Life

i feel great today, thanks.

Papercuts and Post-it Notes

December has arrived.

A few unrelated thoughts:

The first week was spent in Oakland, California. It was rather nice. Funny, really, is the best way to describe the aforementioned trip. Vacations are a strange foreign land for me, and learning to relax and read a book is harder than it should be. So I slept a lot, ate a lot, and did a little reading, a little writing, and a little shopping. The weather was "cold" and naturally I complained about that fact. Erika's rear windshield was shot out Wednesday night, mere hours after she was talking about how her neighborhood was less sketchy than originally thought. Coincidence and chance.

Biking from Berkeley back home at midnight in dense fog and forty degrees reminds you how nice it feels to be alive.

Now I am home, and am alive.
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After almost a year, the Walker is still going swimmingly. I am terribly excited for a few things in the not so distant future, including but not limited to the British Television Advertising Awards and Expanding the Frame.
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Stories have accumulated by the hand fulls. Rather than my usual observe and report ways, I've just been observing, saying, I will do this later, and then forgetting. This week brought a good one, that although not as awe-inducing/inspiring written down, is still a tiny gem to be kept wound tightly in the arsenal.

One. A few months back, a mutual friend waited at a bus stop. He smoked a cigarette while he waited. A gentleman incognito (we'll call him BS for now) asked another fellow future bus rider (A)to use a lighter. A said he didn't have one. BS turned to mutual friend. Asked for a light. Upon agreement to let BS use the lighter, BS tipped his sunglasses, peered over the lenses, and said, "It's me! Bruce Springsteen!" It actually was.
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My obligatory Top Records of 2009 is currently being compiled and shaped by yours truly. It's hard to believe that another year has passed by, seemingly under the radar. A lot happened over the course of the year. We'll leave it at that. While I am unsure of merits as of just yet, here is my unofficial list, as of nine o'clock this morning:

Neko Case "Middle Cyclone"
Grizzly Bear "Veckatimest"
Yo La Tengo "Popular Songs"
The Antlers "Hospice"
Camera Obscura "My Maudlin Career"
M. Ward "Hold Time"
Papercuts "You Can Have What You Want"
Real Estate "S/T"
Fruit Bats "Ruminant Band"
Cass McCombs "Catacombs"
Phoenix "Wolfgang Amadeus Phoenix"
Bowerbirds "Upper Air"

one. i remember learning how to dive.
two. i never climbed trees as a child.
three. yellow and red leaves are better than green.
four. autumn is the best season.

I'm not dead.

.

it's cool, i'm lazy.

no post in quite a while.

this should tide you over--
Libra:. Opportunities are fleeting. Move fast to catch up to where you know you need to be. No need for fond farewells. No need for graceful movement as you transfer. Simply gather yourself and go.

I cannot talk fast enough

I am beaming. So, apology is coming at the beginning rather than the end.

This week started on a funny note-- missed connection on craigslist. They are total head-scratchers.
To the blond girl with glasses wearing a black and white striped shirt, enjoying the surly bender at the mates of state show last night - seen you around town a few times. Just wanted to write and tell you you're beautiful. Just... yeah. See you around, hopefully.

Part of me had an entirely cynical response. The other part found it endearing and felt hopeful for people. Why? I don't know.

Today, I showed up for work with little work to do. On my break I stopped at Kowalski's for Kombucha and Walgreens for Skor/Sour Patch Kids. I have a steady, healthy diet. I soon realized that my road trip to Oakland/San Francisco is sooner than I think and should look for stuff to do. Done. Within three minutes I found two things: Camera Obscura on the eighth of June and Neko Case on the ninth.

So as if my brain were not already full up, while driving on Franklin, (Neko Case and sunglasses on) and kept jumping back and forth between thoughts. And then, I may have run a stoplight. I say may because there were extenuating circumstances. So then my mind reversed and questioned if I did in fact run a light or not. This story to be continued.

longest weekend ever.

Ohio was the longest weekend ever. Friday night was spent in a desolate cabin with no heat. And of course I forgot to bring even a sweatshirt, so I slept with one blanket, yoga pants, a tee shirt and my jacket in 37 degrees. Wonderful. Then Saturday was the bridal shower. Enough said.

This morning I woke up early and decided to run errands. So I called Crane and made him tag along.

We were driving on 394 from Costco and I had this epiphany. Every time I am in a remote location, I find myself at fucking Walmart. Literally, every random trip I have taken in po-dunk America, I have ended up at a Walmart in the middle of God's territory, usually in the wee hours of the morning.

It should be noted that I never stepped foot in a Walmart in Minnesota while growing up.

So what is it about this empire we so lovingly call Walmart that lures me in when I am trapped or perhaps traveling through America's heartland?

Maybe it is that they have low, low prices. Or maybe the fact that it is the staple place found in every city that you know is open 24-7. It should also be noted that nine times out of ten I am heavily intoxicated when at Walmart. This brings up yet another question. What is the allure of Walmart, in the middle of nowhere, when intoxicated?

Really, I have no answers. All I have is photographs from excursions to various Walmarts throughout the years to prove I was there.