no clever titles

Maia Hirasawa. Crackers. Lyrics.

this is it. this is why you wade through spontaneous lines of drivel. this is why you join the ranks of random folks whose visits do nothing to cure me of my solipsism. why you suck it up and deal with the lack of uppercase letters. this is a good song. pop music isn't dead.....................at least not in scandinavia.


hopefully i'll see all you sonoma folks on friday!

lighten up...

new blog.

yep.

i'm feeling melancholy, so here you go.




Marla Hansen. Shuffle Your Feet.
Marla Hansen. Wedding Day.

why isn't every song just always played on a cello? if you're only going to get one, i recommend 'shuffle.' wedding day is pretty and all, but shuffle is the standout song here.

marla has some pretty impressive friends, many of whom appear on her EP, Wedding Day. it's not bad for publicity when you can give the following list of bands as a resume/cast: "My Brightest Diamond, Sufjan Stevens, The National, Inlets, Clare and the Reasons, Oneida, Duncan Sheik and even Jay-Z and Kanye West." as we all know, the national are my favorite rock band of this decade. in addition, i happen to know that she toured w/casey dienel, who is loved by me. well done lady.

with the right songs, i sure do love repeat. i like this song a lot.




it may seem kind of silly to some, but i get all the way caught up in coaching. pretty much, my mood the next four months will be determined by how each day of soccer goes. i will appear to be bipolar.today went just fine except i'm really not used to leading 20+ girls and i'm afraid it is going to be a tall order. i am very good at herding and capturing the attention of smaller groups, but the huge crowd is tough. with those manageable groups, i know how to use my energy to inspire and motivate with great success. i'm feeling inadequate after today, which is pretty uncommon for me.

say lah vee...tomorrow will probably be better.

free music. free music. free music. that's it.

yeah...so...i don't really feel much like blogging tonight, but i thought i would finally re-upload EVERYTHING since people have been asking for a way to get all the old music w/dead links. so here it is. enjoy.
there is truly a shit-ton of amazing music here. as amish pointed out, much of it isn't easy to come across, so think good thoughts about me while you are enjoying it.
these are alphabetical, not chronological.


Why are you staring into outerspace 1.
Why are you staring into outerspace 2.
Why are you staring into outerspace 3.
Why are you staring into outerspace 4.
Why are you staring into outerspace 5.
Why are you staring into outerspace 6.
Why are you staring into outerspace 7.
Why are you staring into outerspace 8.
Why are you staring into outerspace Wake Up.
Why are you staring into outerspace Traveling Mix 1.
Why are you staring into outerspace Traveling Mix 2.


for a mini update:
1) soccer = good....both playing and coaching.
2) that's it.

Thank you kids for reading.

top 10 in 60 seconds challenge

so, gauntlets are being thrown down everywhere. my challenge came via ipickmynose, a san fransisco music blog, but the challenge came to him via jon wilde at the guardian.
the challenge: name your top ten songs of all time.
the catch: you have 60 seconds to do it.

many of these songs have been on this blog before, but since i took the time to upload the songs, i thought i'd throw it up here. i'm also just going to cut and paste, instead of rewriting it.

here are all ten in one file: top ten in 60 seconds (about 50 meg.) get it quick, i don't know how long it will be up.

top ten in 60 seconds (though i think it probably took two minutes.)

beatles. for no one.
i had a copied version of revolver and i wore the tape out. i don't mean that it got a little distorted…it stopped playing completely.

pinback. penelope.
desert island top five album.

badly drawn boy. the shining.
i know that i'm a sucker for the french horn, but that doesn't change the absolute brilliance of this song.

herman dune. you could be a model goodbye (live bbc session).
the funny thing is how mediocre the album version is.

aesop rock. daylight.
this is the converter song…used to shut up those who claim that the hip-hop landscape is devoid of artistic talent. every element is damn near perfect.

the national. city middle.
still my favorite album of 2005. still on heavy rotation (i still prefer it to boxer.) i've probably given more copies of aligator away than any other album.

built to spill. car.
so good.

decemberists. red right ankle.
easily one of my favorite love songs. so unique and fantastically written.

metric. calculation theory.
this remains the ONLY metric song that i care much for…but i REALLY like it.

foo fighters. everlong (acoustic).
this song is the king of je ne sais quoi. i just can't pin down what it is about it that speaks to nearly every person of my generation. whatever it is, it works on me.

