see this place go. I saw a lot of good shows and this doesn't bode well for the music scene in Pittsburgh. Goodbye, Rosebud.

Correction: Apparently said sleepyhead foreign dignitary is a member of Congress: Democrat Representative Chuck Rangel. Thanks for the heads up, Joe! (see below)

here's a pretty cool article about an artist named Phillip Guston.

My favorite moment of Bush's State of the Onion address last night? When towards the end, the camera panned over to some foreign dignitary who was faaaast asleep . . . perhaps he's thinking deeply? No, he's dreaming . . . :P

Ok, so you may or may not have heard of the movie Big Fish. If you havent' you should check it out. Given recent events in my life, it held particular relevance for me, being a father/son type movie. Plus, Eddie Vedder and the Pearl Jam do the closing credit song, and blammo, it's a doozie. Quite fitting and a good song in and of itself.

I had my first class for the semester two weeks ago and saw this quote in the elementary school classroom where we had our first meeting:

"Be patient towards all that is unsolved in your heart, and learn to love the questions" - Rainer Maria RIlke

Dang! what a great thought for folks at any age (I'm finding it especially relevant in many realms ... ), and what a great school that must be (the Falk School in Oakland) for kids to be getting Rilke perhaps as early as 1st or even the 6th grade. Wish maybe I had gone there as a kid.

Today is my first day back to work. It's a big step in returning to normal.
So far it's going well, mostly I'm being left alone to do the piles of work that appeared while I was away. For those of you who don't know, my father passed away a week ago today (last Friday). He suffered from colon and liver cancer. He was 70, almost made it to his 71st birthday. It's a bit wierd sorting through all these emotions and stuff, but it's also quite an eye-opener learning experience. My father was a good man, and I'll surely miss him. As one friend aptly put it, "he was very sweet, yet scrappy." I am so very appreciative of all the friends and folks who came to pay their respects, and for those who couldn't make it... thanks for being there if only in your thoughts.

In memory of Dr. Lawrence A. Dunegan

February 23, 1923 - January 9, 2004

Finally got my grade for this past semester, got a 'B' in History of Literary Criticism. Not too shabby, considering that was one of the toughest courses I've had in a while. A lot of people dropped out of the class including the one really smart chick who I thought would've rocked the class, being a philosophy major and all. Yeah, she balked . . . :P

Has anyone else heard about the great thing Bill Gates is doing? He wants to promote the internet (which Al Gore invented ) by having us all email our friends, and we'll all get money. Lots of it. We'll go to McDonald's after we get our money and buy each other lunch!!! Keep an eye out for the email in your inbox, i'll be sending it soon!!!

Ok, this is some wierd Flash-thing that chix might dig, like '80's rocker chicks might enjoy . . .

And this, is perhaps one of the silliest and worst poems ever written (thankfully I didn;t write it):

Oh, the Cause of Gauze

Oh, the Cause of Gauze
The Manuels have fondled many memories from my lap
Though each memory has it's own lap
And swimmers swim laps
Even swimmers have laps however
And while in that condition
Many require a delicate gauze
I desire only this in my decrepitude
That I will have one more opportunity to serve as a gauze for my fellow man
And that in that state of gauze
Can somehow disturb the world less often with my prickly fingers.

- Of Montreal

Fighting off the Bah Humbugs

I'm starting to see a secondary / tertiary aspect of Christmas: giving us something to look forward to in the deep dark of winter. Dude, winter sucks. . . and if not for that holiday, winter would suck completely. Oh, I like doing stuff in the snow like skating and skiing, and what not. And maybe it's just because I haven't done any of that fun stuff yet this year, or maybe because my Jetta-opy (pronounced like "Jalopy" but with a ' T ' instead of an ' L ') wont' turn over if there's a sneeze of moisture in the air (not to mention that you can't take any more than one passenger now, because the rear doors dont' open, and the handles on the front doors need replaced as well, and the exhaust pipe has a gaping hole), or maybe because I'm still in limbo about how this last semester turned out, or maybe it's the "Single-for-the-Holidays" crap, or maybe it's that there's short, cold days, the darkest of which are now and until January. Or maybe I just needed to rant ...

