mialuv ulongty & notown derby match review

we may have a new favorite roller girl over @ the view looks good from here, fresno. i mean, we didn't vote or anything, but we were both blown away by the skill of mialuv ulongty. not only was her name and number (10 dolla) hilarious, she had the skillz to pay the billz. really, she cut through the crowd without any difficulty. at times it looked like she was the only one moving in a pack, and then she was fifteen feet ahead.

overall, the notown derby girls looked very good. they played hard, and looked way more prepared than the opposition from chino. i was worried that notown might be in a little trouble because hari kari was out injured, but several ladies stepped up big as jammers. even lotta leadpipe took a turn at jammer and scored some points. and, the notown

couple of suggestions (because i got 'em):
-whorechata might want to throw a few less elbows. seriously, i love the passion, but i'm not sure i saw her make two laps around the track without getting tossed into the penalty box.
-stop arguing with the refs. and refs, stop listening to arguments. if you make a call, make it. if someone wants to argue, tell them to stfu. having watched sports all my life, i know that when refs entertain players "suggestions" it makes them look like they don't know what they're doing. i understand a little, but if after every other jam we (the crowd) has to sit and wait while the refs get spoken to, have a mini huddle, call people over, talk more, etc it sucks.
-the sound in the building is still really uneven. i was talking to a friend on the south side of the track during a break and the sound was rather intelligible. i was seated on the north side of the track and it was pretty garbled. it seemed like they made some improvements, but it could still get a little better.
-if you're ever looking for announcers, the view looks good from here, fresno would love to give it a try. it's possible we might suck, but hey, maybe no one hears it anyway.

again, great work by notown and everyone who helped put it together last night.

basketball playing dog

my friend posted videos showing a dog doing squats. well, here's one that can play basketball.



take that squatting dog.

tower community garden

an interesting story is brewing in my neighborhood. several people have planted crops, but the crops may not remain. why? well, they've planted them on land that is not theirs. here's an interesting report done by the local news about the issue

(i wanted to embed the video but it wasn't working properly so just click on the link above)

now, i want to keep following the issue, but here are my thoughts so far:
-i like that the city is willing to work with community gardeners.
-i like that the city is willing to enforce code.
-i like that the city is willing to take stances that are unpoplular.
-if these gardeners did not have persmission of the owner, they shouldn't be allowed to just set up shop, even if it is nicer to see veggies than weeds.
-if they had permission, then the city is willing to work with the farmers, and that's good.

meet in the middle 4 equality

if you only have time to do one thing this weekend, it should be this: the meet in the middle for equality rally. the rally begins @ 1pm but they're expecting a huge turnout so get there early.

$50 art sale

so, i've slashed prices on some paintings.

check out my stuff that's currently on discount.

guitar fatigue

it's weird how things float in and out of life. i played guitar today. i think it's the first time in a year. i missed it.


of course, since i haven't played in so long, it was short lived because my hand quickly tired.


now i'm going to go paint a bit. got to get things done for my july show.

notown roller derby in fresno, the jabronskis in merced

if you're not doing this saturday




make a drive up to merced and check out this

"HEY HEY HOOOOO!

It is the first Jabronskis show in 2 years, we are going to be playing with our musical brothers THE GOOD LUCK THRIFT STORE OUTFIT at The Partisan in downtown Merced witch is owned by 3 of the 4 Jabronskis. Gee I wonder how we got the show.

Anyways, not sure when we are going to be playing again, but I do know we have over an hour of material to play. So come out and lets get rowdy.

Love,
The Jabronskis

Sat May 30th 2009
at The Partisan
432 West MAin Street
Merced CA 95340
thepartisanmerced.com

doors at 8pm
shows at 9pm
$5.00
21+"

now, it's been a while since i've seen the jabronskis, and apparently been a while since they've played together. i really enjoy their music, and hope maybe they'll hit fresno some time soon.

knife fight at a party

you know what's not good? going to a birthday party and getting stabbed.

you know what's even worse? when it's your son that stabs you. or your dad.

good thing they both got arrested. clovis is now a safer place.

what is the cost of progress?

i was reading and came across an idea that really pushed me to ask a question and think.


what is the cost of progress?



i'd love to read your thoughts.