OK, now it's your turn. 60 seconds. 10 songs......go!


i leave for scotland and amsterdam in six days.

do something summer. (today! 8-10-07)

on the tv the other day, i actually heard someone say that they hated summer. wow, right?





Maritime.   The Guns of Navarone.

This is shameless. Throw whatever labels you want at it (personally, i hear a symbiotic meeting of sub-pop and first generation drive-thru records, sort of "photo album" era deathcab over for a playdate with the benjamins) this is a fun song. i thought i knew exactly where it was going, always, and instead it just made me smile.
this a song for everyone who remembers when emo had nothing to do with bleeding wrists and, most importantly, with being depressed.
it's a head bobber. a happy little ditty. have a bar b q, throw a frisbee, roll down the windows and smile...it's still summer!


and if this song made you smile, please pass it on. think of someone that you know needs a pick-me-up, and give them a call, or send them a note. there is so much unhappiness out there, so much that it can be daunting. go fix some of it, would you?




i saw this yesterday and wanted to share it. i'm never guilty for what i have, but i'm often guilty of forgetting just how little others have.

These two asleep . . . (8-7-07)

27,000 Miles by Albert Goldbarth 

These two asleep . . . so indrawn and compact,

like lavish origami animals returned

to slips of paper once again; and then

the paper once again become a string

of pith, a secret that the plant hums to itself . . . . 

You see? — so often we envy the grandiose, the way

those small toy things of Leonardo's want to be

the great, air-conquering and miles-eating

living wings

they're modeled on.  And the bird flight is

amazing: simultaneously strength, 

escape, caprice: the Artic tern completes

its trip of nearly 27,000 miles every year;

a swan will frighten bears away

by angry aerial display of flapping wingspan.

But it isn't all flight; they also

fold; and at night on the water or in the eaves

they package their bodies

into their bodies, smaller, and deeply

smaller yet: migrating a similar distance

 in the opposite direction.

there is no theme here...i just read that poem and wanted to share it. i saw the first five lines quoted by themselves and i like it that way, perhaps more than in its entirety.

the internet does precious little to stave off loneliness these days. i'm pretty sure that this is my fault. i'd probably also be better off turning to real, live, people for this service.

my grandma is full of great memories about my family's history. the ones that interest me most are the cute little things that we all did when we were kids and have long since forgotten. she told me an awesome one yesterday about my mom's cousin herkey. when he was quite young, he gave his mother a box of chocolates for no apparent reason. when she opened the box, all of the chocolates had been eaten and little herkey proudly proclaimed, "i surprised you with none chocolates!" i love it sooo much!
i have a terrible, really really bad memory...it is a little depressing to think how many of these things will die with grammie when she goes. i hope someone in my generation is able to call up these sorts of tidbits when i am old. who will be the scribe, mental or not, of our generation?


i got a new phone and it kicks all the ass. i had my amazing 6230 for two years and it was still a better phone than any i had seen in stores. finally, one came along that topped it. i am totally in phone heaven.

i know that you're here for the music, so here is a list i cribbed directly from Vertigo's (of Peanut's Playground) top 25 albums of all time (though doing the tables took enough time that you should all be thankful.) i left the 12 that i most wanted to share, and what is left is a pretty good haul for anyone willing to do the downloading.
they should work, though many of them require more than one step.

