Wednesday, December 20, 2006

The Quandry of the Bathing Cat.

Why the HELL to cats hate water so much? It's madness. If you have seen a wet angry cat then you can appreciate the genius of this:

How To Bathe a Cat:

1. Thoroughly clean the toilet.
2. Add the required amount of shampoo to the toilet water, and have both lids lifted.
3. Obtain the cat and soothe him while you carry him towards the bathroom.
4. In one smooth movement, put the cat in the toilet and close both lids (you may need to stand on the lid so that he cannot escape).
CAUTION: Do not get any part of your body too close to the edge, as his paws will be reaching out for any
purchase they can find.
5. Flush the toilet three or four times. This provides a 'power wash and rinse' which I have found to be quite effective.
6. Have someone open the door to the outside and ensure that there are no people between the toilet and the outside door.
7. Stand behind the toilet as far as you can, and quickly lift both lids.
8. The now-clean cat will rocket out of the toilet, and run outside where he will dry himself.

http://philadelphia.craigslist.org/about/best/van/238094636.html

I'm getting married in three days. Fortunately it doesn't feel even remotely real yet. Maybe I'm the cat. maybe the toliet bowl is the cemomony but after those three or four flushes I can "rocket out" dry off and I'll be a better cat than I was before I went in.


Today's Song of the Day is "Hang Onto Yourself" by David Bowie off his 1972 album "The Rise And Fall Of Ziggy Stardust And The Spiders From Mars."

Crazy Fact: In 1977, he helmed Iggy Pop's comeback records The Idiot and Lust for Life, and toured anonymously as Pop's keyboardist.

njoy

Friday, December 15, 2006

Going to the Chapel and we're taking a vallium.

Here is a video of me after the ceremony is over and I realize I never EVER have to do that again.

http://www.elfyourself.com/?userid=b540ee109ac06238d3d5676_20061207

This also the outfit I've picked out for the honeymoon suite. And if your coming to the wedding this is the dance we are all going to do in celebration of this joyous day... except the ceremony part of the day. I want to skip the ceremony. I can't really find many allies on this one. I'm incredibly nervous about this ceremony business. I like the being married part, I just don't like the ceremony part. I need a way to calm the nerves so I don't have a panic attack. I'm thinking vallium. That's the only thing in my bag of tricks so far, but if anyone to lend me a trick ot two, it would be super handy. I've always said I'll need a diaper or a gurney to make it through the ceremony. I thought I was joking. Now I'm not so sure. I'd perfer a stretcher to a totally panic attack meltdown, like space mountain, where I scream like a bat uncontrollably. It was ok in the dark and on a rollercoster, but in a hall in front of all my friends and new family... not really an option, more like a very real nightmare.


Today's Song of the Day is "Psycho Killer" by Talking Heads off their 1977 album "Talking Heads: 77".

Crazy Fact: In 1976, keyboardist Jerry Harrison, a former member of Jonathan Richman's Modern Lovers, was added to the lineup.

njoy

Tuesday, December 12, 2006

It's been that long.

Hey everybody. I only have one exam left and I get married in just under two weeks.

This is one of those situations where you have too much to say so you say nothing. Where to start? Well I'll make make small talk instead. Three things that I find astounding:

They are making a Moon Base. ( Dude!!!)
They found flowing water on Mars. (Evian has bought the rights... Joking)
Sarah quit smoking. (Love that girl.)
Boeing has invented a solar panel that captures 40% of the suns energy (Ok 4 Things. That's up from 18%)

That's the kinda solar panels they have in the world which burns no oil. That stops interfering in the affairs of the middle east, that doesn't create CO2 and allows you to generate your own power. I like that world. That world also has a base on the moon, which is very very 70s TV of them.

Ok the C++ is calling me.


Today's Song of the Day is "The Prettiest Star" by David Bowie off his 1973 album "Aladdin Sane."

Crazy Fact: I'm Alive.

njoy

Friday, October 27, 2006

Bell Curve

On the day I had to write the mid-term exam in question I found out the following three facts:

1. Last year the highest mark was 28/40
2. 3 People passed it
3. The average mark was 35% (out of 100%)

I was already scared shit-less. This just made it worse. I wrote everything I could find on to index cards. I studied them like I've never studied before. Because the week before I found out 3 other facts:

1. The class I'm taking is widely regarded as the hardest course in the school. (Must be an exaggeration... right?!)
2. Professor: "I've made the easiest exam I've ever made in my career... but I said that last year... and the year before... but the point is that it's the easiest yet." (I shiver as a swift cloak of fear darkens my future.)
3. Many, many students fail the course... one guy in my class is taking it for the third time.

Now I've written it and I blew it. The most frustrating part is that it wasn't because I didn't know the material, but because I didn't finish. So 25% of my mark will be a zero.

I can't shake it. It's driving me crazy. It's precisely the reason why academia is rotten in the middle. Success in academia proves you are successful in academia not that you understand a given topic. enforced anti-collaberation and performance under strict time-contrants... how close you can reach an unreachable goal are the domian of academia. I am bad at tests and passing work on time. These two things will keep my marks down. The conselation prize is that there are no tests in the "real world" and I've met very very few deadlines that couldn't be pushed back a few days. and furthermore, individual effort is much less valuable than group productivity. SO my failings will be inconsequential "out-there" but man is it hard on me in here.

At this point my only hope is that the bell curve swings me above water.


Today's song of the Day is "Gayane Suite No. 1: vii. Adagio for Gayaneh" Conducted by Gennadi Rezhdestvensky, composed by Aram Khatchaturian in 1941.

Crazy Fact: The Plot of this Ballet is the main character Gayane, helps entrap a spy bent on stealing Soviet geological secrets.

njoy

Tuesday, October 17, 2006

I have to come up for air...

It's been so fucking long since i've done this I just had explain.

I've never worked harder in my life 12 hours a day one break to eat, one break to walk home then eat then work till the drugs wear off.

It's both envigorating and exhausting. I'm giv'n er. Really giv'n er.

One story from this all the echos with me everyday. I'm taking a course called CSCI 3110 Algorithms. It's the most failed course in our Computer Science Department. On the last assignment one half the class failed one quarter of whom got ZERO on their assignment, to which he commented the marks are still higher than he would have liked.

zero. No 'E' for effort here. FUCK!! it's terrifies me.

Last class he was writing a 'rigorous' proof of the 'master theorem' on the board (which solves recurance relations the "easy way" please note the irony when I say that) and NOT ONLY did he RUN OUT of lowercase roman letters and had to resort lower case greek alphabet to continue, but he got it wrong... HE got it wrong. SO will start again from the top next class.

One big problem for me is I don't know what lower case ALPHA, lower case THETA and OMEGA so when he points to the mysterious mess of symbols on the board and says in a feint german accent:


HIM: "the important thing to notice here is alpha.."

IN MY HEAD: "WHICH ONE! which one- where is he looking- what's he point at is that "L" looking one? Maybe maybe it's the "w" looking one. maybe the half-infinity-thing? WHICH ONE!"

HIM: "As our geometric series approaches infinity our q goes to 2 and we know can drop constants..."

IN MY HEAD: "YAAAAAH I understood that! WHERE THE FUCK IS ALPHA?!"

HIM: "So theta of n log a minus small omega to the base of b minus 1 over n to the i log q to the base b..."

IN MY HEAD: "...don't let them see you cry..."


BTW Happy post-wedding bliss Dennis and Antje. I'm a self-involved turd for not saying congratulations till now. Dennis, does this mean you are officially a German?


Today's Song of the Day is "99 Red Balloons" by Nena off her 1984 album "99 Luftballons." (I couldn't find the German one.)

Crazy Fact: In 2005, her album 'Willst Du Mit Mir Gehn', went platinum. She is still... it's 20 years later! crazy!

njoy

Saturday, September 23, 2006

My Girlfriend is Cooler than Me.

Some people buy tickets to see the rolling stones, cool people get well paid to see the rolling stones and work the VIP lounge, other people stay home and break open Vitamin B capsules to see what's inside and clean the drain of their very cool girlfriends hair...sigh...

I suppose I'm just distracting myself from my own uncool-ness while my very cool girlfriend excitedly puts on make up and pumps 'stones on the stereo, dancing, happy, cool.

Life ain't fair.

At first I talked all this shit like who fucking cares... it's just the a bunch of old fuckers... That's all bull. Crank any of their many classic tunes and you'll feel the pull. it will be a great show.

I hope it rains... No I don't. Gawd... I wish I hoped that it rained.

Sigh, goes the loser...


Today's Song of the Day is "Dead flowers" by The Rolling Stones off their 1971 album "Sticky fingers."

Crazy Fact: ...sigh...

njoy

Friday, September 22, 2006

Power corrupts

If these guys were still in charge of this Continent I don't think this would have happened.
http://youtube.com/watch?v=oaHyuWgir8U

There's a problem here. Why the hell did this cop have to pepper spray a 17 year old girl. When no only was she innocent, but not violent or running for it. AND you know where to find her, because you are confronting her at her Job.

"Cleared of all wrong-doing." This is my new favourite form of bull-shit.


Today's Song of the Day is "Play With Fire" by The Rolling Stones off thier 1965 album "Out Of Our Heads."

Crazy Fact: They are causeing a crazy circus in Downtown Halifax tomarrow, with over 70,000 in attendance. Is this Halifax?

njoy

Monday, September 18, 2006

Banned Documentary

http://video.google.com/videoplay?docid=359924937663867563

It's quite disturbing.


Today's Song of the Day is "No Quarter" by Led Zeppelin off their 1973 album "Houses of the Holy".

Crazy Fact: This documentary's still got me a little fucked up. I don't have one.

njoy

Wednesday, September 13, 2006

All of these guys are just like the others

It only happens like this in movies. Our Hero goes into his Computer Science Class and the biggest geek in the room isn't our hero, it's not the guy who sat beside him, but the proffessor. All the following comments were said in the the first class:

"To explain the concept of the Dyad... Who here has played Dungeons and Dragons?" (silence, everyone of us afraid to admit the truth)

"Does anyone remember the old Infocom games, specifically Hitchikers guide to the Galaxy, which douglas Adam wrote himself?"

"That remind me of a Joke." (which is neither funny nor dirty)

"Has anyone here seen the last episode of 'Buffy'."

"On the plane to texas, I was really lucky find they had the last episode of the original Star Trek."