upcoming fresno events

there's a lot of cool stuff coming up in fresno. why am i telling you? well, because i want you to share the fun with me. and, i want people to know about some events that are a little away and should be put on your calendar.

this thursday is the last week of the rademacher residency @ tokyo garden. this show will be super awesome with the sleepover disaster playing before rademacher. rademacher will have brian kenney fresno, thomas from gypsy cab, luke from sleepover, benji from fay wrays (at least i think they're all guesting this week) all playing along. it should be a sick show.



on saturday, head over to the fairgrounds and check out notown roller derby. these ladies are legit, and it's a fantastic experience.



you could also head over to the fulton mall and check out the rev fest, which promises a ton of motorcycles, a parade down the mall, and more.

speaking of the fulton mall, you can head back down to the mall the next weekend and enjoy the hye fest. tons of armenian food, music and stuff on saturday (and sunday?).

june 2nd, you can enjoy a cocktail and support creative fresno's downtown mural project over @ the bartender challenge. this one is set @ the landmark and features a competitor from the megazone contest: joey "lola la chola" fernandez.



on monday the 8th you need to be over @ starline for pecha cucha night 3, another creative fresno event. adam is slated to present.

june 13 - undercurrent anniversary show, 3rd edition. it's a little after the actual anniversary, but whatever. for $15 you get 8 great bands, and i think they're playing in this order: it's an icicle, son del valle, the fay wrays, shon j, 3 bags full, patrick contreras band, the sleepover disaster, and destructo bunny. i really dig destrecto, although i've mainly seen him dj'ing and rapping with ibid. since then, he's moved down to southern cali and has been making a bit of noise. i'm excited to see him back and will be promoting the hell outta this show.

june 20 - patrick contreras band cd release show. this really is too big for fresno to ignore. patrick has budwiser sponsoring his cd release, it's shut down a whole parking lot in the tower, they're parading in, and so on. it'll be a fun time and actually showcase the tower district as well patrick contreras.



july 2 - arthop - edward stewart showing @ milano. downtown fresno, fulton mall, 5-8pm.

so, I saw this during taste and toast of the tower, but let's speak on this: the spot that was the wild blue is reopening as a venue. it could be good, it could be terrrrrible. i hear it's now owned by the cats that own million elepahant.

we will see.

will it once again be a good venue to see a good show or will it me crap?

ps22 sings landslide

ps22 is a new york city public school. there is a music teacher, gregg "mr. b" breinberg that has his kids doing some beautiful songs. they're 5th graders, and sing wonderfully. check them out doing "landslide" by fleetwood mac.



check out their youtube channel and listen to some different songs. i enjoyed "eye of the tiger" and "if you want to sing out" by cat stevens.

they're kids, they're singing. they're not the best ever, but i do appreciate that they are public school kids. this isn't some elite private prep school. this is a group of fifth graders that changes every year.

monday haiku

remember the lost
memorial day is here
give thanks with some friends





good u.f.c. sat
several nice bouts that night
evans still sleeping

suck it trebek

i passed adam in visits. thanks y'all.

rademacher residency review of week 3

so, last night was week three of the residency and i was excited to see circles and circles. they didn't disappoint.

neither did rademacher. in fact, all the complaints i had a few weeks back i take back. they were spot on, and played a very good set despite coming straight off the road. they literally arrived back from touring with the airborne toxic event and the henry clay people to play this show, which caused it all to start a little late. but it was worth the wait.

santonie's revenge opened the show, and i found them quite enjoyable. i liked their punk/rock mix of sound. the songs were well crafted and enjoyable. what i didn't really like - the half naked hipster guy dancing behind the band. he was like a car crash that you couldn't look away from.

all in all, i'm excited for the final week of the residency which will have sleepover disaster playing, and brian kenney fresno joining rademacher.

rademacher residency in the ghetto week 3

tonight is the 3rd week of rademacher's residency at tokyo garden. the bus may either be road hardened or read weary from a little road trip to l.a. and arizona.



joining the rad's tonight circles and circles, a truly amazing band.

they're also playing with santonie's revenge, a band i've never seen, but i like their sound on myspace.

pick the ufc winner

i'm a big of fantasy sports, and trying to pick winners in nfl games, boxing matches, soccer, whatever. so, when a friend suggested a ufc pick site, i was instantly in.

you should, too.

you have to create an account, but it's not hard and from there it's predict and win.

jesse ventura on the view

"if we're going to be a country that follows the rule of law, which we are, torture is illegal."