Nirvana – Nevermind (1991)	Joanna Newsom – Ys (2006)	Radiohead - Ok Computer (1997)
Sufjan Stevens – Illinois (2005)	Death Cab For Cutie –Transatlanticism (2003)	Neutral Milk Hotel - In the Aeroplane Over the Sea(1998)
The Postal Service - Give Up (2003)	The Shins - Chutes Too Narrow (2003)	Wilco - Yankee Hotel Foxtrot (2002)
The Beach Boys - Pet Sounds(1966)	The Beatles - Abbey Road (1969)	Jeff Buckley – Grace (1994)

thanks for stopping by. if you are bored, send me a text message...i love getting them now that i have unlimited texts and an awesome phone.

There’s big stars falling down, down, and twinkling as they fall. (7-22-07)

posted out of guilt for the long hiatus.

bullet points:
* i was laid off from juvie
* i have filed for unemployment
* i go to the gym nearly every day
* i am leaving for backpacking in five days
* i am leaving for europe in just over three weeks
* i stopped blogging because i stopped receiving feedback
* but, i kept getting more and more guilty because i kept getting hits.
* my shins/knees couldn't take all my running and i've been bitterly sidelined

how 'bout a song?




Jolie Holland.   Do You?   Lyrics.

slow, slow, slow, but oh so pretty.
this picture doesn't go w/the song, but i thought it was too cute to pass up.
if you saw the last lines coming, you are a strange little person.  



why do i always get antsy during the summer even though it is my favorite? i would that i were elsewhere. i suppose i will be soon enough, huh?

"It's just that a lot of songs that are popular right now, they don't have any meaning." (6-21-07)

i'm sleepy, but i wanted to share this link before it dies.




Elliott Smith.   XO.

Sweet Adaline
Tomorrow Tomorrow
Waltz #2 (XO)
Baby Britain
Pitseleh
Independence Day
Bled White
Waltz #1
Amity
Oh Well, Okay
Bottle up and Explode!
A Question Mark
Everybody Cares, Everybody Understands
I Didn't Understand

At the very least get Waltz #2 (XO), Pitseleh, and I Didn't Understand. for your own sake, do it.


this is my favorite album from one of my favorite artists. why do i need to say more?
how 'bout a tiny bit more: a gifted melodist, an unreal lyricist, and musician proficient in many instruments, elliott smith was one of the saddest people on the western seaboard. the tid-bit that many people know about him is that he committed suicide by stabbing himself in the heart. another popular bit of knowledge is that he owes some of his commercial fame to multiple soundtracks, including "good will hunting" for which he was nominated for an academy award.





in my eyes, he is the next best thing to john lennon. in fact, he often covered beatles songs. i believe i included one such cover, that of 'beacause', in an earlier post.





luckily, he was prolific during his too short life, and left us piles of beautiful, gut-wrenching rock. seriously, if you are easily depressed, steer clear of smith. he does sad and lonely like nobody's business.




as for me, i'm playing soccer, exercising (i can actually run w/o stopping for quite some time!!) and hating the unemployment i was so looking forward to. video games and single friends make days off fly by...without either, they crawl.
i took the cbest, meaning i am one step closer to teaching. i am far from worried, but i don't get to see my results until the ninth of next month, which is a crazy-long time.
i have been listening to almost 100% rap and hip-hop. i'll try to post some of that for you. when i'm this bored, you should really get more posts out of me.
if you write me more, i  promise to post more. it is just hard to get stoked about myspace when i only really get messages from a couple people anymore. yes, i'm aware that messages are a reciprocal thing.

rock me like a hurricane? (6-5-07)

quickest blog ever.

i need to be at work in a short time. 
i couldn't sleep at all. i've been trying for hours. fuck adhd.
i took a 5htp and drank a lovely drink w/tons of vodka.
who visited my blog seven times today when i haven't been posting in for ever? whoever you are...you rock.


raw like sashimi.