Fighting off the Bah Humbugs

This was a really good weekend, overall.
Friday five of us went to Johnstown, OH to see a Tambura band (Otrov) play. On the way up, our friend Tara (also on the way up a few miles ahead) called to say she just got a flat tire when WHap-wup-wup WHap-wup-wup Whap-wup-wup WHap-wup-wup ... we got a flat tire too! Kooky! So fortunately we had a spare and I changed the tire. The show was a lot of fun with really good music that got better as the evening wore on. Something beautiful about seeing these guys play at the bar (like AT the bar) while passing shots of slivovitz and still playing and singing. Nasdrovya !!!

Saturday afternoon, got the tree up and decorated, then hung out with Jim and Mikey for a spell over at Josh & Jessies... got to see young Jacob B. Josh lent me a cd from these guys. It's a lot like the review says.

Here's one thing on my Christmas list:
Skyray
and another: Ukulele
and another: an evening out with Audrey Tatau

Right . . . is anybody else completely bored with finding tons of "Nas7y Par1s Hilton - longs fer yer junk like a biZnatch " emails in their bulk mail . . . and why am i getting stuff like "Beat your Menopause" ?

I went to dinner with jim and Ro at Tram's last night, and the plan was to get a Christmas tree afterwards, but when we pulled up to the place by Page Dairy mart, the tree folks were getting in thier trucks to go home for the night. DANG!!!
So we'll get a tree Saturday. Ended up going to Dee's later, to meet up with jim and Ro and Rudy. I met a crazy girl who flirted with me somethin' fierce, asked me for my phone number, but I figure I was back-up-plan-man because she let on that she was waiting for another dude to show. And of course he did. Cool enough dude, but it became readily apparent that girl wasn't fair game when she kissed his mouth. Shortly after that they both left and I went back to hang with my pals. It's fun to flirt/be flirted with, ahh someday ... some girl will figure it out.

I am finished for the semester. I submitted my Final Exam paper last night around midnight... it was due by 8:00 AM this morning. Now I have to scare up three letters of reference/recommendation for my application.

In other news, I heard some stuff from a girl band called The Likes . . . me likey The Likes. They have two songs from their EP, and both are pretty solid sounding tunes. You can also chek 'em out on my fave, KCRW (see link to the right ... ).

There's another band you can check out: Bedroom Walls. I really dig their chord progressions.

Speaking of which, in the midst of my Final Exam paper writing, I'd relieve my tired brain from its Herculean duty of making sense out of the absurdly abstract Beginnings, by setting myself at the piano. Something happened there in the afternoon, or perhaps over the past few days, and a song came out . . . it's not quite finished yet, but I like to think of it as a fine point of departure where there's plenty of room for stuff to grow.

Today, the Guardian is running an article they ran from Monday December 10, 1980.

A good weekend overall, Saturday was busy busy busy, what with taking apart my spinnet and rearranging the living room furniture with Jim to make room for my new piano ... ok, so it may be 100 years old, but it's been refurbished in the late '60's or early 70's, and been in my family since then.

the New Years eve invites went out, and the party's on... just gots to get some schtuff together in the mean time.

I found this page looking around on one of my fave's . . . it's a couple of cartoon/animation-style movie clips, that are in French, but are pretty cool. Although Euro hotty cartoon chix from the club (hinting at girl - girl ?) arent' bad at all, I like the video for the song, "Deux Pieds" best: it seems fitting for so many of us guys, at least this one... and the ending is tops.

there's a cool article from the Guardian about Edouard Manet. The famous painting is Bar at the Folies-Bergères, and if you look closely, you'll notice the bottles of Bass Ale on the bar . . . way to go Eddie!


I hope everyone has a Happy Thanksgiving!!!

"The trouble with our times is that the future is not what it used to be." - Paul Valery

I took my Praxis exam yesterday(it's akin to the SAT or GRE entrance exams, but for teahcers) and scored passing marks for the first half. I gotta wait three weeks to find out about the third protion and the essay portion. And my car is acting up... i think she's tired or something.

The author doesn't believe he can get started.