He wears a huge tie, suspenders and a huge backpack, expertly straped down. wow. picture it.

He made a monty python and the Holy Grail Joke which nobody got and then explained it to the class (The Holy Hand Grenade).

He bemoaned that when he was in undergrad his classmates were better versed in Star Trek, D&D and the like... In fact we all knew what he was talking about, we just didn't want to admit it.

We all quietly sat, looking about the room for someone to break, someone to follow, then settling in thinking the same thing "Shhh it's a secret. As long as I don't blow my cover. I'm the computer science student who's cool, that's me, I'm that guy. I can do it."


Today's Song of the Day is "Lucy with Diamonds" by William Shatner off his 1968 album "The Transformed Man."

Crazy Fact: Has a business degree from McGill University.

njoy

Tuesday, September 12, 2006

Not all Americans are sheep.

Here's a piece commentary quoted from MSNBC:

And anyone who claims that I and others like me are "soft,"or have "forgotten" the lessons of what happened here is at best a grasping, opportunistic, dilettante and at worst, an idiot whether he is a commentator, or a Vice President, or a President.

It's all very good. but pro-american, but that's to be expected. baby steps.


Today's Song of the Day is "Prelude for piano No.6 in G minor, Op. 23/5" performed by Vladimir Horowitz off his album "Horowitz Encores" composed by Sergei Rachmaninov in 1901.

Crazy Fact: The dismal reception of Rachmaninov's Symphony No. 1, led to an extended period of depression and self-doubt, which he overcame with the aid of hypnosis.

njoy

Monday, September 11, 2006

Oh yeah 9/11...

five year anniversary... interesting... Anyway back to things that happened in THIS country. I was at the grocery store buying milk and the guy at the checkout was pretty old and yet still a spry lookin' guy. I looked at his tag "John: a valued employee since 1956."
I counting on my fingers and then thought "HOLY SHIT! That's fifty years." That mean's he has got to be at least 65 unless that was back in day before child labour laws. So he must be retiring, like, now. A Whole 50 years at one job. fuck man, that's serious. what a narrow view of the world, but what a unique detailed slice of the universe he must have in his head.

Crazy. Almost as crazy as this super-fucking-freakey picture.


Today's Song of the Day is "I Walk The Line" by Johnny Cash off his 1956 album "Johnny Cash With His Hot and Blue Guitar."

Crazy Fact: Hey watch the movie.

njoy

Sunday, September 10, 2006

Vomit Comet

Wow. I went on the Cat on the way back from Bar Harbour and it wasn't fun. It goes pretty fast, but man it's make people ill.

I start feeling pretty bad after we hit full speed. The rocking at that point was severe enough that you couldn't walk without at least one hand on the rail at all times. I trying looking outside. that made it worse. I tried walking around. It was distracting but I kept seeing people looking green and forlorn or tying close used barf bags, which was not encouraging. I finally couldn't take it and went to the can and sat in a stall. I refused to throw-up, though my body felt it was imparitive, I knew it wouldn't help.

I sat there for 2 hours and 5 minutes. I heard this terrible movie 'RV' over the speaker system. It wasn't helping. I thought it would be funny to say "robin william's new movie was so bad I puked through it", but again, not worth it. While I sat there trying to find my happy place, I heard people puking all around me. You'd think it would send me over the edge, but actually each time I heard that heaving and spattering A half smile would grow across my face. Puking is always funny, but more than that I felt a sense of victory. An evil sense of victory, a kind of "nay nay puker! I you suck. I didn't puke, but you did! nay nay." It kept me going.

I held on, I made it and at this point I have to thank the pukers for making that possible.


Today's Song of the Day is "Cherub Rock" by The Smashing Pumpkins off their 1993 album "Siamese Dream"

Crazy Fact: Bassist D'Arcy Wretzky and guitarist James Iha had a messy break-up just before this album was recorded.

njoy

Saturday, September 09, 2006

Let The Book Geek Awaken!

Beware... You may lose many hours of you life if you follow this link. Signing up is far too easy. I though I'd give it a try I put in one book, looked at it, then ran to my book shelf grabbed a chunk of books and entered them. I'm trying to control myself. It's hard. Here is my Collection so far.

Finding the exact cover of my copy is the true source of my obsession.

AND I've added a LibraryThing Widget to this page scroll down and You'll see it.


Today's Song of the Day is "Bookends Theme" by Simon & Garfunkel off their 1966 album "Bookends."

Crazy Fact: No time for crazy Facts I gotta log some more books.

njoy

Friday, September 08, 2006

Strange Places at Home.

I went to Cape Sable Island over the Labour Day weekend. It's the southernest part of Nova Scotia. It was so populated. I had no idea so many people lived there, but everybody had expertly painted signs with the names on them "Patty and Buzzy Smith" and "Joanne and George McNab". I just thought what if I put a sign in front of my apartment "Pif and Sarah" here in the scarey ol' north end... a little out of place. I'd say over 50% of the homes had signs like this.

But the coolest thing was they had a beach called "The Hawk" not a super-hero a beach. fucking cool. And on this beach, only visible at low tide was "The Drowned Forest" I have expected to see Frodo and Sam creeping around the seaweed with gollum in tow. No hobbits to be seen however.


Today's Song of the Day is "In A Big Country" by Big Country off their 1983 album "The Crossing."

Crazy Fact: On December 16, 2001 Stuart Adamson was found dead in a hotel room in Hawaii. He had been missing for several weeks from his Nashville, Tennessee home.

njoy

Wednesday, September 06, 2006

America Drives an SUV

I just got back from Bar Harbour, Maine. Every server in every restaurant, every hotel porter, all the front desk people were from away, far away, like Russia, Poland, Argentina, Hungary it was bizarre and with thick accents, not born in the usa just working. It was so weird. I can only think that they are on a student exchange program or something. THis wasn't like NYC or something this was freeaking MAINE!

Doesn't anyone know what the fuck?!


Today's Song of the Day is "Immigrant Song" by Led Zeppelin off their 1970 album "Led Zeppelin III"

Crazy Fact: The 1990 box set Led Zeppelin became the biggest-selling multi-disc box set of all time.

njoy

Tuesday, August 29, 2006

The Bull


The human ear has an amazing detection system for bullshit. Unfortunately, the evil people know this. They disable our built-in systems with our greatest weakness, fear. In this case it's Fear of looking stupid or being wrong. When someone says "disintermediate extensible infrastructures" or "benchmark proactive ROI" we nod and and try not to show fear as we 'calmly' walk away. Just the same as if they were to say "emmient terrorist threat."

Here is another of my favorite forms of bullshit, the Post-Modern Essay. This computer program makes nearly perfectly randomly non-sensical essays. I personally find it vindicating. Pomo bites all.

Since this(automated creative sensible 'text/thought' generation) is kinda what I'm going to do when I grow up I thought I might share.


Today's Song of the Day is "True Colors" by Cindi Lauper off her 1986 album "True Colors"

Crazy Fact: Cindi Lauper filed for bankruptcy in 1980.

njoy

Monday, August 28, 2006

Disturb me right out the door.


NSA Wiretapping Whistleblowers Found Dead in Italy and Greece

What the hell?! I think, maybe the joke is over and it's time to move into the mountain with a truckload of shotguns and fear. This is pretty scarey to me, especially the lack of press on the subject.

This shit makes Hugo Chávez’s paranoia seem grounded. He has good fuckin' reason to be scared. He'll be the next iraq.

I think I'm about to be welcomed into the paranoid world of the survivalists. Ulo... is that you?


Today's Song of the Day is "Tomorrow, Wendy" by Concrete Blonde off their 1990 album "Bloodletting."

Crazy Fact: In 1987 Dream 6 signed to I.R.S. and changed its name to Concrete Blonde at the suggestion of labelmate Michael Stipe.

njoy

Sunday, August 27, 2006

Laughing at is funnier

Maybe it's anything with a humiliation that's funny, I don't know, but what I do know is
I wish people would get it in there head that good taste and humour have nothing to do with each other. They aren't opposites they aren't even on the same plane of existence. For example people getting hurt (especially tripping) and hurting themselves is funny. So funny in fact that the japanese have a funny as hell show Most Extreme Elimination Challange based entirely on, and exploring every nuace of this facinating subject and it fucking kills me.

But this video is my point (click this and laugh you're hole off)

Some people think it's funny as long as they don't get hurt.
Some people think it's funny as long as someone doesn't get seriously hurt.
Some people think it's funny as long as someone doesn't die.

Whatever pick your flavour, but the Darwin awards are funny for a reason.


Today's Song of the Day is "Le Pain Perdu" by Cibo Matto off thier 1996 album "Viva! La Woman."

Crazy Fact: This whole album, Viva! La Woman, is about food.

njoy

Friday, August 25, 2006

Slow Ninja Theatre


This is an Interesting bit of theatre and pretty funny too. 225 people went to Home Depot and shopped in slow motion. There's lots of video on you tube.

Back in the day this is the stuff I liked to do. It's not stale like the rest, this is the kind of theatre that won't be over taken by a better way to tell stories (ie movies, TV, and in some cases video games.) These forms have made theatre into a history lesson for the mainstream population. But the employees of Home Depot had an intense reaction was, this reached them in a way a movie can't, same for the performers. Here, they are all participants, audience and performer, theatre done to them not for them, that's the stuff baby, that's what I like.


Today's Song of the Day is "Somebody's Watching Me" by Rockwell off his 1984 album "Somebody's Watching Me."

Crazy Fact: Rockwell aka Kennedy Gordy is the son of Motown founder Berry Gordy, and friends with Michael Jackson, wow that a tough life, how could you ever fail in the music industry with family and friends like that? Well after this single he found a way.

njoy

Thursday, August 24, 2006

Comic Commentary

Do have any idea how many times I had the phrase "War is hell kid. Dyin' is easy, it's livin' that's hard." I wonder what kind of effect the war comic Ethos has had on my ethical development. The more i read of these comics the more i see how anti-war they really are. Comics taught me that unless you have super-powers or are a viking or a cool name you are going to get killed and it's gonna suck. Maybe that's why I'm a Pif now? Hmmm...

On a side note I can't believe the New York Times made an analogy between the morning after pill and Lollipops:

"Both sides are wrong, studies suggest. Couples in the United States have so much unprotected sex — half of all pregnancies are unplanned — that even if the pills were passed out like lollipops, they would be unlikely to cause a major change in abortion and disease rates."