how's this for cheesy and yet awesome? one of my favorite full album blogs has just posted links to about a hundred full albums. there are many gems hidden amongst the ridiculous pop drivel that this man likes so much. i can't really even promise that the links will work anymore, since it's been a few days since he posted them...but if they do, this is a wealth of albums. first and foremost, there is a ton of fiona apple, whom i adore completely. there is some comedy. some post-grunge (sorry, i heard brand new described as that once and i enjoyed it.) there is amy winehouse for those who like their soul singers to use meth and have no teeth (but...dude...she IS white.)  some LIT, some bloc party, some damien rice (who every-freaking-one but me likes.) some coldplay (get parachutes if you don't have it) and some emiliana torrini (fisherman's woman is worth it.) metric and monty python.
please. just please. don't download gwen stefani's, love music angel baby. there are precious few albums that i can not, CAN NOT even listen to at all...not even for one song...not even for money...not even to save the life of a kitten...and this is one. in fact, it might be the only one. it might be the worst album ever made. ever. i am including the eighties and lindsey lohan (also available for download here.)


for those who like me...i will include a tiny update.
it is as follows:

i have joined a soccer team full of people who are waaaay better than me. however, this is a dream of mine that i have managed to make come true...so, if i can hang with these guys, in this league, then i win. my knee is killing me though...please...if you believe in god, put in a word for my knee, my left knee.

i will have used up all one thousand hours i am alloted, per year, at work. i just found out today that i can file for unemployment. neat. i have been paying taxes for years. now it finally pays off.

i need to be asleep two hours ago.

wow...is there anything worse than watching minutes vanish when you know that each one means one degree worse you will feel the next day?

g'night.

drunken drive home (5-16-07)

i'm realy becoming a fan of these players from projectplaylist.com. they should allow you to listen to my blog like a radio station...a really really good radio station. also, the player has an option to get the URL of any track you dig. you can also open the tracklist in a new window or in your media player. the one at the top of the page has 75 songs on it and is set to random...it should last you a while. i won't always do this instead of my normal posting method, but i will try to keep a couple of these players updated in case you fell like letting them run wild.


last night, i went out to the bar for what must be the third or fourth time in the last six months. good ol' bar...i missed those smoky yelling matches.

since rachel has decided that she no longer gets drunk (a fact unbeknownst to me at the outset of our journey), i inadvertently gained a dd by offering her a ride. this meant that i would be drunken djing at some point. this is, roughly, what was played between SC and aromas. if you want to recreate the feel of the trip, get hammered and the instant any song starts to get stale, move on to the next one. also, scream along.

of all these tracks, the one i most want to talk about is:

Badly Drawn Boy.   The Shining.   Lyrics.

as i wrote last night at 4 (uneditied, of course)(is it kosher to put [sic] after your own mistakes if they were made while you were drunk?):

the truth of the matter is this...i was planing on posting this track yesterday, but i didn't really feel about writing about it at the time. now that i can't close my eyes w/o the world spinning, it feels like the perfect moment. i chose this song for the home stretch because it was the prettiest song i could find. it probably makes my top ten list for beautiful songs. i have always been a sucker for french horn.
badly drawn boy have made a name for themselves as a soundrack band...and rightly so. they create some of the simultaneously moody, interesting, and beautiful music around.

yeah! basically, if you don't like this song, you are either soulless or earless.


it should be added that there were some major spoilsports in the back seat, whining about saves the day, but they were drowned out by megan, rocky, and my singing. ha.

if you are in the sonoma area, feel free to call me this weekend as i will be nigh.

his face was carved and ripped with wrinkles (5-4-07)

i was all keyed up for what i wanted to post and what i wanted it to look like, but i was screwed over by having a pirated cd for which there are no lyrics online yet. poor me...but mostly poor y'all.

instead, you'll have to settle for half the post. of course, it includes five complete decemberists albums...so, cry me a freaking river.






The Decemberists.   Index of five full albums.

well...this solves the mystery of what jd salinger has been doing with himself in recent years. only he could divide a woman so cleanly into three "random" servings and make me feel like she and i are old friends...and like i would take a bullet for her.

hmm...i just checked wiki, and it doesn't mention salinger anywhere. not surprising, really...what kind of hermit would he be?

this is one of the best love songs i have ever heard. end of story.