A beginning must be thought possible, it must be taken to be possible, before it can be one. - Edward Said

The mind's work, in order to be done, occasionally requires the possibility of freedom, of a new cleanness or prospective achievement, of special and novel appropriation. - Edward Said

She looks at him, as a fallow field does the farmer
Yearning to be plowed and sown.
He looks at her, as a horse does a pasture
Hungry for space, and grass to graze upon.
Will you ever sow your seed?
Will you let this horse run free?

As if theft wasn't enough to compromise the identity crisis many Americans now face, it seems now that if you laugh your face off, drink your face off, have heinously disfiguring acne, or just want to look like somebody else, you can get a face transplant. 'I saw that guy who has Charlie's face on the bus again today. I have to wonder what the psychological impact of that would be for the families of the old face people, and the new recipients... gives a whole new meaning to saving face. It may be a viable option for those in the WPA.

THis weekend was pretty good. Friday I went with friends to check out this Gypsy Band at the Paparazzi ... the band was excellent. I think some, if not all of their memebers are former Tamburzini's (aka Tamburitzans) from Duquesne. The service at Paparazzi was rotten, either that or they thought I was rotten, but I saw lots and lots of folks getting drinks, but they never gave me one. Eventually some waiter guy took away my empty's, took my order, gave drinks to some other folks and then walked away from the bar, never came back . . . so at least the music was really good. Apparently they weren't expecting such a busy night, and were thus understaffed, but I dunno. I wasn't too impressed. Then we went to Smokin' Joes and then to a friend's house. Saturday night, I did some busking, and had one of my most successful evenings ever. It was good to play cuz it had been almost two months since I last played out. Sunday we had some folks over for a big dinner thing. it was pretty cool.

THis band, the Distillers is kinda cool . . . my friend Kristie is a big big big fan of these cats.

THis weekend was pretty good. Friday I went with friends to check out this Gypsy Band at the Paparazzi ... the band was excellent. I think some, if not all of their memebers are former Tamburzini's (aka Tamburitzans) from Duquesne. The service at Paparazzi was rotten, either that or they thought I was rotten, but I saw lots and lots of folks getting drinks, but they never gave me one. Eventually some waiter guy took away my empty's, took my order, gave drinks to some other folks and then walked away from the bar, never came back . . . so at least the music was really good. Apparently they weren't expecting such a busy night, and were thus understaffed, but I dunno. Then we went to Smokin' Joes and then to a friend's house. Saturday night, I did some busking, and had one of my most successful evenings ever. It was good to play cuz it had been almost two months since I last played out. Sunday we had some folks over for a big dinner thing. it was pretty cool.

THis band, the Distillers is kinda cool . . . my friend Kristie is a big big big fan of these cats.

most of you will probably have seen this from Tony, but if not check this out:

Flash slot car racing

Ahhh yes . . . the lovely L.U.P.E.C. (Ladies United for the Preservation of Endangered Cocktails) gals are still up and running strong . . . here's a bit about founding LUPEC member Jenn Gottschalk, aka Whiskey Daisy, and her response to a new rag on boozing: Modern Drunkard. Funny, cuz I saw Jenn at the Kelly's Bar last Saturday; I think she and her man were pretty engrossed in something, maybe discussing drinks?

President Bush was quoted as saying to British Prime Minister Tony Blair: "The problem with the French is that they have no word for entrepreneur." Blair denied that Bush said it, but the story is plausible because people are always saying similar things about other cultures.

A little bit of humpday eyecandy . . . Basso and Brooke

A NY Times piece on the Johnny Cash Tribute in Nashville.

Good Monday to yinz... Overall it was a pretty good weekend. I had some ups and some downs. Let's look at the 'ups' first:
Ok, the Steelers won against the Cardinals, this is good.
I saw a pretty cool documentary as part of the Three Rivers Film Festival at the Melwood Screening Room (I finally saw a show there!) called "Long Gone." It's about train-riding hobos and tramps, with a score by Tom Waits. . . Funny, cuz it was really interesting, but so many people had 'hives' or 'hangovers' or some other 'gritty in my girly' response for not wanting to go see it.
I saw my friend Karen's new house: it looks pretty cool.

The downs? well check this out:

If There's Still Torches, Be Careful to Not Get Burned.