Today's Song of the Day is "The Carnival of the Animals: 13. The Swan" Composed by Camille Saint-Saëns.

Crazy Fact: Saint-Saëns had two children, they died within six weeks of each other, one from a four-story fall. very very shitty.

njoy

Tuesday, August 22, 2006

Smell my ass


"Hey do you wanna go for a long drive along the coast and smell my ass?"

Not very inviting, yet, being in a car for a long time with someone basically means you are going to smell there ass, as they are going to fart. Sometimes loud, most times foul and sometimes secretly, silently, with no remorse. You see I fart a lot and we travelled in a van, 6 of us. The smell factory was busy. Can you imagine how bad the Mystery Machine smelt?! Scooby and shaggie constantly eating, and dog farts to be sure are the foulest. No wonder they made them sit in the back.

My robot army won't fart.


Today's Song of the Day is "Mr. Roboto" by Styx off their 1983 album "Kilroy Was Here".

Crazy Fact: Dennis DeYoung was briefly ousted from Styx in the late 70s.

njoy

Monday, August 21, 2006

Newfs on the Beaches

The nazis didn't bomb the wedding I went to in newfoundland, but I'll tell you no weddings on public beaches.

No attempt made by parents to shut there kids up or stop yaking for a few minutes just too little material stretched over too much flesh and screaming kids.


The Marring them guy: Repeat after me...

Some kid: I pooped in the waaater!

Someother kid: EEEEEEeeeeeee!


And so on and so forth. But the weather was beautiful. And truthfully Mark and Laurie were too blissed-out/nervous to notice.


Today's Song of the Day is "The Streak" by Ray Stevens off his 1974 album "Boogity Boogity."

Crazy Fact: In 1963, he played with Elvis Presley himself on the sessions for the Fun in Acapulco soundtrack.

njoy

Thursday, August 17, 2006

I KNEW that Superman was a Dick!

This is just the proof we need. It's also a key piece of evidence in my case the DC comics suck. Superman in his lameness and unbridled dick-dickery... I lost my thought. he sucks. and so does the boat he came to the crappy planet on. suck sucks sucky bites.

It seems that, for no good reason, I got my eye on comics, my brain has seized upon it and can think of nothing else.

Today's Song of the Day is "Fire and Rain" by James Taylor off his 1970 album "Sweet Baby James".

Crazy Fact: This is about the suicide of a fellow inmate of Taylor's at a mental institution.

njoy

Wednesday, August 16, 2006

a denial


I'm deep into some kind of a war comic mania.

If I go to one more wedding before my own I'm gonna snap. I'm going to Newfoundland for a wedding this weekend. I guess that means I'm gonna snap. I think I'll choose to think of this as just a glorious trip to Newfoundland. I'll title it "Our trip to Newfoundland." and oh look a wedding along the way. I think that's the best I can do, and I'm afraid it's not a very convincing form of denial. It definitely won't hold up under cross-examination. I'll have to ask for a continuance or a mistrial at this point, er, whatever... some sort of lawyer's tricks is necessary at this point in the courthouse of my mind, in the trial for my sanity. "Granted!" Court will have a recess for a week or so while the defendant comes up with a less shabby form of denial, and yes your objection has been noted on the record which the court reporter will shred momentarily. WHACK!"

wicked.


I think this song was in every Vietnam War movie ever.



Today's Song of the Day is "White Rabbit" by Jefferson Airplane off their 1967 album "Surrealistic Pillow."

Crazy Fact: The name of this band was suggested by there guitarist who had once jokingly been dubbed "Blind Thomas Jefferson Airplane" by a friend in reference to the blues singer Blind Lemon Jefferson.

Tuesday, August 15, 2006

All-Out War!

I remember loving this ad. Drooling, staring at it, as if these items would materialize if I just stayed still long enough, concentrating on my desire for them.

You see, I found a site which had 2,891 DC comics ready to be downloaded in .cbr format. It was shutdown by noon. crappy. In that brief blissful glipse into my past. I saw this ad which transported me through time and space to rural nova scotia, digging under Bruces' bed for blesséd Kenner treasures and being richly rewarded. Oh the star wars branded pleasures were infinite then. (...sigh)

It made me kinda pissed off at the comics code er whatever for taking the ads out of comics. Those were some of my favorite parts. Whoopee cusions, disappearing ink, barf gum, all for only 10,000 bazooka joe comics... MAN! What a Steal!

It was way more interesting then 'the viking commando' and his catty supernatural companion 'Fey' adventures in war war war and *yawn* more war. I can't believe I read all those crappy war comics.


Today's Song of the Day is "Games Without Frontiers" by Peter Gabriel off "Peter Gabriel."

Crazy Fact: He has a three albums named peter gabriel.

njoy

Monday, August 14, 2006

Grandpa Internet

This is pretty sweet. A new internet star is born. known as 'geriatric1927'. He's an 79 year old man and is now the number one subscription on Youtube. He is known as geriatric1927. He has a collection of videos up.

I wonder if the internet will be the new cure for geriatric loneliness?


Today's Song of the Day is "Not From Hens" by Ivor Cutler off his 1997 album "A Wet Handle."

Crazy Fact: In 1967, longtime fan John Lennon cast Cutler as Buster Bloodvessel in the Beatles' ill-fated Magical Mystery Tour project.

njoy

Sunday, August 13, 2006

Mike, Castro and Danielle

This is the kind of anti-imperialist propaganda I was programmed with as a youth. It was well disguised as a Pro-war comic book titled, "All Out War." And yet you can see the saavy irony in this passage, pointing finger at the itailian facists as real savages. Ah, Castro would be proud. Or maybe it's an obvious and over-simplified version of the harsh and complex reality. Hmmm.

Speaking of segways... er Castro, it's his birthday today (probably his last) and Mikes' and Danielles'. I see the Mike / Castro connection... I'm not sure how Danielle fits into it though. Why they hell do we give a crap about birthday's anyway? Like it's signifigant at all that these people have anything in common because of their birthday's are on the same day.


Today's Song of the Day is "Little Girl" by Death From Above 1979 off their 2004 album "You're a Woman, I'm a Machine".

Crazy Fact: They broke up earlier this year.

njoy

Thursday, August 10, 2006

Darwin

I wonder what he was thinking just before he made that very final very fatal swing. It lacks compassion to say "What is the last thought of a very stupid man?" But nonetheless I still wonder. It's unfortunately something I think all the time. Like:

"Should I do this? Fuck it." or
"Dude, this rules!" or
"I wonder what's inside? BOOOM!"

Welcome to the Darwin Awards my curious little dead cat.

And this is darwin's better side an austrailian bird that mimics chainsaws, (no shit!)


Today's Song of the Day is "Gully Low Blues" by Louis Armstrong off "The Best Of The Decca Years, Volume 2 - The Composer"

Crazy Fact: He signed over half his earnings to his agent.

njoy

Wednesday, August 09, 2006

The Eternal Geek uberquestion

Samurai fights Ninja, who wins?

A true samurai can never be caught off-guard and yet a true ninja can sneak up on anything.

This would be an essay question on the GeekSAT

samurai... very classy
ninja... B-movie

What say you?


Today's Song of the Day is "Please Me Like You Want To" by Ben Harper off his 1995 album "Fight for Your Mind"

Crazy Fact: I can't believe this album is 11 years old. That's nuts. Anyway I also think it's crazy that he opened for Radiohead Metallica and the Fugees could these bands be anymore different?

njoy

Friday, August 04, 2006

"You mother f****r. I'm going to f*** you."

Wow. Smell Gibson is a HUGE anti-semite just like his dear ole papa, the holocaust denier. He sucks, I've thought he sucked, since "The Passion of the Christ." Now we have proof of his turditude.

In case you don't know the story, He was arrested for Speeding and DUI and then went on a "Anti-semitic tirade" what a chump. Here is a link to a story which has a link to a copy of the police report.

Then there is apology. Lame. Unbelievable. clearly written by his publisist. I've worked at too many PR firm to buy this one.

There is a reason I don't get really drunk and say things like "Dennish I really reeeally wanna shuck yer cock." because I don't want to and I don't really think about sucking cocks. Who the hell does he think he is fooling? We've all been really drunk. We know what drunk does. I've repeated some terrible and tastless jokes, but never have I said "Fuck the Jews!" nor has anyone who isn't anti-semitic. I hope his career is an utter failure for the rest of time, but at the same time he keep trying so we can watch him blow all his dough in one failure after another. That would be cool.


Today's Song of the Day is "Jesus Is Just Alright" by the Doobie Brothers off the 1972 album "Toulouse Street."

Crazy Fact: Two Members of the Doobie Brother's were formerly in Steely Dan, Jeff "Skunk" Baxter and Michael McDonald.

njoy

Thursday, August 03, 2006

It's not the band I hate, it's their fans.

I'm not sure what I think about this video.

My problem is that it is such an easy sell to ignorant american flag wavers. I don't every want to agree with these idiots on anything, they are just so offensive.

But, I kinda feel like she is going to die really soon for saying these brave words. And that might be her point. I think christianity is full of shit, I'm allowed to say that and I don't feel like my life is at risk by saying that, nor is anyone going to beat me up. There is more danger in saying the same thing about Islam, I feel like there is, maybe it's just me. maybe it's the political climate effecting me.

Anyway watch the video, she's is a powerful speaker.


Today's Song of the Day is "Strange Brew: by Cream off their 1967 album "Disraeli Gears."

Crazy Fact: This song was originally titled "Lawdy Mama".

njoy

Wednesday, August 02, 2006

100 Buck Laptop

I dunno.

It's a great idea in so many ways. Hell it's certainly better then selling them guns. It's nice to see rich countries buuilding a product with poor countries in mind, instead of as an after thought, if at all.

But..Will it fit? Is it a cultural arrogance to believe that they will want to use them? We, in the west, sit around alot. TV, Movies, Video games, internet, email, desk jobs, driving, eating out. We sit alot so we like to do this that involve sitting. Maybe they'd get bored or wouldn't get it. Like why play a video of soccer when you can just play soccer? We think the opposite. Why play solitare with cards when we can play it on the computer?

Watch the video and tell me what you think.


Today's Song of the Day is "Ce Matin-La" by Air off their 1998 album "Moon Safari."