Red Right Ankle.   Lyrics.

This is the story of your red right ankle
And how it came to meet your leg
And how the muscle, bone, and sinews tangled
And how the skin was softly shed
And how it whispered, "Oh, adhere to me
For we are bound by symmetry
And whatever differences our lives have been
We together make a limb"
This is the story of your red right ankle

This is the story of your gypsy uncle
You never knew cause he was dead
And how his face was carved and ripped with wrinkles
In the picture in your head
And remember how you found the key
To his hideout in the Pyrenees
But you wanted to keep his secret safe
So you threw the key away
This is the story of your gypsy uncle

This is the story of the boys who loved you
Who love you now and loved you then
And some were sweet and some were cold and snuffed you
And some just layed around in bed
And some, they crumbled you straight to your knees
Did it cruel, did it tenderly
Some they crawled their way into your heart
To rend your ventricles apart
This is the story of the boys who loved you

This is the story of your red right ankle

yes i understand fear (4-22-07)

two posts in two days? wow. i just heard this and needed to share it.




Viking Moses.   Sandstorms.   Lyrics.

this.  is.  so.  freaking.  pretty.

unless you hate lo-fi, don't leave before the piano kicks in.



i'm seeing brian regan tonight, ergo, my life is better than yours.

Total absence of grace. (4-21-07)

a pretty quickie.




Ane Brun.   Rubber and Soul (feat. Taitur).   Lyrics.

so, this song is a perfect example of why ane brun is suddenly gaining in popularity.
she's always had an above average voice, coupled with pretty ho-hum musicianship that has made for many casual fans but few die-hards. however, her recently released "duets" seems to have corrected what was missing.
in the case of 'rubber and soul' the addition of a male voice ends up being far more than just an aesthetic one...turning the song from a pity party (though i love the line "total absence of grace") into a genuinely sad, unspoken, conversation. the lyrics remain the same, but the meaning is so different. below are the lyrics, with the bold being Teitur's portion and the underlined portion being sung together.


Rubber and Soul

In my mind I`m crawling on your floor
Vomiting and defeated
Total absence of grace
Your reluctant voice
saying; you decide your own fate

But I wear rubberbands round my soul
They keep me from crawling
And these rubberbands round my soul
they keep me from falling

In my repeated dreams
You stare at me with an empty gaze
You turn your back on me
And you search for more intriguing days

Loathing this
Controlling this
Let me get a hold of this

So I wear rubberbands round my soul
They keep me from crawling
And these rubberbands round my soul
they keep me from falling

And then when you are not in my dreams
and not in my mind
but we are at the same place
at the same time
rubber no longer holds
the borders of my soul




sad.

Fumble outta bed and stumble to the kitchen, Pour myself a cup of ambition. (4-15-07)

i may have discovered a reliable hosting site...wouldn't that be something?

it's that time of year where i go nuts and all priorities take a back seat to my sharks. if anyone wants to get together to watch the game tomorrow, let me know...i'm thinking of going to 99 and watching it there.








Oren Lavie.   Her Morning Elegance.

somewhere between the piercing beauty and clarity of badly drawn boy and the sleepy smokiness of the sea and the cake. figure that out...i dare you.

you also have my permission to just close your eyes, smile a tiny smile and bob your head...perhaps so softly that it never actually moves.




Evilnine (feat. Aesop Rock.)   Crooked. 

for those of you who feel like nodding your heads for real, i give you probably my favorite rapper. i have been listening to a ton of aesop recently. this is far from his best work, but i completely dig it right now. if you like words, i think you'll love aesop.

bonus 1: here are two more impressive, though less head bobby, songs of A Rizzle's    Daylight.   No Regrets.
 
bonus 2: if you use m4a. files (iTunes format) here is aesop rock's best album in it's entirety: Labor Days.


bye.