I'm not sure where I heard that phrase this past week, but t'is sage advice. Just listen:

WTF? Ok, this is what my 'friend' told me about a girl he was involved with: "____, who made me wait and wait Friday to go to dinner, only to cop out and blow me off, ___ is no longer my friend. I'm better off without her. The guy she was not seeing anymore, and then was and then wasn't because he was with another girl, so why don't we give it another try (funny, cuz I was just thinking it was time to give you the boot to the curb), talks with her and they're back together, so I guess I'll be your friend still, but we can't date any more? Yeah, whatever... good luck. Anyways, Mr. Man'll be out on somebody else's ass in two weeks when he gets tired of your stubbly chin (which I was willing to overlook... )."
Suffice it to say, I think we're all better off without self-aggrandizing females whose ridiculously huge egos somehow fail them when it comes time to have real strength, ie, be completely honest with people and not feed them some raggedy bit of bull story just to keep you around, ya know, just in case . . . "Mr. Man and I? Oh we're so done, so why don't we try this out again?" NEVER believe that . . . especially when you've met Mr. Man, when your gut feeling says, she's a flake, and when yer friends all say, give that bag of bones the boot. " Yeah, my poor friend, he'll figure it out one day.

As for me? I remain the Illegible Bachelor.

Congratulations to Brad Yoder (www.bradyoder.com) for having his single 'Used' appear on the Paste Music Sampler III cd. My friend Sarah Lentz (www.sarahlentz.com) has also hooked up with the folks from Paste Music. Go check out some of their stuff.... www.pastemusic.com

Sorry about the no links bits... either blogger or my machine is a bit gakked this morning.

"My formula for living is quite simple. I get up in the morning and I go to bed at night. In between, I occupy myself as best I can." - Cary Grant

"To fear love is to fear life, and those who fear life are already three parts dead. " - Bertrand Russel

"Youth is to all the glad season of life; but often only by what it hopes, not by what it attains, or what it escapes." - Thomas Carlyle

"There are no original ideas. There are only original people." - Barbara Grizzutti Harrison

This was a really good weekend, all said and done!

Friday night we went to Flux. I painted my face blue with stars and a moonn and went as Night, and I saw some pretty cool costumes. My favorite was the girl who went as a Venus Flytrap: not only was she incredibly hot, but she hada great great costume ... almost made me wish I went as a fly for Halloween.

Saturday I volunteered with Madge and Jolene at the Animal Friends Black Tie and Tails fundraiser. Kinda cool to see a bunch folks all gussied up, and then a bunch of cats and dogs all gussied up, too. I met Jim Leland, former Pittsburgh Pirates manager there, too.

And yesterday, with it's unseasonably warm temps made for a great day. I played softball in the early afternoon, and then afterwards went out on the Monongahela river with my friend MJ in her inflatable kayak. Apparently we were being watched by a bunch of other boaters, because a lot of people came up to us when we docked and got out of the water. Some guy told us we could get fined $300 each for not having life jackets ... and another guy tho;ught we were cops because we went out in that crazy boat without life jackets. He said he gets fined all of the time for stupid stuff, and he was amazed we didn't get one... I guess all the cops were at the Steelers game. After boating, I went over to my folks place, and was apparently pretty tired. I fell asleep on the couch and didn't budge for about an hour before eating dinner.

Sounds more like the title to a bad movie, or something rather than a real headline, but there it is in Philly:

Catholic High School Girls Pummel Man Who Flashed Them and then of course the same story from the Philly Inquirer

A Poetry by Nichita Stanescu
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Another Kind of Mathematics

We know that one times one is one,
but an unicorn times a pear
have no idea what it is.
We know that five minus four is one
but a cloud minus a sailboat
have no idea what it is.
We know that eight
divided by eight is one,
but a mountain divided by a goat
have no idea what it is.
We know that one plus one is two,
but me and you, oh,
we have no idea what it is.

Oh, but a comforter
times a rabbit
is a red-headed one of course,
a cabbage divided by a flag
is a pig,
a horse minus a street-car
is an angel,
a cauliflower plus an egg
is an astragalus.

Only you and me
multiplied and divided
added and substracted
remain the same...

Vanish from my mind!
Come back in my heart!


english translation by George Mustea.

For those of you who like creepy stories about people from long long ago . . .