Crazy Fact: Their soundscapes are composed on old-school gear like Moogeses and Rhodeses, not fancy new gear, dudes can you tell. get smoove bitches.

njoy

Tuesday, August 01, 2006

School's out

No school for a month. weird.

People keep asking me if I get burnt out taking classes all year around without a break. No way man, I'm too old. I want to get on with it. Why postpone life by 2 years. "But Pif...life is happening right now... look around, the world is-" Shut it, Yeah, I know, bite me. Don't give me that crap. Life is that time spent when you spending the money you are making, not the time you spend borrowing it, planning on making it and trying not to starve. That is the kindest of human hells, most tollerable of limbos, the quasi-life known to most as "the student lifestyle."

Why the HELL would I want to spend anymore of my life than is necessary in this cage, where most of life's oppurtunies are unavailable to me? GRRRrr.

I don't think I should've brought this up. I have to focus on my killer robots, that an my dreams of revenge will get me through this.


Today's Song of the Day is "One Way Or Another" by Blondie off their 1978 album "Parallel Lines."

Crazy Fact: Chris Stein became seriously ill with the genetic disease pemphigus vulgaris and broke up the band.

njoy

Sunday, July 23, 2006

I can't believe they run the planet

This is an example of american brilliance.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=DClkE64nFDY

This is why people left for north america a zillion years ago to get away from the fools... Can I come back? I think they followed me here.


Today's Song of the Day is "Concerto Grosso Op. 6 No. 10 in D Minor: i. Overture" Performed by Capella Istropolitana, Conducted by Josef Kopelman, Composed by George Frideric Handel in 1739.

Crazy Fact: He fought a duel with the composer Matheson over the accompaniment to one of Matheson’s operas. Wow!

njoy

Wednesday, July 19, 2006

A First

Well, I'm not sure what to think.

I was going to send this song yesterday. Today I noticed that this song is ranked the number one download at iTunes Store. That's never happened before.

I'm always sending some god awful bowie song from the 70s or some jazz tune from the 40s and the like. I'm not sure what to think. I really like this song. It's stuck in my head. You'll probably like it too.

This is Weird.


Today's Song of the Day is "Crazy" by Gnarls Barkley off his 2006 album "St. Elsewhere."

Crazy Fact: One of the member of this duo, Danger Mouse, concocted The Grey Album, a bootleg that mashed the vocals from "The Black Album" by Jay-Z with music samples courtesy of "The White Album" by the Beatles. Sounds great but we'll never hear it, due to a cease-and-desist order. Copyright is killing this artform.

njoy

Tuesday, July 18, 2006

Who by fire.

Hey they're making a feature documentary about Leonard Cohen. I guess that means they think he is going to die soon.


Today's Song of the Day is "Chelsea Hotel No. 2" by Leonard Cohen off his 197 album "New Skin for the Old Ceremony."

Crazy Fact: This song is about Janis Joplin.

njoy

Sunday, July 16, 2006

To Enoble The Geek

I believe there are four pillars of classic geekdom:

Lord of Rings (D&D, Frazetta, Sorcery, Undead...)
Comics (Super Heroes, Graphic Novels, Manga...)
Space (Star Trek, Star Wars, sci-fi...)

What I always thought was interesting about Geekdom is it's really just an imaginative view of reality. Swords and Sorcery is just a fantasy of the past, super heroes/villans and monster movies/comics are present filtered through a what-if-o-tron and Sci-fi is just an imaginative look at the future. They are all a magical view of the world, past present and future. Whether it's 'the Force' or 'Genetic mutation', or 'Spells' it's the manifestation of the possiblities.

It accepts and endulges the unknown. An exaggeration maybe, but I think it taps the awe the amazement of a child, new to this strange world, that we've all felt. When the rules of the world are strange to us, it's feels like magic, like there are no limits. If you think about what might have been if we were never told the limits (true or false) we have the view of the geek.

I'm inspired. I'm officially declaring my intention to make a GeekSAT. I need contributors (Ulo, Caleb, Jason, Mike I'm thinking of you dorks.)

I'm going to make a geek test. The higher the score the bigger a geek you are. Official rating and ID Card will be presented to you after marking. I was inspired by this Article: Meet the Geek Elite.

You better know you HitDice, Vampire Clans, Supervillans, Programming languages and be able to name every GI JOE and GoBot. So listen up. If you have an unhealthy collection of uncool knowledge, form a question and answer and sent it to me. JUST DO IT!

For example:

1. Name one wizard from Lord of the Rings who wasn't mentioned in the Peter Jackson version.
2. Name three Droid from Star Wars.
3. Who endows mortals with the Power Cosmic?


Today's Song of the Day is "Get Off Of My Cloud" by The Rolling Stones off their 1965 album "December's Children (and everybody's)"

Crazy Fact: This is the last Stones album in which cover material accounted for 50 percent of the content.

njoy

Saturday, July 15, 2006

Who needs PR when you have a Monopoly

RIAA is out of control. Two new facts have come to my attention:

RIAA Says Ripping CDs to Your iPod is NOT Fair Use.
http://www.eff.org/deeplinks/archives/004409.php

Lyrics Sites Next Targets For Content Groups?
http://www.pcmag.com/article2/0,1895,1989235,00.asp

So it's not legal to make the music you've bought into mp3s and it's not legal to download lyrics for a song you've bought as either an mp3 or a CD.

If they could they would ban it from libraries. There is no doubt in my mind that if the idea of the library was concieved of right now, it illegal or sued by the RIAA. Hell they still might sue them.

This is an ugly sort of greed. They have sued 18,000 people for downloading music in the name of musicians, no musician has seen a cent of that money.

They can shit where they eat because they have a monopoly. Lyrics?! Are they going to sue me if I sing a song walking down the street? not today, but it's coming.


Today's Song of the Day is "Both Hands" by Ani DiFranco off her 1989 debut "Ani DiFranco."

Crazy Fact: Here is a musician that made a career for herself without a record company doing what a musician should do; performing non-stop, writing non-stop and recording non-stop. Is she worried about piracy? On her CDs it reads "Copying, while sometimes necessary, is never as good as the real thing." very very cool.

njoy

Thursday, July 13, 2006

Pictures

This one is about amazing pictures.

http://www.dailymail.co.uk/pages/live/articles/news/news.html?in_article_id=395512&in_page_id=1770

http://www.flickr.com/photos/artsyscience/51311029/in/set-72157594150554407/

http://www.flickr.com/photos/alternate/sets/199123/


Today's Song of the Day is "Don't Stand So Close To Me" by The Police off their 1980 album "Zenyatta Mondatta."

Crazy Fact: The Police most recently reunited to play Sting's wedding in 1992.

njoy

Wednesday, July 12, 2006

Take a walk on the Geek Side.

ok ok ok so you've heard me talk about this "Geek Beer" thing that happens in the Computer Science Building, well Now I can bring it home to you in pictures and most importantly movies:

If you want to see the geeks rock. Go here.

Just incase you forget or don't know. Almost every friday of the year all the little geeks come out of their little geek holes, away from their bright screens, away from there little geek tasks and log out of their little geek machines. Each one excited to socialize and frolic again at 'Geek Beer' with all the other geeks. They put on there most geekiest finery, one geek will where his authentic 1984 "Commodore 64" T-shirt; another will put on her "I 'heart' Steve Jobs" head-band. Still another will the lucky Twenty-SIded Die which brought Korack the 12th Barabarian such glorious victory's against the imagined Spider Lord Loth's Drider's in "Q1 Queen of the Demonweb" in his best-friends wood panelled santuary so many moons ago. Perhaps it will again bring luck tonight and get him some victorious putang. Oh sweet nectar yet untasted!

(HAHAHAHAHA!)

Once there they all gather nervously watching each other, drinking cheap beer (2.50!) playing video games. and when they get drunk enought they fucking rock out. I hear the best version of "Fake Plastic Trees" in my life at geek beer, it was awesome. Some of the those geek girls can really belt it.

ok I'm done I got shit to do.


(please turn this one up...)

Today's Song of the Day is "White Unicorn" by Wolfmother off their 2006 album "Wolfmother."

Crazy Fact: No these guy aren't Sabbath these guys aren't even from the 70s these guy started in 2000. I think this is the band Dennis should have formed. I can totally see you writing, singing and recording this all with ectatic joy.

njoy

Monday, July 10, 2006

Oh My Canadian Ass

The computers are pretty packed in here in the Com Sci building. Not much room for air. I can hear people breathe behind me and beside me. It's not the sound I'm afraid of, it's the smell.

You see shitty thing is that farting is much more embarrassing than just the sounds they make. It's the smell that really gets me. Pushing it into the seat just isn't enough anymore. You see, I've learned to cook with my slow-cooker. Only slow-cooker chili can cook-up deep-down gas of that potency. Hot, Long and Silent. These slow-cooked creepers are deep-down deadly. (wow. illiteration. weird.) I'm powerless to stop these perfect killers.

First I try one out. Let it out, listening. Nothing. Excellent, no-one will know it's me. Stage one is a success. I wait a few seconds and take a whiff just to see what I'm dealing with here. When this monkey can't take his own smell... well I'm in trouble. It's bad, unnatural. The mantra in my head it "He who smelt it, delt it. He who..." I'm starting to sweat.

There a few ways you can tell if Canadians you don't know can smell your ass. First, they clear their throats. Then, eye's darting to identify the source. When that finds nothing their next move is to make excuses to look around 'naturally' to search out the tell-tale signs of the perpetrator pretending not to smell it. It's those scared lying eyes that give you away.

Look we've all done it. we all know what to look for. I've never been blame for a smell i didn't make and i've denied many smells i did. People know. They just know.

Eitherway, I'm sure people know. Next time I left, and released my shame on the way to the john. Hung around in the can for a while and came back. Didn't the bastard follow me. I just packed up my bags and when home where a can fart fearlessly and sit infront of the fan.


Today's Song of the Day is "West End Blues" by Louis Armstrong off the 1923 album "The Hot Fives Vol. 3."

Crazy Fact: "West End Blues" became one of the first recordings named to the Grammy Hall of Fame.

njoy

Friday, July 07, 2006

Ride the Lightning

People really do get hit by lightning. That's fucked up. So this guy gets hit by lightning and blames his iPod. dude. You got hit by lightning... and you are a-fucking-live. be happy shit-wit. It's pretty funny that he was listening to Metallica when he got fried. Maybe he stole the songs off napster?