"advanced interrogation is dick cheney cheney changing a word. dick cheney comes up with a new word to cover his ass."


now, i don't know if everything jesse ventura says is right, but i do like his recent outspokenness on torture and chickenhawk dick cheney.

*cross posted @ left turn only.

obits @ the cellar door

i like shows. i like music. and, i like trying to listen and find new music. the other day i was poking around emusic and based on some recommendation stumbled upon a band called the obits. i hadn't heard of them, even though i actually have a song from them on my ipod (it was on the emusic selected & collected sampler that rademacher was on). they have a 7" out now, as they're working towards a full length.



today in my email i saw that the obits would be playing in visalia on thursday night. pretty cool show if you're in that area or up for a drive. here's the info from sound n vision:

Thursday, May 21, 2009
OBITS (SUB POP Records)
THE LIGHTS
The Suicides
$5, 21+, 9:30pm
The Cellar Door
101 W. Main St., Visalia CA

Brooklyn-based Obits is making some of the best straight ahead rock n' roll music these days.

Their sharply interwoven guitar lines, muscular rhythms, and garage-influenced punk meets rockabilly sound is a reminder of just how powerful good ol' rock music can be in the hands of the right band.

Band leader Rick Froberg has fronted influential indie bands Drive Like Jehu and Hot Snakes. Now with Obit's new Sub Pop release "I Blame You", Froberg has created his most accessible and catchy album to date.

Check out their song "Two-Headed Coin" while imagining them live. You'll channel enough sonic grit, attitude, and energy to make their mid-week performance worth staying up late to attend.

Seattle's The Lights play the middles spot, while a mix of Visalia indie veterans known as The Suicides will start the show!

samba tower closed

maybe the spot that once held the daily planet is now cursed. i saw this sign today that samba tower was closed (sorry for the big glare in the pic).



maybe it was the bad economy. maybe it was a style of food that people aren't super sure about. maybe it was the cost of overhauling an existing space and trying to create something new there. however, i think this next sign may be quite telling as to why samba tower closed:



hmm, violation of the alcoholic beverage control act, that doesn't sound good. it seems that the ownership group that tried "m", club m, samba tower just had too many strikes against them at this location. i know they were open for taste and toast of the tower, i wonder if that was the final blow against them?

and don't think i'm trying to talk crap on samba tower. i liked the place. i like brazilian bbq, and will go to the north fresno location again. it just seems like they could never drum up enough business in the tower.

mask quiz

bored?

want to kill some time?

do you remember m.a.s.k.?


take the quiz (click below - i got a 64%)

The M.A.S.K. Quiz



Score: 64% (9 out of 14)

seen today in fresno

sadly, i saw this guy walking in my beloved tower district today



if you can't quite read it, his hat says keep a bitch broke.

stay classy, fresno

ravage transformer usb flash memory

good gawd, i had this transformer as a kid. now, i want it as a flash drive. sadly, the $42 price tag will keep me away from a 2 gig piece of my childhood.

beatbox battle world championships

i've always been impressed with people that could really beatbox, especially when you're carrying multiple sound/tune combinations. shoot, i even own an album by rahzel, who had worked with the roots doing beatbox stuff. that album is pretty weak, mainly because rahzel moved away from what he was known for, and rapped.

so, when i saw the header for this video over @ boing boing today i knew i wanted to listen. i'm glad i did. this girl is freaking excellent.



don't hold it against her for cutting up a fergie song.

julia dales, a 17 year old canadian (candada? really?) will be competing in the world beatbox championship over in germany (npr told me so). she won a wildcard spot by sending in a youtube video to the beatbox battle online.

this guy finished third and is pretty dang good.


this spanish frog really impressed me but finished fourth.


you can watch second and fifth @ the link above, or not. whatever.

monday haikus

season finales
some shows shouldn't come back on
two and a half men




sometimes i forget
monday haiku get text
thanks mike wise charlie

friday downtown

fridays are usually a pretty chill day for me. i teach monday through thursday, and fridays are a day for meetings, faculty development, or not much at all. during track season, i'm often traveling on fridays. today, no meetings and the track season is done (except nationals) and so i had/have free time on my hands.