Vlad the Impaler, the Romanian Prince also known as Dracula
And if that doesn't slake your thirst, here's even more on Vlad Tsepesh

Finally, the accounts of blood baths taken by Elizabeth Bathory are thought to account for part of Bram Stoker's tales of horror. This lady was pretty gakked up . . .

this is some pretty cool schtuff . . . i think i want my first album to look something like this stuff.

Congratulations to Josh and Jessie Seybert on their new life together! The wedding was fun, and it was cool to wear a tux again. i spent hours walking around and standing with my hands clasped in front of me . . .

for those of you who know why stick people went extinct, and who maybe like Jackie CHan or the movie Kill Bill, go check out this kung fu movie

Ok, I always thought Elliot Smith's songs are way cool in their sadness, honesty and just all around good sounds... I didn't know he was really that suicidal. Dang, Elliott . . . we'll miss you.
Steven Paul (Elliott) Smith. August 6, 1969 – October 21, 2003.

manuel ocampo, a dude whose art appeared in beck's album art . . .

Here's a scary story about the future . . . and then a joke:

Concerned about her relationship, a woman approaches her doctor
and says "Doc, I'm getting married this weekend and my fiancee
thinks I'm a virgin, is there anything you can do to help me"?

After the doctor stopped laughing, he says, "Medically, no, but
here's something you can try...on the wedding night, when you're
getting ready for bed, take an elastic band and slide it to your
upper thigh, when your husband puts it in, snap the elastic band
and tell him it's your virginity snapping."

The woman loves this idea, and knows her hubby-to-be will fall
for this. They have a beautiful wedding and retire to the
honeymoon suite. The wife gets ready for bed in the bathroom,
slips the elastic band up her leg, finishes preparing and climbs
into bed with her man.

Things begin to progress, her hubby "slips it in", she snaps the
elastic band, and the hubby asks, "what the *@#% was that?
The wife explains, "oh nothing honey, that was just my virginity
snapping".

The husband cries out, "Well snap it again, it's got my
balls!!!!"

These come courtesy of Jenn Hartz:

GOOD
A policeman had a perfect spot to watch for speeders, but wasn't getting many. Then he discovered the problem - a 12-year-old boy was standing up the road with a hand painted sign, which read "RADAR TRAP AHEAD". The officer then found a young accomplice down the road with a sign reading "TIPS" and a bucket full of money. (And we used to just sell lemonade!)

BETTER
A motorist was mailed a picture of his car speeding through an automated radar post. A $40 speeding ticket was included. Being cute, he sent the police department a picture of $40. The police responded with another mailed photo of handcuffs.

BEST
A young woman was pulled over for speeding. As the motorcycle Officer walked to her car window, flipping open his ticket book, she said, "I bet you are going to sell me a ticket to the Highway Patrolmen's Ball. "He replied, "Highway Patrolmen don't have balls" There was a moment of silence while she smiled, and he realized what he'd just said. He then closed his book, got back on his motorcycle and left. She was laughing too hard to start her car.

Quentin Tarantino's new flick Kill Bill (Vol. 1) is pretty good. You can anticipate sword fighting, split screen shots, and some typical Tarantino moments where you find yourself laughing at something really really violent and then wondering, what's up with that? My favorite moment: the bottle-being-uncorked sound effect when a mosquito bites Uma Thurman. It made me laugh so hard, and the rest of the theater was silent. Apparently I was the only one who either heard it or thought the joke was funny.

Oh yeah, and before your movie, I recommend you go to the Rock Bottom at the Waterfront and order either the Lumpy Dog Ale or the North Star Ale. Sit at the bar, and rest your beer on the chiller to keep it cool. What a great invention! Every bar should have one!

What's on top of your tree? Found Magazine is pretty cool, and this is their web page.

So Beck will be in a movie called Southlander . . . doubt if it will screen here, but it may become available on DVD, VHS. I wonder if anybody involved inthe movie/film biz who digs beck may have any kinda scoop on getting that a screening or something? Yeah, and the soundtrack looks like it might be pretty cool, what with Elliot Smith and Beth Orton (who also appears in the movie) on there.

Rufus Wainwright has his new album out now, go give a listen to the first two tracks. The second one I've heard on the radio a coupla times.