Today's Song of the Day is "Battery" by Metallica off their 1986 album "Master of Puppets."

Crazy Fact: In 1986 their tour bus crashed while traveling in Sweden, killing Bassist Cliff Burton.

njoy

Thursday, July 06, 2006

Nice quick to the point

This is a great article well written, on writing. I needed to share it. Really it's short and everybody should read it. It'll only take a second.

http://www.badlanguage.net/?p=185

Gotta go.


Today's Song of the Day is "The Garden" by Cut Chemist off their 2006 album "The Audience's Listening."

Crazy Fact: Yes I sent a new one. crazy. bite me.

njoy

Wednesday, July 05, 2006

Late Canada Day

I meant to post this for C-Day. whatev'

The self-appointed guru of canadian music known as 'ghomi' 'the ghosmeshster' and more formally as Jian Ghomeshi has made the top 50 Canadian songs of all time list.

The 50 Tracks

Ian and Sylvia, "Four Strong Winds"
Barenaked Ladies, "If I Had $1,000,000"
Neil Young, "Heart of Gold"
Stan Rogers, "Northwest Passage"
The Guess Who, "American Woman"
Gordon Lightfoot, "Canadian Railroad Trilogy"
Joni Mitchell, "Both Sides Now"
Leonard Cohen, "Suzanne"
Joni Mitchell, "Big Yellow Taxi"
Gordon Lightfoot, "Early Morning Rain"
Bruce Cockburn, "Lovers in a Dangerous Time"
Stompin' Tom Connors, "The Hockey Song"
Tom Cochrane, "Life Is a Highway"
Blue Rodeo, "Try"
The Band, "The Weight"
The Tragically Hip, "New Orleans is Sinking"
Bryan Adams, "Summer of '69"
Bachman-Turner Overdrive, "Takin' Care of Business"
Anne Murray, "Snowbird"
Sarah McLachlan, "Angel"
k.d. lang, "Constant Craving"
Spirit of the West, "Home For a Rest"
The Guess Who, "These Eyes"
Neil Young, "Rockin' in the Free World"
Gordon Lightfoot, "Sundown"
Buffy Sainte-Marie, "Universal Soldier"
The Tragically Hip, "Courage (for Hugh MacLennan)"
Alanis Morissette, "You Oughta Know"
Bruce Cockburn, "Wondering Where the Lions Are"
Gilles Vigneault, "Mon Pays"
Trooper, "Raise a Little Hell"
Blue Rodeo, "Hasn't Hit Me Yet"
Rush, "Tom Sawyer"
Hank Snow, "I'm Movin' On"
Martha and the Muffins, "Echo Beach"
Men Without Hats, "The Safety Dance"
k-os, "Crabbuckit"
Rough Trade, "High School Confidential"
Sam Roberts, "Brother Down"
Paul Anka, "Diana"
Ron Hynes, "Sonny's Dream"
Leonard Cohen, "Tower of Song"
The Crew Cuts, "Sh'Boom"
Parachute Club, "Rise Up"
Sloan, "Coax Me"
Maestro Fresh Wes, "Let Your Backbone Slide"
Tommy Dorsey, "I'll Never Smile Again"
Rush, "Fly By Night"
D.O.A., "Disco Sucks"
Wilf Carter, "My Swiss Moonlight Lullaby"

hmmm...


Today's Song of the Day is "Home For A Rest" by Spirit of the West off their 1990 album "Save This House."

Crazy Fact: I haven't heard this forever... and it's on this stupid list.

njoy

Saturday, July 01, 2006

Dig it.

Well most of us have settled into the idea that we can't be sure of truth of any article from a large news organzation. Either they have an agenda to push (biased) or they are pandering to their audience (tell'm what they want hear don't ruffle there feathers) or they are afraid of getting sued (corporate pressure). All these things consistantly keep the truth filtered out of the news.

Well I found something really cool.

www.digg.com

Digg uses a non-hierarchaical editorial system. What that means is that members (300,000 of them) rate each article as the read it. They either 'digg it' (+1) or 'bury it' (-1) or nothin'. This raises the stories rank possibly to the front page if it's dugg enough. Membership is free and without bullshit. I heard it's the ranked 4th on the internet as an information source. holy. And you can comment on articles and comments can also be dugg or buried. and anyone can submit an article. very very cool. check it out. I'm addicted.

I feel like I just wrote an infomercial for digg. I kinda feel dirty. weird. anyway CNN, NYT, Yahoo! news, google news are kinda pissed. fun. I think this song explains how I feel about the big media organizations.


Today's Song of the Day is "Girlfriend in a Coma" by The Smiths off their 1987 album "Strangeways, Here We Come."

Crazy Fact: The first time The Smiths were seriously misinterpreted was in 1983 when "Reel Around the Fountain," a song that had been aired on a BBC radio session, was alleged to condone child abuse.

njoy

Friday, June 30, 2006

Voting for Puppets

Wow. This is unbelievable. Republicans will stop at nothing, intent on pushing an agenda of war.

http://www.timesonline.co.uk/article/0,,3-2248170,00.html

On a side note I watched "Good Night and Good Luck." It's quite good. It's esspecially interesting viewed with "The Insider" in the back of your head. Together those movies tell quite a story. It tells the history and the future of TV Journalism, and brother, it ain't bright.

Why don't we vote for CEOs of Corporations? This system sucks. It's like we can vote for city council members but Leader of the Province is a King, appointed by a few rich guys. Who cares about the stupid mayor when he's gotta do what the king says?

Today's Song of the Day is "Bittersweet Symphony" by The Verve off their 1997 album "Urban Hymns."

Crazy Fact: The Verve sampled a bit from the obscure album The Rolling Stones Songbook (1966) which consisted of Stones songs that were reworked by an orchestra (the bandmembers didn't play on it at all). And while there was absolutely no comparison between these strange new versions and the definitive, rocking originals. The copyright holders of the Stones' '60s catalog, ABKCO, demanded 100 percent of the royalties for the song, and got it. That's Just Stupid. I hate copyright more and more everyday.

njoy

Thursday, June 29, 2006

Safe to Steal from the Man

Leave it to the Swedes. They will insure you against being sued by the RIAA for downloading songs of the internet and if you do get sued they will send you a t-shirt.

You chances of being sued are 1 in 1840. To put that in perspective your chances of dying but any external cause is 1 in 1755.


Today's Song of the Day is "Been Caught Stealing" by Jane's Addiction off their 1990 album "Ritual De Lo Habitual."

Crazy Fact: When Perry Farrell submitted his original artwork to Warner Brothers Records for the band's 2nd album, 1990’s Ritual de lo Habitual, the label reportedly wasn’t too thrilled. Still, they honored the band's vision and gave it a go in the marketplace. Until, that is, a few stodgy retail chains squawked. Under corporate pressure, & forced to reconsider, the guys opted to go with minimal text simply quoting the Free Speech guarantee within our First Amendment.

njoy

Wednesday, June 28, 2006

Just the facts man

I've been watching a documentary by Ken Burns called "Jazz" and it's shockingly good.

I don't know if y'all'r big documentary fans, but to me, when they are good, there is nothing I'd rather watch. When they are bad I feel like somebody just took a shit in my brain, like I just watched "full house."

Having seen but 3 of 19 hours Ken Burns is the guy, he is the number one super-cool. My hero of the documentary. So I researched a little bit. Supposedly his documentary "The Civil War" is so good George Will of the Washington Post said, “If better use has ever been made of television, I have not seen it and do not expect to see better until Ken Burns turns his prodigious talents to his next project.”

These critics are drooling for everything this guy touches it's crazy. like this drooler Jack Newfield of the New York Post, “Jazz is the best American documentary film I have ever seen. Period.”

Anyway I'm on it.

I did the math though, 19 hours and we've rented it four 14 days that means I gotta do over an hour a day to get through it. That's a little intense.

Ready yourselves to hear some jazz you cowards! But First I'll send some ska 'cause it's so damn hot 'n' summer-like.


Today's Song of the Day is "Tighten Up" by Lee Perry off his 1968 album "Blackboard Jungle Dub."

Crazy Fact: His studio Black Ark, and everything in it, burned to the ground. Perry claims bad wiring as the culprit, but the more familiar and commonly accepted story is that Perry burned the studio down in a fit of acid-inspired madness, convinced that Satan had made Black Ark his home.

njoy

Tuesday, June 27, 2006

The Geek in Me.

I know know if any of you care about AI but doodes is it every cool. Here are some of my recent discoveries:

• CLIPS is a tool developed by NASA for building Expert Systems. It's in the Public Domain and free to download for PC or Mac.

• SWI Prolog is a tool developed by The HCS Lab at the University of Amsterdam and it's for programming in Prolog which is essentially Predicate logic (which is waay easier than it sounds.) It's under the Lesser GNU Public License (ie free) and you can download it for mac pc or unix.

Basically you give it simple facts and rules then ask it questions and reasoning through inference it tells you answers. FUN!

ok the geek has had enough time in the sun. He's got to crawl back into the cave and learn prolog. Say 'bye' geek...

GeekPif: Later Fellow Earthlings!

yeah. whatever.


Today's Song of the Day is "Orange Crush " by R.E.M. off their 1988 album "Green."

Crazy Fact: After an exhaustive international tour supporting 1988's Green, the band retired from touring for six years and retreated into the studio to produce their most popular records.

njoy

Monday, June 26, 2006

I was gone...

A very scarey moment as my blog (this blog) disappeared for a few days. The crazy thing is my first thought was they took me down for my criticisim of the anti-terrorist legislation. And before I thought that was totally stupid. I managed to paint a whole picture in my mind of them kicking down my door taking me away and holding me without charging me or letting me contact anyone and being all mean to me 'cause of my views.

What bugs me about that is I thought it was possible, if even only for a moment. To me, I should have concluded that it ha d begun Aliens had attacked the blog server and were invading the planet, then the Canadian gestapo was going to kick down my door and take me away.

If this disappearing blog thing happens to you, don't call your lawyer, just REPUBLISH the whole thing in the dashboard.

Here's a reality check: http://www.freepressinternational.com/nsa-4th-amendment.html


Today's Song of the Day is "You Can't Hurry Love" by The Supremes off their 1966 album "Supremes A' Go-Go."