You are my sweetest downfall (4-7-07)

a quickie:

i should really save this until i'm in the mood to write a big and pretty post, but i'm not going to. instead:




Regina Spektor.   Samson.   Lyrics.

i can't really talk with any authority on spektor. however, i will say this.
she made an album called soviet kitsch and it was the name of  this album that attracted me to her. that and a really nice picture of her.
here's the irony though: it is the kitschy nature of her music that has never allowed it to really set in with me as a favorite. i enjoy her, but not quite enough.
today i happened upon this song and became even sadder about the over-production of her newer albums. this is the original version of a song that is also on her newest album, but here there is nothing but her and her piano. this song really worked on me.




ok...i don't know if everyone gets the same adds on their homepages or if it is personalized based on google searches (in which case myspace apparently thinks i'm desperate) but can i just say that  the new  True.com add girl, kissyface27 (apparently there were 26 other kissyfaces) is ugly. why would i frequent a dating site which appears to specialize in ugly women?

also worthy of note is the fact that firefox doesn't think that "kissyface27" is misspelled, but it does correct "firefox."

OH!!! and i'm watching the sharks game. the last three games have been so freaking amazing. sharks were down 2. caught up. down one, tied it up with 30 seconds left. three fights. tons tons tons of amazing hits. on a day like this, if you don't watch hockey...YOU ARE FUCKING RETARDED and i pity you.

I prefer to think that God is not dead, just drunk. (3-27-07)

it's about time to write more.

i'll be honest...i didn't really want to post tonight. i get almost no feedback anymore (except from your moneeeeer) and i really decided to do this after two things happened: 1) i thought i was done setting up my euro 2008 fantasy team for the matches tomorrow (it turns out that i'm not really done...ok, now i am) and was bored once the sharks game ended. 2) i was able to find an album that i really love very very much to put before you.




Sam Prekop. Your New Professor (full album).

this is my all time favorite morning after the night before, wish i were dead ,album. you would think that i would slowly start to hate this album with this sense memory association, but i could never do such a thing (no matter how intimately i associate it with squinting to attempt to see whatever lays behind layer after layer of pain-red clouds and nausea.)

prekop used to be the mind behind the often subtly jazzy sea and the cake, but has since moved on to a far more overtly jazzy solo career. he's always good.

a few months ago, this was playing when i walked into bookshop santa cruz. i support it. if it's like a hug when i'm at my worst, it's like an hour of great cuddling when i'm wandering around a bookstore.




it is entirely possible that i will have the rest of the week off. invite me to your area...i'll see what i can do. seriously, if i end up bored this week...it's your fault. i want to go wine tasting. yup...that's what i want.


just for making it down here: if over the top filthy and awesome countrified rap is more your thing: spankrock. yoyoyoyo

Reason is the pupil of itself alone. (3-19-07)

so...here is the story. i was scheduled to work at 6 am tomorrow. this means that i took all precautions to get to sleep at a decent hour (anyone who knows me well knows that this is quite a task...it takes beer and the miracle supplement 5http (or something like that).) literally 20 seconds after i took the precautions, my work called to switch me to a graveyard tomorrow. this a far more desirable shift, but now i am headed for annoyance and a sleepy night. i will be trying to stay awake as late as possible tonight, so feel free to write or call me.





Modest Mouse.   We Were Dead Before The Ship Even Sank (full album). (alternate link).

DOWNLOAD THIS FAST! IT IS LIKELY TO BE GONE VERY VERY QUICKLY!

let me say, i have not listened to this enough to write about it, but i wanted to post it before it disappeared. i HAVE been enjoying it for the last couple days and it is in no way premature to call it one of the albums of the year, as few are likely to top it. spencer was angry at me for having this album before its street date...but only because he didn't have it too. now he can.

we all know how much i enjoy MM...though they are unlikely to ever top The Moon and Antarctica (and it's ep sister Everywhere and His Nasty Parlour Tricks.)

the guy who hosted this file also had bloc party (silent alarm is still great), okgo, and wilco here.



lets have a moment of quiet reflection for my favorite holiday, St. Patty's. i'm not irish, i'm not catholic (nor am i a protestant sporting orange) but i do enjoy booze. i enjoy the only holiday that encourages folks to drink dark beer and whiskey. i also enjoy a holiday that encourages touching those without spirit (these are usually women.)
also, it's entirely possible that the last two St. Patty's Days ("days" plural, of course) have been the two best days ("days" plural, of course) of my last 368. i miss it already.


please write...i'm bored.

also, if anyone has the new National album, let me know. i need it.

