Last Year

Last year at this time was this:

Saturday, May 26, 2007

The sounds we hear Thus far, Chicago has proved to be much more entertaining than Cleveland. We have been using our weekends as wisely as possible and have stumbled upon some good music. First, we took our newfound knowledge of public transportation to new heights when we traveled downtown to see Owen play a free show at the Apple Store. Great stuff, as always. It was refreshing. Nothing beats a man and his acoustic guitar, in my opinion anyway. This was my first time seeing him, and though the set didn't last long, it was well worth it. Finally, I got the see the inspiration behind all those tragically depressing songs Dave creates at home. Afterwards, full of good spirits, which any decent artist will give you, we walked around a while, looking in shop windows we cant afford and then onto the beach. All in all it was a pleasant night and a great kick-off of the "Weekends Together Out" movement. It proves to be one of my most promising movements. This weekend, the infamous, highly coveted Memorial Day 3-day weekend if off to a surprising start. I can't reveal all the detailed plans of the rest of the weekend, but I can share Friday night's festivities. Many thanks to Kevin for the thought and the tickets to the show at the Metro here in town last night. The venue was reminiscent of the Newport in ye ole Columbus, Ohio, but... like most things we've encountered so far, BETTER. The Metro is a small venue, with old style moldings around the stage and small but cozy seating in the upstairs balcony. The big difference you ask? Yeah... the Metro has a bar upstairs. Like I said, better. Plus, it honestly only took maybe 6 minutes to walk to from our apartment. The only complaint with the venue... A/C. where we were hanging out was a bit chilly, though I'm sure it was a much more comfortable place downstairs in the myriad of rock fans. We showed up early, mostly because we were bored and lacking living room furniture tends to motivate you to leave the apartment. The first band, or shall I say two dudes on stage were loud. That sums up the entire performance, loud. The second act, whose name I didn't even catch, included a very energetic tambourine player we nicknamed TAMBO. Similar to Rambo, but with a tambourine vs. automatic weapons. The only people who enjoyed their performance are those who are friends of the band, and possibly the lead singers mother. We were sitting upstairs, and looking through the grated railing, and in this case, the slight blur caused by the obstructed view actually added to the positive qualities of the show. They tried. They failed. And no matter how much Tambo jumped and clapped and cheered, it wasn't happening. The headliners of this particular show were This is Me Smiling. They were good, but not great. We didn't even stay for their whole set. Decent show, nothing fancy, nothing new, and nothing to get too excited about. However, the real stars of the show were the band Skybox. We loved them. They put on a great performance, including awesome stage presence and even candy thrown to the crowd. Their music is slightly off the beaten track if you know what I mean. I'm unable to assign it to a specific genre, but perhaps that is part of the appeal. We have become fans. These guys are good. Are they for everyone? Certainly not, but they should be for anyone who has an open mind and a passion for the weird. Granted, to please me you can't go wrong if you include violins and wear orange shoes.

Now, here we are, rapidly approaching the 3-day Memorial Day weekend once again, and what has changed? We still love Skybox, in fact we just saw them play an acoustic set at Schuba's a week or so ago. ( Awesome) They were there to help Joe Pug kick off his record release. Pug, or shall I say the reincarnated Bob Dylan was very good, excellent lyrics. We are looking into that more. We do live a little farther from the Metro, but, also farther from Wrigley Field, which is a major plus for us. We recently moved into a larger ( upgraded) apartment in Rogers Park a little north of the city. We are still getting to know our new neighborhood, but thus far we are very happy, and enjoying life.

Things are going very well. We have had a successful year. And, this coming weekend will prove to be full of good times as we plan a visit from our dearest family members.

Let the good times roll. See you soon.
A.

Random Thoughts

I was asked on Myspace to do this, and for the life of me, I don't know why I did, but here it is again..

I have been "tagged", by yet another e-version of the old chain letters we used to write as kids. I suppose, just this once, I will succumb to the temptation and respond. I am supposed to write 16 random things about myself, then, choose 10 people to force this upon. And, I believe there is a " no tag-back rule" So here goes....

Random thoughts:
1. Today, I wish I had a British accent, because, I have realized that everything I say would be much more interesting if I said it with a British accent.

2. I need to go back to Europe. I just finished interviewing someone who spent all semester in Barcelona, and I was insanely jealous. I miss Europe.