Crazy Fact: This album "Supremes A' Go-Go" was the group's first number one pop album.

njoy

Thursday, June 22, 2006

Your taste is all in your mouth.

"et tu JR?"

It seems there is a growing concern of agitators who lack enthusiam for my recent musical selections. I ask you good and loyal people of the SOTD to expose these malcontents for what they are TRAITORS! It is time for us to band together to protect, these precious precious thing we have. You must abandon all critical thought and give yourself over wholly to the mob, only as a mob motivated by fear with me as your leader can we defeat terrorism and bring order to Iraq... er... the SOTD!


Today's Song of the Day is "Check The Rhime" by A Tribe Called Quest off their 1991 album "The Low End Theory."

Crazy Fact: They were on the 1994 Lollapalooza Tour. (I was going to send C+C Music factory in protest, but I lost my nerve.)

njoy

Tuesday, June 20, 2006

Wikiness

According to Nielsen NetRatings Wikipedia is now the third-most-popular news and information source on the net.

This I like.

I like the idea of free. Free means it's value it inherent, not assigned. People won't push it on you because they want your dime. It's publication isn't motivated by cash. Can you trust free info? Maybe not, but I KNOW I can't trust CNN. I like that you have to read wikipedia and still think critically about what your reading. Your not a gulliable fool, nor are you expected to be. But I kinda trust volenteers. They do it because they want to. They write about topics they are interested in. They choose.

It thick with things I value. Primarily freedom. Free will not contrived or controlled by anyone. I think these people are well meaning, that they are pursiuing fact. you may think I'm nieve but it's more likely that these people paid and edited by "other interests" have muddied intentions.

To me the intention is the thing. Wiki Volunteers are looking for the facts. Most other sources are looking for a sale, and "the facts" is just a method to get there and ultimately the facts would be sacrificed, if need be, to assure a sale.

To me, why sell something you can give away for free? With idea's like that I'll, I guess I'll never be a capitalist.


Today's Song of the Day is "Dead Man Blues" by The Red Hot Peppers off the compliation "Jelly Roll Morton Centennial: His Complete Victor Recording" originally released in 1924.

Crazy Fact: Jelly Roll Morton was the first man to write down Jazz. As well as being an incredible musician he was a pimp, a pool shark and had a diamond installed in his front tooth.

njoy

Monday, June 19, 2006

Macguyver Incarnate

My Bro (aka Dicky Dylan) who will from now on be Dylan "Midwife MacGuyver" Edwards. On May 6th, he Delievered his own baby, Sylvie, at his house, quite to his own surprise. Basically, the ambulance was late so He and Moria had to deliever the baby at home. The MacGuyver moment came when he took out his shoe lace and used it to tie off the ambilical cord. Wow. That's the way it's done.

I guess the first call from 911 to the ambulance was "complicated pregnancy on Vernon street." the second call from 911 to the albulance was "man out of breath."

With Guts and ingenuity like that Moira and McGuyver Edwards could've populated the west.


Today's Song of the Day is "I've Found a New Baby" by Lester Young, Nat "King" Cole & Buddy Rich off Lester's 1946 album "Lester Young Trio."

Crazy Fact: This Jazz great also starred in the motion picture 'Round Midnight.

njoy

Friday, June 16, 2006

Cape Breton Bees.

This sounds more like a children's book than a News Story.

I can just see the Police pistols drawn, screaming "BEES! BEES! Everybody RUN! Run for your lives! CALL the friggin' BEE-keeper!"

I can just imagine that lone beekeeper in full regalia, called out to the "big bee emergency" (there's the title of the book) standing powerless and awe-struck in a swarm of 30,000 bees.

Teachers and Parents panicking "Will SOMEBODY think of the children!" locking the doors and windows. Looking out wildly for signs of attack.

Then the rain came and cleared the bees, leaving a mystery.

I can see the police officer scratching there heads and wondering "Where did they come from... where did they go?"

Awesome.


Today's Song of the Day is "One Night in Bangkok" by Murray Head off the 1984 Soundtrack "Chess."

Crazy Fact: This album was written by the male half of ABBA and the guy who wrote Jesus Suck Superstar.

njoy

Thursday, June 15, 2006

She's Gots the Sports Smarts.

It's not my nature to Say anything Like "Go Oilers!" but the play-offs are a strange times for a Toronto fan. We have to blow with the wind, because the our team usually BLOWS! Someday in my life-time they will make it to the final, in this I place my faith. A victory in the Final is a the promised land, I'll not even speak it.

Anyway, I'm watching the game in my skinny armchair hockey player kind of way. Talking about the game with my baby. Who isn't completely unimpressed about watching the hockey game. She's good to me. I rant predictions for 2 and a half periods and Sarah lesiurely looks at me listening, periodically with that sassy "you have no Idea what your talking about" look she's so good at. Finally middle of the third period with total confidence she says, "No your wrong the Oilers are going to win, fool."

We bet a quarter on it. It goes to OT. Penality against Oilers.

"Uh-oh baby, it's over for you, they've been sucking ass on power plays."

"Have you even been WATCHING the game? They're last goal was scored shorthanded!" No sooner had the she said it and it was over. Oilers scored short-handed.

I must say her accuracy was very, very sexy. She's knows the sportes cuz she did 'em. I'm such a tourist.


Today's Song of the Day is "Wang Dang Doodle" by Koko Taylor off here 1969 album "Koko Taylor."

Crazy Fact: She has won more W.C. Handy Awards than any other female performer in history.

Wednesday, June 14, 2006

Hockey Hockey Hockey

I likes the hockey.

I fought liking the hockey for many moons as a wee lad when I moved here from Toronto. In the 70s, in Toronto everybody hated the Canadians and everybody loved the Leafs, easy. When I moved to rural Nova Scotia, everybody hated the Leafs and loved the Canadians. At Seven it was just too much to bare. So I gave up on the whole bunch, gave in to my hatred and joined the dark-side as a full-time hockey hater (known secretly as "Darth Pif".)

Accellerating my journey to the dark-side was my failed career as a Goalie. Being little, oh so very little, the net was the safest place for me to be. I was quick and pretty good for a six year-old.

Way back in the 70s we were playing ball hockey and I was the Goalie. Since there were no masks or goalie gear to speak of (and we were six) there was a no high-shots rule and a no slap-shots rule. Everything was fine, I was stoppin' them dead. Some bigger kids wanted to play and pushed there way into our game.

I was scared of them but still I was a wall, nothin' no goals. Now I don't know if it was a mistake, out of frustration, didn't know the rules or to be mean, but one of those big kids pulled back for a wicked slap shot from about the red line near the boards. He put his all into it. It sped towards me like a bullit, I'd never seen a hockey ball move that fast in my life. I was totally in the zone and stood my ground.

"SMACKwizzzzzzzzWACK!" I stopped it... unfortunately, with my eye.

Up to that point in my life nothing had ever been that painful. I thought he blinded me with that Hard oranage Hockey ball. I dropped my stick and gloves and cried all the way home. I totally lost the nerve to stand in front of the net.

As I remember he was sincerly appologetic and tried to come over to help. I think I through my glove at him, enraged and hatefully screamed "Big Jerk" at him before stormed off and I cried my swollen little eye home.


Today's Song of the Day is "Eye Of The Tiger" by Survivor off their 1982 Album "Eye Of The Tiger."

Crazy Fact: Sly Stallone heard them in Toronto and commissioned this song off them.

njoy

Tuesday, June 13, 2006

Police State.

Now I look at the US and think this is what's coming our way.


Today's Song of the Day is "The KKK Took My Baby Away" by the Ramones off their 1981 album "Pleasant Dreams."

Crazy Fact: Joey wrote this because Johnny (an Avid Republican) stole his girlfriend.

njoy

Friday, June 09, 2006

Defending Rights

I like most of us Canadians are pretty damn interested in this "Foiled terrorist Plot" against the Canadian Government.

In my search I decided to Google "Rocco Galati" he is the Lawyer defending the suspected terrorists. I figure he's got to be a fool or a very interesting guy.

I found some bizarre things in my search.

This from the Toronto Star in 2003: On the face of it, Rocco Galati's claim that U.S. and Canadian intelligence agencies want to kill him sounds too weird for words...

This from a talk he gave in 2001 about Canadian bill C36: The other thing the Bill does is that it can convict you of facilitating
terrorism without any knowledge or intent.
This is a very very scarey one.

This about American involvement of 9-11: "let one happen. Stop the rest."

ok well that about ruined my day. So much for truth and democracy. jeezus. I need a drink.


Today's Song of the Day is "Nocturne in E Minor, Op. 72, No. 1" performed by Ivan Moravec off his 1991 CD "Chopin: Nocturnes" Composed by Frédéric Chopin, published in 1855 (post-humaneously.)

Crazy Fact: His singular touch, he has stated on several occasions, was a matter of necessity after an ice-skating fall at age ten that left him with a neck and spine injury.

njoy

Thursday, June 08, 2006

Disgusted.

"We did not do anything to them,” said Walid Abdul-Hameed, who lost her parents, her grandparents, a brother and two uncles in the shootings. Only she, one brother and a sister survived. “Because they hurt us,” she said, “we want the Americans to be executed.”

14 civilians slaughtered by American Marines in Haditha. The oldest was 70, the youngest was 2. Marines who've killed non combatants pay fines it seems. 2,500 bucks for each dead relative. nice. I wonder how many Americans would accept 2,500 bucks if a cop shot their mother or brother in the street.

I would be a terrorist if I was this 9 year-old girl. She's lost everything, in an instant. It's fucking awful. There is no justice here. There won't be.

I blame Americans, the fucking idiots, for voting this raging asshole into power. And then for closing their eyes as tight as they can while this lying tyrant runs amok, taking lives. And then voting him in again.

They're not all bad: Our major media and the administration just won’t report or acknowledge it. Last weekend, more than 100 people were killed in Iraq’s civil war. Our boys and girls are in the middle, and there’s no saving this mess. Torture in Guantanamo, Abu Ghraib, secret prisons in Eastern Europe, now this. Our nation has never limped so low before the eyes of the world in our entire history. These are outrages. We are only multiplying hate that will haunt us for decades. Enough death and dishonor. Get our troops out of Iraq; that’s how to support our troops—alive.

Why are we following the American example and occupying Afganistan? Who is the bigger fool? The fool who leads or the fool that follows?