Rufus will also appear in an upcoming Martin Scorsese film, where he plays a club/lounge singer and although he doesn't have any lines, he does sing . . . go figure.

This weekend i got fitted for a tuxedo for josh and jessies wedding in two weeks. Then i went with josh his dad and jim to see Intolerable Cruelty. it was a good flick by the Coen brothers, but not quite "The Big Lebowski" or 'O Brother! Where art thou?'

Rich Engel's brief post from Oct 9 lead's to a site for the artist Zoe Beloff. She will be in town the 17th to discuss some of her stuff. On her webpage, Zoe talks about Baudelaire, and her mention of his ideas in turn makes me think of and even earlier modernist, Edgar Allen Poe and his short story, the Man of the Crowd (1840). The man was pretty far ahead of his time . . . if at least in some of his perception and vision.

OK, I don't kow how many of you have seen or sampled the new Reese's Peanut Butter Cup Inside Out (Peanut butter on the outside, chocolate on the inside ... ) but my officemate and I have done a comparison with the new and regular Peanut butter cups and have conclusively said that there is no discernible differnece in taste or texture, and that the visual aesthetic is all that's different. These are not the only new products apparently that they have had out on the market., but the last in a series of Limted Edition candy treats. Give 'em a try and let me know what you think . . . !

I saw the movie Lost in Translation last night at the Forward Ave theater with my friend Karen, who looks a little like Sofia Coppola. Bill Murray was funny, the Japanese are so very different from and yet so like us, Scarlett Johansson is a Scandinavian blooded hottie who plays opposite Murray, and there weren't too many hackneyed Hollywood bits or too many arty film bits. There is some beautiful scenes of Japanese gardens. I recommend checking it out. My favorite phrases: "Lip my stocking" and "Have a nice fright."

This article from The Atlantic about torture may be a bit disconcerting for some to read, but I find it somewhat relieving that they admit "legalized coercion, even when strictly regulated, is the ultimate slippery slope . . . ", and that someone had the courage/gumption/chutzpah to investigate this highly sensitive topic.

Much thanks to Ed Finney, who called yesterday asking if I knew anybody who could use a pair of tickets to see the Steelers play the Browns at Heinz Field. Thanks much, Ed!!! It was a good time, even if the Steelers got whooped...


The drunken wino was stumbling down the street with one foot on the
curb and one foot in the gutter. A cop pulled up and said, "I've
got to take you in, sir. You're obviously drunk"
The wasted wino asked, "Ociffer, are ya absolutely sure I'm drunk?"
"Yeah, buddy, I'm sure," said the copper. "Let's go."
Obviously relieved, the wino said "That's a relief - I thought I was a cripple."

> > > > > >

The man was in no shape to drive, so he wisely left his car parked and walked home. As he was walking unsteadily along, he was stopped by a policeman.
"What are you doing out here at 2 A.M.?" said the officer.
"I'm going to a lecture," the man said.
"And who is going to give a lecture at this hour? "the cop asked.
"My wife," said the man.

A pompous minister was seated next to a cowboy on a flight to Oklahoma. After the plane was airborne, drink orders were taken. The cowboy asked for a whiskey and soda, which was brought and placed before him. The flight attendant then asked the minister if he would like a drink. He replied in disgust, "I'd rather be savagely raped by a brazen whore than let liquor touch my lips."

The cowboy then handed his drink back to the attendant and said, " I didn't know we had a choice."

For you who are interested in numbers, computers, money, or historical fiction, Neal Stephenson has a book out just last week called Quicksilver.

Anyone interested in seeing The Concert for George ? It's playing at the Waterfront at least until next Thursday. Stars include Paul, Ringo, Tom Petty, and some others who dug George. Email me and let me know. We'll go check it out.

I would like to thank the anonymous stranger who sent me a letter that read:

"FOUND THIS ON THE STREET"

and enclosed my driver's license. It disappeared Friday night, and I wasn't looking forward to replacing it with a new one.

Thank you, anonymous stranger . . . you rock!!!

I encourage you all to do some small unanticipated favor for someone today. Maybe a friend, maybe a family member, maybe a neighbor. Maybe it's letting somebody pull in front of you on the parkway, maybe sweeping your old-lady neighbor's porch, maybe taking your kid to the park, maybe picking up somebody's license you find on the street and mailing it back to them. Whomever and whatever you decide, don't hesitate, go do it . . they'll appreciate your effort!