3. I am currently on a Chuck Palahnuik kick, and have been reading or re-reading all of his books. I am currently on Choke, which is about a sex addict/medical school dropout. (Palahnuik wrote Fight Club, for all of my non-literary friends, as a point of reference)

4. I have always wanted to write a book, maybe one day I will really do it, though, to be honest, I probably won't, since my writer side most identifies with Johnny Depp's character in Secret Window ( by no means my favorite film) in which he is either asleep, or drinking, or crazy the entire time he is attempting to write.. and this particular lifestyle doesn't fit neatly into my work schedule.

5. I may have completely lost all respect for Edward Norton, I am not sure about this yet, but I have a feeling it might be coming... as he will be the Hulk. Aside from Batman, and Xmen, all the other comic book inspired films have sucked. Sorry if you like Spiderman, but you cannot tell me that Toby Mcquire, and Kirsten Dunst are superior actors, and, by the way, the special effects in those movies... well... yeah.. not so much. But remember, if you will, Catwoman, The Punisher, Daredevil, Elektra, and the new Superman, can you really tell me any of those are good?

6. My boss has no concept of time and space. This is because he is a multi-millionaire who commands his own functionality without it. This is also very frustrating for me on a daily basis, as the rest of the world demands a certain level respect for the laws of nature.

7. I think I might have forgotten to put deodorant on today. Though, I cannot be sure, as I was in a hurry and still half asleep this morning. I sprayed body spray on myself once I arrived to work, just in case. So far, I don't think I smell, but nevertheless I hate when that happens.

8.If I write really long random things, can I only write 8, instead of 16?

9. In my opinion, truly intelligent people do not ever have to offer proof. ( ie: what school they attended, their gpa and test scores, or awards; they may have these things, but they are unnecessary)

10. Apparently, Pledge can repair scratched CD's. Who knew?

11. I have read, enjoyed and own the entire work, The Divine Comedy by Dante. (Not just The Inferno but the ENTIRE work.)

12. VOX POP is the place to be! Leave comments, I live for comments. Hey, since you are already here... leave a comment.

13. I often hum, Hard Days Night by The Beatles, and I think this might be a result of my mother listening to them often while she was pregnant with me, and also throughout the better part of my childhood. As a side note, the order of songs and all the lyrics, on Anthology 1 are also burned into my memory.

14. " I know the Hancock Building, will eclipse the afternoon moon"

15. Even though I crave the city, and love the fact that it feels alive, I am still and always will be a hillbilly at heart. Need proof? 5 facts: I listen to Country Music. (not exclusively, but still...) I will go barefoot most of the summer. I prefer a pick up to a car. I say, " y'all". I know how to ride a horse,change a flat tire, jump a car and cast a fishing pole.

16. My favorite Bruce Willis movie is, Last Man Standing.

Names not included in this version

A.

Mutant Graffiti Terrorizes City Streets

Andrea found this awesome video. Amazing stuff.

MUTO a wall-painted animation by BLU from blu on Vimeo.



A wall painting comes to life and creeps across the cities of Buenos Aires and Baden in Blu's frighteningly amazing stop animation. Blu's character morphs into different shapes, sizes and creatures. At one point you even follow its teeth as they leap out of his mouth and trot across the sidewalk. The black and white artwork is surprisingly simple but what it produces is a total mind bend. It's titled MUTO: An Ambiguous Animation Painted On Public Walls. View the whole video after the jump.

Blu has been creating his public art across the country for years. You can see his work in London, Berlin and all over Argentina. [Bluvia Slashfilm]

Answers

YES! We want you to come for the weekend. YES! We want everyone to visit. The more the merrier. I have been bugging D. to call you (all) and he has apparently yet to do so. YES! You can try the cute little coffee shop on our street, and go to the beach with us, and play with our giant great dane puppy.

Call us. We will make plans.

Scouting on Scout

For the past three or four years, A. and I have taken great interest in the happenings on the 41st floor of the Rhodes Tower in Columbus, Ohio where Scout the peregrine falcon will often lay her clutch of eggs. Last year, there were no fledglings, but hopefully this year we will get to see some baby falcons. It has become a habit/tradition of ours to flip over to ODNR's page to check and see how the incubation is going on their streaming falcon cam.

http://ohiodnr.com/wildlife/dow/falcons/live_nestbox_video.aspx

D.