i decided to spend my early afternoon downtown. i remembered that being friday it was the brown bag lunch day @ the met. so, i showered, grabbed my $5 and hopped on the motorcycle. i do love how the restored fresno bee building looks. i know it has the met in a huge financial hole right now, but the renovations are very nice.



i actually didn't bring a lunch with me, but wanted to spend some time out of the house, and wanted to see the current exhibit on the cheap. so, this $5 brown bag lunch option is a good way to do that. the met has these cool clips that you wear on your collar to show who paid, and i suppose who didn't. i'm not sure if you're supposed to give them back, but i forgot and left with mine still attached to the collar (free souvenir!).



today's show was dogs of war, an old, silent little rascals/our gang film. there were also some animated shorts. you know, adding sound to films really helped. talkies, as there were called, are waaaaaaayy better than silent films. now, i do want to question their film selection here. why are you showing movies from the 1920's? who are you trying to draw in with these films? or are you trying to draw in people? or, are you just picking films for the people that are showing up? i'm not exactly sure who is coming to these movies in general, and i know they've only done a few, but the majority of the patrons were older women. and by older, i mean i think there were three people under 55 in the room (me, the guy in charge, and another younger lady). so maybe picking films for senior citizens is the right move if they are the ones that are going to come. but, if you want to draw in younger people, or really attract professionals on their lunch hour, i think you need something different. but, i'm not exactly sure what you can show that's going to be under an hour.



i thought about picking up something on the way, but i lagged so i figured i'd eat something downtown after the show. i thought about coney island, but decided i'd hit up milano for a slice of pizza and a soda. when i came in, kendall had a combo pizza up that had salami, olives and artichoke hearts. this was really tasty. i had a nice conversation with kendall and a lady whose name i didn't catch but she had something to do with downtown about many things. we talked about other museums doing similar things, about the megazone and how yes, someone had eaten it in 8 minutes, and what brings people downtown. and, i set up an art show @ milano in july (july 2nd art hop). setting up a show is always the spark i need to work, so i'm glad i had this conversation. kendall also hooked me up with a free soda if i promised to go down to the new downtown farmers' market. i'm not sure on all the details of this farmers' market, but i guess that some or all of the products are organic.



i took a nice stroll down the mall, which btw is not scary at all and anyone that thinks so should be immediately told they are wrong, and found the farmers market. they had smartly set it up in the shade. i perused the offerings, and settled on a half pound of snap peas ($1) and a half pound of green beans ($1).



finally, i strolled down van ness to return to where i parked the vegas, and then drove on home. all in all, a nice two hour trip. now i need to get my butt to work on some paintings.

taste & toast of the tower review

ah, yesterday was our neighborhood's annual trek through the businesses and sample food, local wineries, and perhaps the tower experience. i managed to make it to 18 of 45 venues, although there were about 5 that i just looked @ and decided not to visit. btw, i had card #559. pretty cool.

highlights:
-the landmark - giving away potato salad and a full on basque style chicken leg. honestly, that gave a good impression of their food. not just some tiny little piece of something they serve.
-vini vidi vici - homemade honey & lavender ice cream with a blackberry sauce. so freakin good. that place is pretty expensive, but that ice cream might actually get me to go in and have dinner
-million elephant - i liked the variety of samples, and pretty generous portion
-panaderia bakery - nice sample variety
-la luna loca - i'm really impressed with the new space. way bigger, more comfortable feeling space. it feels a lot more professional.

lowlights:
-starline grill - umm, it was like your bartender didn't know you were on taste of the tower. and it wasn't cool that she gave us attitude for not ordering drinks.
-samba brazilian steakhouse - hey, the event started at 5:30. be ready. i don't care if you've got a band playing later, get started when the event starts.
-any place that didn't have the a.c. on inside. it wasn't that hot out, but it was warm, and your visitors are walking around. help us out a little, and don't have it warmer inside than outside.

overall we had a good time. as a tower resident it's not like i was being exposed to any of the venues for the first time, but i think it's still cool to get out and enjoy the event. i think most of the places did a good job showcasing who they are and hopefully some people changed a bit of their perception of the tower.

lost season finale

so, i just finished watching the lost season finale and i'm pissed. why? because it won't be back until 2010. seriously? i have to suffer through at least 18 months of no new lost?