This is funny, try it out!

DeathDay 2.0 by quill18
Username
Die on	September 19, 2038
Die of	Jaywalking
Value of Estate:	$7,929,606
Created with quill18's MemeGen!

The Patriot Act sucks in so many ways, and the librarians are becoming the finest men and women of the hour. . .

We'll miss you Robert Palmer . . . this has not been a good year for celebrity folk.

It's probably too late for most of us to enter, but Carson City, NV will be hosting this years World Beard and Moustache Championships November 1, 2003. Thanks for the tip, Christina . . . I'm pulling for Alois Plettl from Bavaria. Yeah, why are there almost entirely German/Austrian contestants?
Just another hairy guy ...

The trifecta race has run! Looks like #2 MoJo Wiseman, finished first, #3 Caring Heart, second and #1 Sweet Italian Ice came in a sluggish third . . . #3 was a little skiddish on the turns, #1 her demise, I blame on the rider (Dave Palone or Jim Pantaleano he is not!). Both looked good out there, but lacked on spirit and follow through ... which was just part of what got #2 running strong. Hard to say when I'll be hitting the track again, but it was fun. We'll probably be seeing more of MoJo Wiseman, and Caring Heart may not be out to pasture yet. Somebody help poor Sweet Italian Ice, she ain't that bad!

And Doctor Who is on the comeback? i think the good Doctor gets several incarnations, right? Everyones fave Tom Baker appears in this article. I had such a mad crush on one his girl assisstants . . .

Thanks John Bucket, for letting us know about this cool looking series on The Blues starting this Sunday, 9/28:

http://www.pbs.org/theblues/

Ed Said is Dead

His name is really pronounced like Sah-yeed, but it looks like it should rhyme. He was a cool cat, though. We're reading him in my class right now.

On a little brighter side, I watched the movie A Mighty Wind last night with my friend MJ. Brought to you by the same folks who did Best in Show, I recommend checking it out.

Anyone remember the debates last fall and early winter between Europe and the U.S. about what the hex we're gonna do in Iraq, and who's gonna help us? there may not have been a lot of buzz about it, but apparently the Treaty of Westphalia entered into the arena. What's that you say?

So in 1648, these cats in Europe signed a treaty that helped define the peace in Europe, appropriate lands, establish countries, and set a standard for peace and war procedures. Apparently there is a clause about justifiably declaring war only if there is imminent danger of invasion. The treaty is called the Westphalia Treaty. Go read about it . . . and think about how it may have effectively or ineffectively entered into the debate between Rumsfeld and Co. and the Europeans.

In a sense it kinda fits with this word:
hermeneutics

\Her`me*neu"tics\, n. [Gr. ? (sc. ?).] The science of interpretation and explanation; exegesis; esp., that branch of theology which defines the laws whereby the meaning of the Scriptures is to be ascertained. --Schaff-Herzog Encyc.

Stendahl Syndrome . . . I suffered from it after visiting the museum at the Papal Palace in Vatican City. Like this guy's description, I've been overtaken by art and beauty, to the point of being disoriented, but never felt guilty about it. Just woozy. . . this is not to be confused with Stockholm Syndrome. As Anders will have you know, the two are a little different.

A visit to the dentist's office today, a lot of hygienist work (I think she need some coffee, she was sorta heavy handed) but no cavities. PHeeeeeeeeeeew!!!

And can someone please tell me what is in the water in Athens, GA?
Here's a blurb about one band from there, The Neutral Milk Hotel has a newer album out.
Bu then you get the cats from Of Montreal, REM, the B-52s, and I believe the band Jump Little Children are from there, but I'm not 100% sure.

Is anybody surprised by the obivous abuse of power that comes with the Patriot Act? There are more and more documented cases of common criminals being charged with bullshit terrorist offenses. As an example, a man who made drugs in his bathtub, was charged with manufacturing a weapon of mass destruction?
Check this out for more details.
My response? Watch those dorks just as closely as they are watching you!

Every dog will have his day, but for the neighbor's dog it aint' today.