Today's Song of the Day is "Lamentatio" Performed by Convivium Musicum, Ensemble Villanella and Sven Berger off the compliation "Tugend Und Untugend: German Secular Music From The Time Of Luther." Composed in 1517 by Ludwig Senfl

Crazy Fact: Ludwig Senfl lost a toe in a hunting accident in 1518.

njoy

Tuesday, June 06, 2006

Wedding receiever.

I went to Matt and Becky's wedding over the weekend. Old Man Luedecke played at the reception. very cool. Guess who caught the Bouquet? Of course Long-Arm Watling was the one. She could be the star receiver of Steelers if they were throwing flowers instead of pig-skins.


Today's Song of the Day is "Yodelady" by Old Man Luedecke off his 2003 album "Mole In The Ground."

Crazy Fact: He's from here. (anyone got a crazy fact?)

njoy

Monday, June 05, 2006

The Dead Tell No Tales.

I don't know shit. You can concider that a critisism of the media or of myself which ever you perfer. When reading any article or taking in any "facts" from any source I try to make sure my critical thinking engine is running.

Let's see a bush-wanna-be-reform-party-nut gets in control of our country and next thing I know we have 2,300 troops in Afganistan. A few of which are starting to come back in boxes. Then suddenly there is a foiled terrorist plot against the peace tower. Is this Reform Party dink really pulling American-style fear mongering bullshit? Here! In peace-lovin' Cananda? maybe not I read this from associated press:

"Officials announced Saturday that the suspects were arrested after the group acquired three tons of ammonium nitrate, which can be mixed with fuel oil to make a powerful explosive. One-third that amount was used in the deadly bombing of the Oklahoma City federal building in 1995."

wow.

I can't help it. I just don't think they are lying about three tons of ammonium nitrate. It's hard to 'plant' three tons of Anything and anyone.

Maybe people really do hate Canada. Prime Minister "I wanna play in the American sandbox" is kinda invading their country. I can't say I blame them. I wouldn't like anyone invading me. I can't say I like their methods. But, to me, there isn't any obvious legitimate reason for us to be in Afganistan. He seems to be invading another country as a favour to Bush. Which is pretty awful. Our people are dying over there and our people are put in danger over here as a favour to the worst American president in the history of the United States has ever seen.

Why do the PCs always have to put the Americans ahead of Canadians. It's like he was picked last to play street hockey a few too many times and now is his chance to shine. What he doesn't know is all those kids were doing him a favour. He sucks and he is just going to embarrass himself. Now he is going to embarrass himself on the world stage, with canadian lives to pay the bill. lame.

Bob Dylan's Masters of War is just perfect (and oddly just came on) but I already sent it. crap.

I'm sure there's some brillant rhetoric why this is all for the best. I wonder if that rhetoric comforts the families of the dead.


Today's Song of the Day is "You Always Hurt the One You Love" by Brenda Lee off her 1962 album "Sincerely, Brenda Lee"

Crazy Fact: Brenda Lee and and Patsy Cline had the same producer, Owen Bradley in the early '60s.

njoy

Tuesday, May 30, 2006

Tastes like Pot

I've been neglecting my househusbandly duties recently. So I've been cleaning up all day and last night, inspired by my friend sonia, I made a pot roast. It was really fun. I put the three pound chunk of cow in the slow cooker with potatoes and carrots and stuff and put in on low for 10 hours.

This morning I took it out and had a carrot. It didn't really taste like anything. Then I tried some cow, It didn't really taste like anything. I'm pretty pissed about it all. I'm going to sobey's today to get another pot roast. If anyone one knows a good recipe let me know.


Today's Song of the Day is "Bannana Boat Song" by Harry Belafonte off his 1956 album "Calypso."

Crazy Fact: Calypso became the first million-selling album by a single artist, spending an incredible 31 weeks at the top of the Billboard album charts, Half a year as the number one album is fucking crazy!

njoy

Monday, May 29, 2006

Dissapointment

It's no wonder I pretty much only watch movies I've already seen. I'm just sick as hell of movie disappointment.

I look at the movie {proof} and I figure it'll be great you got the Pulizer Prize winning play thing, the guy who wrote the play also wrote the screen play...

I guess I forgot that Gwyneth Paltrow bites my bag.

She was rock solid stuck on three moves The Extreme Crunched-up Forehead of Ultimate Worry, The Sad Dead Stare of the Bored and The Gape-mouthed Angry-Faced Flounder (still worried) swam through a few scenes. F.

I had a real-problem caring.

She should have been a loser. A Geek. Odd and uncomfortable. As it was I never questioned whether or not she wrote the proof, When I should have been SURE she didn't. Then there would have been drama. Surprise, a change of events, a reversal. But instead it was just a tedious unbelivable journey of vindication and forgone conclusions.

Doesn't anyone KNOW how to tell a story anymore?

Are they just handing out Pulizer Prizes as door prizes these days?


Today's Song of the Day is "The Blimp (Mousetrapreplica)" by Captain Beefheart & His Magic Band off their 1969 album "Trout Mask Replica."

Crazy Fact: At the age of four, Don Vliets' (aka Captain Beefheart) artwork brought him to the attention of Portuguese sculptor Augustinio Rodriguez, and Vliet was declared a child prodigy. In 1954, he was offered a scholarship to study in Europe; his parents declined the proposal, however, and the family instead moved to the Mojave Desert.

njoy

Sunday, May 28, 2006

Ole King Coal

"...new coal plants under development worldwide could pump as much carbon dioxide into the atmosphere over their lifetimes as all the coal burned in the last 250 years..."

Wow.
Goodbye Florida.
America loves it's cheap power, spare no expense.


Today's Song of the Day is "Step Right Up" by Tom Waits off his 1976 album "Small Change."

Crazy Fact: Tom Waits has the same manager, Herb Cohen as Frank Zappa.

njoy

Saturday, May 27, 2006

Well... I... never!

According to Fowler's Household Helps (Over 300 Useful and Valuable Helps About the Home, Carefully Compiled and Arranged in Convenient Form for Frequent Use.)

Cutting Off Old Bottles and Their Uses—A bottle may be cut off by wrapping a cord saturated in kerosene oil around it several times at the point you wish to cut it, then setting fire to the cord, and just when it has finished burning plunge the bottle into cold water and tap the end you wish to break off. Odd shaped or prettily colored bottles make nice vases. The top of a large bottle with a small neck makes a good funnel. Large round bottles make good jelly glasses.

To Peel Sweet Potatoes Easily—Before putting sweet potatoes in the oven, grease the skins and they can then be peeled easily and without any waste of the potato.

To Prevent Onions from Making the Eyes Water—Scalding water poured over onions will keep the eyes from watering.

To Get Rid of Spiders—A good way to rid the house of spiders is to take pieces of cotton wool, saturate them with oil of pennyroyal and place them in their haunts.

How to Judge Mushrooms—Sprinkle a little salt on the gills of mushrooms to judge their fitness to eat. If the gills turn black the mushrooms are fit for food; if they turn yellow, the mushrooms are poisonous.


Today's Song of the Day is "Nobody Home" by Pink Floyd off their 1979 double-album "The Wall."

Crazy Fact: According to Rolling Stone Magazine The Wall is the 87th greatest album of all time.

njoy

Friday, May 26, 2006

I like lists

Again, according to those hip cats at the Rolling Stone Magazine this should be how you view Rock and/or Roll if you are to think of yourself as wry, hip cat of taste and sophistication. I wonder what would happen to there list if 1960-1970 fell off their list? A lousey 10 years and this puppy is shot to hell.

#1 Like a Rolling Stone - Bob Dylan
#2 (I Can't Get No) Satisfaction -The Rolling Stones
#3 Imagine - John Lennon
#4 What's Going On - Marvin Gaye
#5 Respect - Aretha Franklin
#6 Good Vibrations - The Beach Boys
#7 Johnny B. Goode - Chuck Berry
#8 Hey Jude - The Beatles
#9 Smells Like Teen Spirit - Nirvana
#10 What'd I Say - Ray Charles
#11 My Generation - The Who
#12 A Change Is Gonna Come - Sam Cooke
#13 Yesterday - The Beatles
#14 Blowin' in the Wind - Bob Dylan
#15 London Calling - The Clash
#16 I Want to Hold Your Hand - The Beatles
#17 Purple Haze - Jimi Hendrix
#18 Maybellene - Chuck Berry
#19 Hound Dog - Elvis Presley
#20 Let it Be - The Beatles
#21 Born To Run - Bruce Springsteen
#22 Be My Baby - The Ronettes
#23 In My Life - The Beatles
#24 People Get Ready - The Impressions
#25 God Only Knows - The Beach Boys
#26 A Day in the Life - The Beatles
#27 Layla - Derek and the Dominos
#28 Sittin On the Dock of the Bay - Otis Redding
#29 Help! - The Beatles
#30 I Walk the Line - Johnny Cash
#31 Stairway To Heaven - Led Zeppelin
#32 Sympathy For The Devil - The Rolling Stones
#33 River Deep, Mountain High - Ike & Tina Turner
#34 You've Lost That Lovin' Feelin' - The Righteous Brothers
#35 Light My Fire - The Doors
#36 One - U2
#37 No Woman, No Cry - Bob Marley and the Wailers
#38 Gimme Shelter - The Rolling Stones
#39 That'll Be the Day - Buddy Holly and The Crickets
#40 Dancing In The Street - Martha and The Vandellas
#41 The Weight - The Band
#42 Waterloo Sunset - The Kinks
#43 Tutti Frutti - Little Richard
#44 Georgia On My Mind - Ray Charles
#45 Heartbreak Hotel - Elvis Presley
#46 Heroes - David Bowie
#47 Bridge Over Troubled Water - Simon and Garfunkel
#48 All Along The Watchtower - Jimi Hendrix
#49 Hotel California - The Eagles
#50 The Tracks Of My Tears -Smokey Robinson

This one is on this list and I've past over it a for the last time.


Today's Song of the Day is "Johnny B. Goode" by Chuck Berry off his 1959 album "Chuck Berry Is on Top."

Crazy Fact: In the early '70s Chuck Berry scored his last hit with a live version of the salacious nursery rhyme, "My Ding a Ling," yielding Berry his first official gold record.

njoy

Thursday, May 25, 2006

Pain in the ass

Ok I got a new topper for diseases I don't want. RSD. It tops the list on the McGill Pain Index. You may not have heard of it either but it's just what it sounds like. A pain-o-meter, a ranking system. Anyway RSD is sudden permenent unexplainable pain. The nerves just never stop sending pain messages to the brain. wow. I believe that to be unimaginabley painful. So Mange, Gout and Fatal familial insomnia now take a back seat to this fucker.