ridiculous.

brown bag lunch at the met

in an effort to bring more people through the doors, the fresno metropolitan museum is trying a lot of innovative methods. one of those methods is a brown bag lunch on friday at noon.

you bring your lunch, and $5 and you can get into the met. even better, you can watch a movie for that price. this week is dogs of war. it's only an hour, so you can eat and go back to work after, if you want. you're also welcome to browse the met's galleries.

taste and toast of the tower 2009

don't sleep on this event. i almost forgot that it was coming up this week. taste & toast of the tower is always a great event. well, that is, if you like walking around, sampling food and wine. i do.

of course, thursday will be a little warm, with a scheduled high of 87. that's not too bad, right.

$15 may seem a little steep to some, but it's worth it. last year i stumbled upon a really nice wine that i bought futures in. they were great and made the evening more than worth the cost.

a dinner story

let me tell you a little story about dinner, etiquette, and proper behavior in a restaurant. you see, last night monticore and i went to dinner @ a neighborhood restaurant, livingstones. i generally think they have decent food, and we had a coupon that my wife got for her birthday, so we decided to eat there for a late dinner. we sat inside, ordered, and everything seemed to be going smoothly. and then people sat near us.

now, it's not like we were having some intimate date out or something like that, we were just having dinner. two people were seated @ a booth behind me, and that's fine. the issue started when someone was seated at a second both.

here, let me illustrate with a photo recreation using sugar packets:



we're the packet on the left of screen, oriented sort of north/south, and we're actually @ a table for two along the wall. the other two packets are booths that are next to each other.

seated @ the booth behind us, once again is a party of two, on opposite sides of the table. a third person entered into the story by sitting at the other booth, on the far side from the other people. now, that's not a problem. what is a problem is that they all knew each other. and they decided they would have a long conversation with each other, all while seated. since they were covering a decent amount of space, they needed to talk louder. which, of course, meant that we were now also privy to their conversation, their life experiences, their complaints about classes, their thoughts on ballot initiatives, and whatever else they wanted to talk about.

why wouldn't you sit at the same table when you realize you're going to have a conversation that is longer than, "hello, how are you?" do you really think everyone in the section wants to hear your conversation? apparently these people either had no sense of etiquette, or they thought that the wife and i, and anyone else around, did care what they thought.

they were wrong. but what's even worse is that when you're sitting around people like this your whole thought process becomes dominated by them. you try not to listen, you try and have your own conversation, but eventually their stupidity slips into your ear and you're distracted. i tried a nice, passive/aggressive look. not just a glance, but i'm turning and making eye contact with you so hopefully you realize your behavior is improper, but my subtle social control method did not work.

so, while we enjoyed our food, and the first part of the meal, sadly we had to finish our dinner a bit annoyed by rants and misinformed opinions on politics.

hot rod

did anyone see the movie hot rod? i watched it, and i'm really unsure if it was funny or not. i like all the cast, there were some funny bits, but i just don't know. i've got it dvr'ed, so i'll probably watch it again before i come to a final conclusion, but if you want to weigh in feel free.

former drug czar schooled on weed

now, let me say this straight out, i'm not for legalizing weed. i'm not all that against it though. if you want to use it, i don't care, as long as you're not driving, screwing up your kids, or doing something we already are against with legal drugs, like alcohol.

i also think a dialog on the issue is worth having. here's a segment from cnn & anderson cooper featuring the former drug czar john walters and harvard senior economist jeffrey miron.



eight minutes just isn't envough. i could watch these two go at it for at least another 52 minutes.

star trek vs star wars

there may be many philosophical debates about which sci fi series is better, with each side pointing out strong arguments about why their personal favorite rulez.

well, you may remember last year when the death star appeared outside of san francisco. it has shown up once again to help us solve the argument.



that's right. star wars is better.

monday haiku

happy mothers day
yesterday lunch was pleasant
lakers lose again






heat on the way now
ninety monday and i'm
sweating all the time

cup of brown joy

now, this isn't exactly a response to the tea parties, but it was the first thing i thought of when i saw this video by elemental over @ laughing squid.



herbal, no thanx.

who knew there was a teacore rap set?

my little pony rock video

you may have seen the my little pony trailer over @ the dumb drum, but now you can see the rock video for the film here. every good film needs a rock video.