The future descending like a bright chandelier (3-4-07)

i had a ton of moments yesterday to do some blog searching. here are some of the treasures of the bunch.

as always, if you comment that you like one of these artists, i can almost always provide more from them. seriously.





Casey Dienel.   Doctor Monroe.   Lyrics.

if i had discovered this song earlier, it would have made my best of last year. i love songs that grin mischievously. i managed to find a few more songs by this lady and they are all good and varied...she's no one-trick pony.

she is an adorable writer. anyone who knows me very well knows that this is really the most direct route to my heart. that and being totally hot.





Colin Hay.  

Overkill.   Lyrics.

Beautiful World.   Lyrics. 


this is for my zach braff buddies. you may remember this episode. you may also remember his song on garden state (i just don't think i'll ever get over you.)

yes it is the same guy who sang the cheers theme song.





James Yorkston.   Woozy With Cider.   Lyrics.

this isn't a very good example of this man's music. he doesn't normally do the spoken word thing...usually he's a pretty interesting folk artist. however, this song works on me. majorly. holy crap...is majorly not a word? my spell checker hates it. frick. that is slang? fuck that...it is now just a normal word.

i will continue to bring you the best scottish artists i am able, though only when i stumble upon them. this man lives in edinburgh (my favorite city in the world.) lucky bastard.

if you dig folk, and don't know this fellow...fix it.





Josh Ritter.   This Blue Flame.   Lyrics.

wow. you want epic? this is it. seriously. wow. do you have nine minutes?

even if you don't have time to listen right now...read the lyrics. lovely.





Suburban Kids With Biblical Names.   Rent a Wreck. 

it's the toyota commercial that you don't like...however, how can you not love them if only for their name? fricking sweeds.





The National.   City Middle.   Lyrics.

ok...i know that this is cheating...but, if i hadn't told you, how many of you would have known that this is one of my favorite bands and that i didn't really come across this while surfing blogs? not only is this one of my favorite albums by one of my favorite bands, but this is one of my favorite songs. ever.

this album lost out to wolf parade for my 2005 album of the year, but i still listen to it constantly, and i almost never listen to WP. this album is a hit w/everyone i've shared it with. i keep having to re-burn it for myself 'cause i keep giving it away.

this is posted in honor of how i can't keep from listening to them and because they have a new album coming out SOON!

how sweet is that picture? i like how one of their members looks so much like a lion.

i can send you a link to the full album. inquire within.





since most of you know that i only really post when i am drinking, we can easily blame my lack of posts on new, healthier habits. let's do that.
i now work out a minimum of 5 days a week. my knees are killing me but i feel great otherwise. stupid knees.

how is it appropriate that you can put "high" for your mood?

for those of you who i have hung out with in the past and who live in the state...i know i have been awol for months. the soccer season is done now though, so call me...chances are i miss you.  yes...you!

Children frequently sing meaningful phrases to themselves over and over again... (2-11-07)

i came across a song i had never heard by luke temple today. this led me to his website, which led me to semi-permanent links to a few of his songs.

"someone, somewhere" is seriously one of my favorite songs ever...it is such an awesome mix of serious and joyous...frivilous and major. enjoy. i couldn't find "make right with you" which is his biggest hit (i believe it was on grey's).




Luke Temple.