Today's Song of the Day is "Boogie Chillin" by John Lee Hooker off the album "The Legendary Modern Recordings 1948-1954."

Crazy Fact: His 1990 duet with Raitt on "I'm in the Mood" won Hooker his first Grammy Award.

njoy

Wednesday, May 24, 2006

World's are Collapsing.

So I do theatre for a while get a degree, it bites. I do advertising for a while, while it pays better, it too bites. But if the world was coming to an end and I had to pick between the two, it would be a theatre life for me. But it now seems the worlds coming to an end AND I don't have to pick.

In New York you can see a play with a live Ad before it starts. Here's what one theatre goer said:

"It took a long time for everything," said a Dutch-born New Yorker, Daphne van der Meulen, 29. "I think you can see from the people that it didn't really — how do you say it? — didn't really hit."

I know what Shakespeare would say: How much do I get payed? I think we need to beef up my role? (Actors are all the same)

I know Antonin Artaud would burn down the theatre (But he'd probably do that anyway.)

I'm pretty sure Beckett would be pissed and write a great play about it, that most people would not understand.

Bretch would ask to direct it, subvert and expose the hippocrasy and get run out of town by the capitalists.

I am going to bitch and moan, then cry a little.


Today's Song of the Day is "What Is And What Should Never Be" by Led Zeppelin off their 1969 album "Led Zeppelin II"

Crazy Fact: Led Zeppelin II spent seven weeks at number one.

njoy

Wednesday, May 17, 2006

Where's Waldo?

k so we are going to elope. wedding planning blows. Sarah wants to go south, I want to go to Italy. I think I can convince her to go to Italy or Spain or Greece. Yum.

We go. We have a big party as soon as we get back. Life is good.


Today's Song of the Day is "Spanish Train" by Chris de Burgh off his 1976 album "Spanish Train & Other Stories."

Crazy Fact: It is with shame that I admit the first concert I ever saw was Chris de Burgh, I loved it.

njoy

Friday, May 05, 2006

Home Maker Cocoon

I'm a House Husband! What bizarre twist of fate lead me to this path I cannot say. But the irony to all ex-roomates, ex-girlfriends, and family members must be palpable.

Cleaning the kitchen, cleaning the house, thinking about the house, getting the groceries, re-arranging furniture, calling my ever-lovin' bread winner at work waay too often with banal questions, gossiping, stopping in on my way here or there... Let me say it's very very strange for me.

It's not just that I didn't care about mess but I just never saw it. I think I'm actually starting to see mess. I'm turning into something else, something very domestic.

I'm afraid.
hold me.


Today's Song of the Day is "Flying Home" by Lionel Hampton & Oscar Peterson off the 1954 album "The Lionel Hampton Quintet".

Crazy Fact: In January 2001, a vibraphone Lionel Hampton had played for 15 years was put into the National Museum of American History.

njoy

Tuesday, May 02, 2006

This one is about the link

This link kills me.

http://youtube.com/watch?v=Gj4rYe4hD6w&search=stephen%20colbert%20white%20house

I can't believe George Bush is in the room. It doesn't look faked either.


Today's Song of the Day is "Can't Truss It Public Enemy" off their 1991 album "Apocalypse 91...The Enemy Strikes Black"

Crazy Fact: Public Enemy promoted Apocalypse 91 in 1992 by touring on the second leg of U2's Zoo TV tour.

njoy

Tuesday, April 25, 2006

way to choke

So it's my last exam and I'm feeling kinda burnt and studied out. So with limited success I stave off procrastination. The last refuge to the procrastinator is the "what is my mark so far" activity.

I busted my ass to get a good grades during the term and the ass-busting worked. Considering my usual routine is to have blown it by now I'm feeling pretty good about the outcome of the "Mark so far game" I averaged it all out and figured for sure I got an A with the outside chance of an A- (so far) in Discrete Math (Number theory, Set Theory, Logic, Mathematical Proofs.) So I'm feeling pretty good about the concept of getting an A in a university math course especially one as primarily conceptual as this one.

I can feel summer on the verge of snapping into action.

These three things:
- "almost done" / "summer's here" vibes
- Last exam burn-out
- and general disorientation due to a lack of fucking up (I think you people call this confidence, but this concept is foreign to me)

led to an atomic exam room choke.

Stage one, a second guess on the first question, lead to a rise in temperature and full-on, full-body sweat.

Stage two, my mind blanked on the basic predicate logic question, causing a frantic and time consuming search for an 'easy question'

Stage three, a wave of anxiety at the failure to find the sanity saving "easy question" hence sanity was not saved, thus, sanity was lost.

Stage four, looking around the arena for any-other freaking class-mate in the 'insanity loves company' mental state. What I saw was a hockey rink brimming with a terrible fear, each of us struggling in silence. Each of us at our cheap wobbly exam time tables, scratching our fear into pencil marks answering questions each question answered asks another, is that right? Each answered question dumping it's own load of fear to the bigger question, Will I get a good grade? Will I fail? Will I make it? Will I be ok? Am I ok? Am I smart? Am I good enough?

It was at this point I felt like standing on my desk wildly waving a white flag, not in surrender but as a call to arms, as to signal the revolution. We can escape our fear! We can overcome the Tyrants! The Bureaucracy! The hypocrisy! We mortgage our future. We pay out thousands for a raffle ticket to happiness. And they corral us all in here like chattel to grovel for marks! Rise up my fellow students Rise up and... and what? drink some beer and scout out hotties in the library? This sucks.

Stage five, Hope that I don't blow it and do my best with the rest of the suckers in the room.

This song has nothing to do with the above rant.


Today's Song of the Day is "Androgynous" by the The Replacements off their 1984 album "Let It Be."

Crazy Fact: Originally, the band was called the Impediments, but they changed their name to the Replacements after being banned from a local club for disorderly behavior.

njoy

Friday, April 21, 2006

Exams.

1 down 2 to go.


Today's Song of the Day is "I Was Meant For The Stage" by The Decemberists off their 2003 album "Her Majesty."

Crazy Fact: Not only is one member of this band named Chris Funk but he also plays the theremin.

njoy

Monday, April 10, 2006

A cup a Joe, two cups of woe.

I think my shrink rocks.

Stimulants don't make you pee as a rule but caffeine does. One cup of coffee, two cups of pee. I kinda like thinking about a Mister Rogers type guy, wearing slippers, argyle sweater-vest, smilin' with a steaming cup of coffee in his hand, the camera spins and there's the same mister rogers type guy, frowning with two steaming coffee cups of urine.

Now I laugh every time I pee.


Today's Song of the Day is "One More Cup Of Coffee" performed by The White Stripes off their 1999 album "The White Stripes" composed by Bob Dylan (Desire, 1975.)

Crazy Fact: Jack White used to be the drummer for a country outfit called Goober & the Peas.

njoy

Thursday, March 30, 2006

Fear is the Mind-killer.

People who have great talents and do not know failure are like me and Stratego when I was 10.

We got the game for Christmas and I won the first three games I ever played. Suddenly I had a perfect record. I never had that before. I liked it and decided I needed to keep it. It became a big deal. My brother, friends and I would talk about it. Every game became increasingly important. Then the enevitable finally came... I almost lost I game. I was relieved by I realized my My record was in real jeopardy. I have a reputation, a perfect record. It was all suddendly at risk. So I stopped "wanting" to play. Why risk everything I built up for so long, it was too valuable to me.

This is what people do. A perfect record is a trap and reputation is a handicap. Once you lose, and with it the record, you are humbled. Then you can again play without fear. And loss is something real, and though not desired, quite small and easily handled.

I recommend a healthy dose of failure for all, when you lose, you lose the fear with it.


Today's Song of the Day is "Wipe Out" by The Ventures off their 1963 album "Let's Go!"

Crazy Fact: I guy names "Nookie" Edwards (Nole Floyd Edwards on May 9, 1935) is a member of the band. Wow.

njoy

Wednesday, March 29, 2006

Comment No Comment.

of COURSE I read the comments. It just seems wrong to comment. I have this whole blog to comment with. This is my huge comment space. This is me, that is everyone else, (well anyone who cares) That's not the rule or anything that's just weird little me.

I love the comments, they are also e-mailed to me (as you fellow bloggers know) so I don't miss any.

To answer all your questions:

It's a snippet from a conversation I had/am having on the e-mail-ma-tron. Thanks Cel, I liked it to, So I put just that bit up.

Yes, I've heard the Cibo Matto version but I can't find the cover of the ep it's from. I like it, but I like it different. The live nirvana version is painful, exposed and emotionally complex. The cibo matto version danceable, fun and glossy.

And 'Nis I'm talking about boys 'n' girls and maybe someday when your a little older, ask me again and I'll explain it to you. (HAHA! that was too mean/easy/fun not to do)

Well I guess I have to send it now.


Today's Song of the Day is "About a Girl" by Cibo Matto off there 2000 EP "Moonchild."

Crazy fact: I already feel guilty about being mean to dennis on the blog-a-matron.

njoy

Tuesday, March 28, 2006

Little Miss Earth, you flirt you.

Spring.

wow.

I like the warm tease. Keep smilin' on me, sunshine, yer pretty eyes are good for my soul.


Today's Song of the Day is "D'Yer Mak'er" by Led Zeppelin off their 1973 album "Houses of the Holy."

Crazy Fact: They recorded their debut album in just under 30 hours.

nhoy

Friday, March 24, 2006

Mid-conversation.

These are not all guys. Even though we wear the same uniform as they, even though there are others who would will be afraid or scorn us because we were this same uniform as their abusers. They are misguided. Unfortunatley in the eyes of the victim, the blood that stains hands of the abuser also stains the uniform of all who wear it.

As we look past her uniform to see her, she will look past our uniform to see us. I have faith in the good ones, they can't all be good ones, in either uniform.


Today's Song of the Day is "Respect Yourself" by The Staple Singers off there 1971 album "Be Altitude: Respect Yourself."

Crazy Fact: 'Pops' passed away on December 19, 2000, shortly after suffering a concussion due to a fall in his home.

njoy