lunch at the hat

yesterday i was in the greater los angeles area for the final track meet of the season. specifically, we were in eagle rock, at occidental college. instead of taking a team bus to this meet we had vans, and we had a little more flexibility in what we would be eating. normally, we get subways or some other sandwiches, which are fine, but when you can have some variety in lunch @ a track meet it's appreciated (by me).

now, i attended college in fresno, but spent a lot of time in this general vicinity during college because my brother lived in pasadena, which is a stone's throw from eagle rock. so, whenever we in this area, i try and hit restaurants that i know from my own college experience.

yesterday, after my final thrower finished competing and we were all seeking a late lunch, i proposed a spot that would take us about ten minutes to get to. of course, they were game, so we jumped in our vehicle, onto the freeway, and were quickly there. we had to cruise about for parking, as the spot was packed.

my two throwers and i dined at:



ah, the hat. this is seriously the best pastrami place i've been to on the west coast. they have a handful of locations in southern california and that's it. the one in pasadena is not the original, but whatever. it's been around for forever and it's the bomb. honestly, the only pastrami sandwich i've had that was better was from katz's deli in new york (super bomb).

now, these pictures demonstrate that i'm a bit lazy with photo taking, and that photos don't always capture your subject well. my photo of the sign was quickly snapped, and it could have been framed better. the photo of the sandwich (below) was after i'd already taken a bit, messed with the sandwich a bit, and then remembered that i wanted to to take a picture. even still, a photo looks messy and small, and while the sandwich is a bit messy, it's also around 7" and will fill you up.



not much beats hot pastrami, and on it's own this sandwich is a meal. but, we shared a large order of fries between the three of us. that's right, shared it. the large fries is essentially the bottowm third of a 4"x5" brown paper bag. tons of fries. we didn't even finish it (just a few scraps left over). that's right, two college throwers and their megazone eating throw coach didn't quite eat all the fries with their sandwiches. but it was soooo good. and my throwers were very happy that i took them there.

dirty money

sometimes i watch commercials from other places on the internet and go, "why don't we see these commercials?" and then i remember that we don't handle things like sexuality very well in our country. even if it's puppets. or animated money.

so, if you'd like to watch a humorous, yet slightly risque involving money and cgi paper puppets, take a watch.



now, this ad was intended for the internet, so it's not like they intended it for saturday afternoon or whatever, but it's pretty funny that they made a commercial for a banking firm (or whatever) that is so out there. kudos to the firm that made it, optix.

rademacher residency review 1

so, i wanted to share some thoughts from rademacher's residency @ tokyo garden

first off, $5 for a show is still a good deal, especially when you're seeing 3 or more bands. i don't know how bands make any money.

racelegs was alright. i don't think i've seen them before, and they do an instrumental, mars volta-ish thing. decent music, but i'm a fan of vocals.

wrong way driver - i got a little soured on this band because it took them forever (for-ever!) to set up, and it's not like they were a big band and had a ton of stuff. basic size band with normal instruments. their music didn't really impress me.

rademacher - rademacher is always changing things. they change band members, they change song arrangements, they change tempos and more. change can be good. change can be bad. last night's song set was filled with good and bad. i really like malcom opening the show solo on guitar. and i liked the first couple of songs. but as the set progressed, i found myself a bit disappointed with it. several songs seemed really sped up. and i'll admit it, i miss greer. her vocals added a lot to songs, and the group dynamic was a little different. maybe it was an off night for me, maybe it was an off night for the band, maybe i was tired and needed to go sleep.

rademacher featuring mike from race legs - i saw these guys practice in the studio last weekend, and i liked how they did things there a little better. it was still good at the show, and i liked the keyboard additions.

some other notes from the night:
a guy near me ordered an apple martini. the look tommy's face was priceless. he was like, what? and the guy ordered again, apple martini. and i don't know if tommy was confused, as if the guy was ordering some made up drink, or confused that someone would actually order an appletini, or what. but he just had this look on his face like seriously? or like someone farted. and then he made the drink.

awkward family photos

i grew up without a family.


ok, that's not true at all. but, we didn't take a ton of family pictures growing up. and i'm thankful, because family photos are frequently scary. check this example:



there's a new site out there called awkward family photos. they run photos along with snarky quips. that photo came with this caption, "Even the tree felt this one was awkward."