This morning i walked out my front door and my friend kim is there on the sidewalk. she says, "hey matt, is this your dog?" I said, "no kim, Pancho's your dog," because she was walking her dog. "she says no no not pancho, i mean this dog," and she pointed to my neighbor's dog. he had leapt out the front window he sits in all day through a hole by the air conditioner. it had been blocked by a panel from a case of Mt. Dew ... he was running loose and the neighbors of course were gone for the day. so we tried to catch him so we could stuff him back in the window, but he kept running away and into the street. nearly got run down a couple times. so we thought to put him in the plot of grass at the end of the block, but the gate was locked, kim said. i tried it and it was locked but was able to jimmy it open, and the dog ran in as soon as i opened it. he was safe for the day, nobody would bother him, and he seemed so happy . . . and then we said good dog, and went on our way. ten minutes later it started to downpour and looks like it's gonna rain a good bit today . . . Every dog will have his day, but for the neighbor's dog it aint' today.

For those of you who won't be playing softball at Frick park Tuesday night, there's this to consider checking out:

Chuck Palahniuk, novelist, Talk and Screening of "Fight Club." September 16, 2:00 p.m., Alumni Hall, 7th Floor Auditorium. Reading at 8:00 p.m. Free. For more information please call (412) 624-6506 or see www.english.pitt.edu. Sponsored by The Pittsburgh Contemporary Writers Series, Wyndham Garden Hotel, Book Center, and Film Studies Program.

Thank you Johnny Cash, for all your great music and influence. We'll surely miss you.

And John Ritter too?

I'm gettin' all Aristotleian on you . . . classnotes and such.

tekhne (the word is conventionally translated as 'craft, 'skill' or 'art') as art is precisely mimesis (a word translated as 'immitation', although many scholars prefer 'representation') as it immitates art.
in the material record, we see the effort of the species grappling with Intelligence . . . the material forms in which Intelligence is manifest.

the function of literature is to articulate and sustain the polis/people. To invoke the people as the function of literature, to articulate and sustain a nation is a dangerous concept.

See if you can relate / see the connection of the above and this . . .

Don't Sweat The Technique Lyrics
Eric B. & Rakim

Don't Sweat The Technique

Don't sweat the Technique(2x)

Let's trace the hints and check the file
Let see who bit to detect the style
I flip the script so they can't get foul.
At least not now it'll take a while
I change the pace to complete the beat
I drop the bass 'till mc's get weak.
For every word they trace it's a scar they keep...
'Cause when I speak they freak
To sweat the technique
I made my debut in '86
Wit a melody and a president's mix
And now I stay on target and refuse to miss
And I still make hits
wit' beats, parties, clubs, in the cars and jeeps
My underground sound vibrates the streets
MC's wanna beef then I play for keeps
When they sweat the technique

Don't Sweat the Technique

They wanna know how many rhymes have I ripped in rep., but
Researchers never found all the pieces yet
Scientists try to solve the context
Philosophers are wondering what's next
Pieces are took to last who observe them
They couldn't absorb them, they didn't deserve them
My ideas are only for the audience's ears
For my opponents, it might take years
Pencils and pens, are swords
Letters put together form a key to chords
I'm also a sculpture, born with structure
Because of my culture, I'm a rip and destruct the
Difficult styles that'll be for the technology
Complete sights and new heights after I get deep
You don't have to speak just seek
And peep the technique

But don't sweat the technique

I speak indiscreet cause talk is cheap
Then I get deep and the weak then complete their
Pull with a seat, never weak or obsolete
They never grow old techniques become antiques
Better then something brand new 'cause it's radiant
And the wild style'll have much more volume
Classical too intelligent to be radical
Masterful, never irrelevant: mathematical
Here's some soothing souvenirs for all the years
They fought, and sought, the thoughts and ideas
It's cool when you freak to the beat
But don't sweat the technique

Don't sweat the technique (2x)

This make sme angry. Color Coded airline tickets . . . ? because it is assumed that we're all really dangerous people, terrorists in the making? because we really don't need freedom anymore? who the heck makes these decisions? I think this is ridiculous . . .

I thought Leni Reifenstahl had checked out years ago, but apparently she's part of the Century Club.

most of my firends with blogs don't post anymore it seems . . . i guess they're busy or something.