Someone, Somewhere.
Mr. Disgrace.
Private Shipwreck.
Serious.
Saturday People.



the end of my soccer coaching season is easily among the most depressing things to ever happen to me. *tear* yes...i know that i've led a pretty easy life if this even makes it onto the radar of depressing moments in my life. in all fairness...i have had some pretty fucked up things happen....i just find this more sadderer.






i am happy to see that, on the 3000th sportscenter, "do you believe in miracles" won the fan voting for the most memorable sports moment of the last 30 years. it should always win.

when did ty penington, formerly of trading spaces, start doing regular commercials? i don't care what he has to say about medication. period.

the claymation on "starveillance" is so awful...none of the celebs look anything like themselves. right now, brad pitt looks like bruce willis. that is not right.

ok...i'm out of music for the night and now i'm out of random questions.

please write me. w/o my team...i am pretty lonely once again. also, i'm trying to kick a soccer ball every day. if you want exercise, let me know...kicking is more fun when not alone.

g'night.

lord, put my heart in this song... (1-17-07)

yeah...i'm feeling like i owe you another post. technically, i should be adding to the best of list, since i forgot a couple that i wanted to put on there, but i wont. instead, i'll make a uncharactaristically short post. here are four songs from an ep that i am currently enjoying. an ep that isn't released yet. an ep that maybe i shouldn't really be sharing yet. hm. oh well.





Lost in the Trees.  

Tall Trees.
If You're Afraid of the Dark.
Time Taunts Me.

please start with "tall trees". all the songs are good, but that one feels kinda like being snuggled under a comforter during a windstorm.
boy, am i a sucker for a standup bass. i always have been. cello too. he has assembled a good chunk of a mini-orchestra. nice stuff to just veg to.

i'm not going to spell check this. deal with it.


i love coaching soccer.

image credit: all ME baby!

I recognize happiness by the sound it makes when it leaves (1-3-07)

I owe you a blog. So, here I lay, offering this to you this like a child with an upturned brow and a leaf in his left hand…waiting.

A very short story (autobiographical?):

Rusted brandy in a diamond glass
Everything is made from dreams
Time is made from honey slow and sweet

I'll let you run away
But your heart will not oblige you
You'll remember me like a melody

Lost in fog and love and faithless fear
And I've had kisses that make Judas seem sincere

Dianna Krall.   Temptation.   Lyrics.

Fiona Apple.   Slow Like Honey.   Lyrics.

The Hold Steady.   Citrus.   Lyrics.

I'm here to say that I have let too many temptations go racing by for one reason or another. My life has suffered for it. 

Our lives aren't checklists…are they? Please tell me there is some other way to win.

I've passed up vibrant minutes for others, for morality, out of laziness, and superiority. For myself too…for fear of failure and pain and embarrassment. Right this instant, I'm tired of being a hobo on the train of life.

These are visceral comments/wishes. If you want to align them with the calendar, so be it, but there aren't really any resolutions here.

This post has strayed from its intended tack.  It was supposed to be a story about the undeniable lack of soul in those new year's kisses (not that I had an actual new year's kiss this year—I was sleeping—but it hasn't been long since my last empty kiss.)  How those kisses with random strangers do such a good job at highlighting the good and bad of bachelorhood, and how the good is just starting to matter so little. Too bad…it sounds like it would have been a good story.

sorry this isn't edited...it is already 2...don't take it as a lack of love.

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This is one of my favorite poems...Patten slays me…please love it.

A Blade of Grass

You ask for a poem.

I offer you a blade of grass.

You say it is not good enough.

You ask for a poem.

I say this blade of grass will do.

It has dressed itself in frost,

It is more immediate

Than any image of my making.

You say it is not a poem,

It is a blade of grass and grass

Is not quite good enough.

I offer you a blade of grass.

You are indignant.

You say it is too easy to offer grass.

It is absurd.

Anyone can offer a blade of grass.

You ask for a poem.

And so I write you a tragedy about

How a blade of grass

Becomes more and more difficult to offer,

And about how as you grow older

A blade of grass

Becomes more difficult to accept.

 
-Brian Patten

call me.

image- dominique*