have another



but let me share some truth with you: i do have a family photo that could go on this site. i think i'm probably 5 or so in the photo, it's got me and my bro and my mom...who's got the awesomest red afro. i won't be sending that photo in.

seen on laughing squid.

post art hop @ tokyo garden

that's right y'all, thursday is the beginning of rademacher's residency @ tokyo garden. this week features wrong way drivers, racelegs, and of course rademacher. rademacher will be playing music from their whole catalog so if you really like some old rademacher hits you should go. they'll also be joined by members of other local bands each week, which should be pretty cool.



rademacher, if you're taking requests, i'm calling for 'arguments.'

blocked!

they have finally done it. my blog is blocked at work. it may just be temporary, as the filter
says something about phrase combination. that phrase combo may drop off the page and allow access.

but, i can still read a ton if other stuff.

monday haiku

episode twenty six
recorded and in the can
reza assemi.

seen while driving

let me try to paint a picture for you:
i saw an s.u.v. today
the license plate spelled trigger happy
the license plate frame said, "my other toy has tits."

now, you tell me, what did the driver look like?

rademacher residency + gossip girl

our friends, radmemacher are about to start a month long residency @ tokyo garden. they'll be playing every thursday for the next four weeks. each thursday they'll be joined by other bands, and having several guests play with them in their set. if i remember right, the other bands will also be covering rademacher tunes.

as a bit of promo, here's some videos i shot for them over @ their studio. eventually, they vids are going to be synced with some better audio that they recorded at the same time.

rademacher - what the neighbors don't know



rademacher - cool kids




finally, in sort of strange rademacher news, they will be on gossip girl tomorrow night. well, they're not personally on it, but their music is featured. it seems they do little segments @ the end of each show, showcasing real life gossip girls in nyc. this monday's girl likes rademacher and so their music will be used during the segment.

war is over...if you want it

it's officially over. the blog war has ended. mike oz and i traded olive branches, signed treaties and made nice. and then we had some asada tacos.



thanks mike, it was a good friendly war.

delux hugs

you've all seen the dude giving away free hugs. but who doesn't like an upgrade?



you go mediocre films.


and thanks laughing squid for showing me it first.

happy caturday

i think mrs. puddles has seen my on a similar position on our couch many a saturday and was doing her darndest to show me how she could do something similar, and perhaps better in a similar space.

we didn't start the flame war

i've gotten into a little flame war over here. in honor of that i give you college humor's take on flame wars. swear words present so if you don't like those, don't watch it.

Watch We Didnt Start the Flame War on CollegeHumor

maybe i'm just in a pissing contest. and now for some swine flu related humor



thanks boing boing.

letter to fresno, california

thanks fresno.

today has been a good day. i got up this morning and new that i needed to get some stuff done and hoped it would be a good day. i mowed part of my back lawn, but for some reason my mower shut down on me. i figured i would get back to it, but needed to accomplish some other stuff before i could.

then, i got cleaned up and enjoyed lunch with a good friend. i walked over to my local chinese restaurant, mings. we eat and chatted, and my friend even gave me some advice on the mower that i hadn't thought of.

my fortune cookie was spot on, and maybe it helps us all understand why i won the megazone challenge.



after lunch, i cleaned the air filter, and decided that i should also change the spark plug. i remembered there was a lawn & garden place nearby and headed over. within a minute, i had a fresh plug for the mower from jensen & pilegard. $3. nice, easy, no problems. went home and changed the plug and the mower fired up like it never has before for me (i got it used from a friend). i mowed & edged the lawn and then cleaned up all the loose grass.

fresno, thanks for having decent weather today. i broke a little sweat but it felt nice. after finishing up the lawn, fresno treated me to a nice little rain shower that i enjoyed on my tin roof patio. great stuff.

so, thanks fresno, i enjoyed a lovely day. there's a light breeze, some rain, and the smell of fresh cut grass in the air. and yes, i realize that this could happen many places, and that later in the year i'll be cursing fresno's heat as i mow the lawn. but today, it was all good.

the only drawback was that a film i was hoping to see this evening, sin nombre had been playing multiple times a day. with friday film changes it's moved to only one show a day, and it's a late show. we'll see about it.

your friend and big supporter,
ed