Just because I know you were diggin' on the song in the previous video.
I'm so glad the internet was invented.
It's been almost three weeks since I've updated. I don't think I've ever gone that long. Shit has been crazy, as usual, but I won't bore you with the mundane details.
Life has been good -- I've been to a string of good shows lately and obtained a string of good albums. I caught Subtle with Corey, Mike and Jeryl a few weeks ago. Doseone was in fine form and I bought their new CD. Savage, I must admit. I saw Ratatat at Berbati's Pan a week ago with the woman. Great show, albeit incredibly fucking hot. Scene as fuck, too. Some man-capri wearing, messenger-bag having bike fiend was in back of me and kept breathing down my neck. Yar. Finally, I saw Converge and Mastodon with Corey and Jack this past weekend. Converge was epic, Mastodon was alright (Their new CD is good? answer: I don't know) and the crowd was fucking priceless. I'd explain it, but words can't capture the sheer douchebaggery of it all.
Beyond that, not much exciting has happened, save last Saturday, but I'll get to that in a second. I have to be out of the wonderful Grant St. House by Saturday and have been feverishly looking for a new place to live to no avail. Sadly, I'm moving in with a friend for a month or so until I can find something suitable. Moving sucks.
Anyway, last Saturday, I had scheduled showings of a few potential places to put my shit. I wake up, shower and make the oh-so-fun 10am drive to Beaverton. Halfway there, I notice my battery light comes on and my voltage is way low. Perplexing. I arrive in Beaverton and get shown two totally unsuitable living situations.
I go to start my vehicle to make the trek back to Portland and my engine barely turns over. I almost yell 'FUCK' when my engine suddenly kicks and gets running again. I immediately make the drive to Sears (which takes over an hour) to buy a new battery (Diehard's ROCK!). I arrive, cut the engine and go shell out some dollars for a new battery. I lug it back to the explorer. I get in, turn the engine over and again, it barely turns over. I almost yelled 'FUCK' again, but it finally caught and started.
Now, I've gotten used to the rain and the overcast. Saturday was hot, so I thought I'd get something to drink. I stop at one of Portland's 35,007 Plaid Pantry's and buy myself a diet cola. I walk back to my car and get in. This time, when I turn the ignition -- nothing. I really do yell 'FUCK' this time. The guy on the pay phone looks at me funny. I get out and start stripping out the old battery.
The guy on the pay phone hangs up the phone and says "hey, you got battery problems?" as if waiting for me to ask "yes sir, can I trouble you for a jump-start?"
I answer "yes sir, can I trouble you for a jump-start?" and he says "oh no, I gotta go, I'm already late" as he gets into his car and dips out.
fuck you, bitch
I plop the new battery in and cross my fingers. Most new batteries don't have the best charge in them. This one had just enough to get me started. I looked -- the red battery light was still on. I yell "FUCK" again, as the problem would now seem to be with my alternator. I drive directly to an auto-parts store. I leave my keys in the ignition, car running. I ensure I have my spare on me, I lock the door and go in to buy a new alternator.
I come out lighter in the wallet, unlock the door with the spare and throw it in the cup-holder console thingy. I drive home, pissed.
I park, pop the hood, get out and start fucking with the old alternator. I test it -- sure enough, it's not outputting enough juice. It only takes me about 45 minutes to install it (which should have been 15 minutes, but rethreading a serpentine belt with noone to hold the automatic tensioner is rough. At this point, I'm actually kind of proud of myself. Even if it doesn't work, I still took it on head-first. I gave it my best shot.
Now, time for the final results. I fumble around with the battery leads for a few and finally connect the positive. As soon as it touches the post, I hear quick sound. It almost sounds like... automatic locking doors?
I walk around to the side and sure enough, the doors had locked. Good thing I had my spare, right? Oh, wait, that's right, it's in the center console. Oh, wait, all my windows are rolled up. I yell "FUCK" again and the yuppie neo-lib neighbors talking about making their own wine in their basements all look at me in disgust. Fuck 'em. At this point, I'm a bit pissed.
I break down and call my dad for advice. He suggests kicking out a side-window. I've seen him do this a few times (he refuses to call a locksmith -- ever). I opt not to and ask if he has any other ideas. He suggests calling a locksmith. I refuse. I hang up and sit on the steps for a few. Fuck.
Now, I've never, ever, ever seen it work. I've even tried it a few times only to fail. Regardless, I get a wire abortion-hanger and bend it into a small hook. I grab a pry-bar and manage to snake the coathanger in. Thankfully, I'm a lazy-ass and never got around to changing the custom door-lock knobs that came with my car when I bought it. They are little soccer balls. I manage to loop the hook around there and pull up*. I get it. Amazing.
*PLEASE DON'T BREAK INTO MY CAR.
There's a whole other chapter of the story about me yelling at the clerk at the auto parts store. I said "give me my motherfucking money" and meant it. But, in the end, it's far too much to type for such an obvious payoff.
So, by the end of the night, things were all resolved. It felt good.
Monday was the anniversary of Ms. Kim and I. She surprised me by showing up and spending the night. how fucking grand. Truly.
Anyway, that's all I got for now. I love you all.
sunday night i get a phone call from him, telling me he hasn't been able to stop thinking about me and can we have dinner to discuss "us".
now the tricky thing is if this had happened, say, july or august, i wouldn't have even had to think about it. i would have just said yes and gone for it. but right now, at this exact moment, i've finally reached a place where i'm over it, i'm done with it, i've moved on. timing is a constant bitch.
so last night we went out to dinner. i figured i could at least hear him out. he had some interesting things to say. most of the right things, actually. i wouldn't say yes or no to us giving it a second shot. i've gotta think about it. but we're supposed to be having dinner again together next week. i'm sort of wondering at this point if he wants to get back together because he genuinely still cares, or if he's just trying to make up for last time.
i told him that i essentially have like 18 big sisters standing behind me telling me i'd better not even thinking about giving him a second chance. a couple of big brothers, too. he said he knows he has his work cut out for him.
i'm intrigued. and curious. and completely confused.
always.....
birthday celebrations happened thursday. excellent times were had by all. well, maybe not all, but by me at least. a couple of my close friends met for dinner downtown, and from there we went out drinking. we started at the dixie, not because i'm especially fond of it, but because thursday nights are ladies nights which means no cover and cheap drinks. we stayed there for two or three drinks before we decided to go to slaughter's. cheap drinks, good dance music, and no sleazy guys hitting on me. what's not to love about that? i sort of lost track of how long we were there, as i was pretty toasted by the time we left. but then i got a great idea: we should go to the strip club!
stefany, amanda and i had never been, so i decided it was time. from the gay club to the strip club.... so so weird. but we had a good time. i, of course, couldn't stop laughing. struck up a conversation with one of the strippers, and she told me she made $560 the night before. on a wednesday. that'd be two months worth of student loan payments. damn.
after that we decided it was time to call it a night, so we started walking back to the car. right on the corner by slaughters or dixie's is a club called noche and next to it is a place called the amazon. when we were walking by the bouncer said he wouldn't charge us cover if we went in. in my drunken stupor i knew that this is the club where they do salsa dancing some nights. so, i told the bouncer i'd go in only if they would play salsa and i had a good lead. he told me to go find the guy tending the bar with the hat on, because he was the owner and he would dance salsa with me. so we go it, and it's a cute little place. sure enough, there's this older looking latino man behind the bar with a panama hat on. i walk up and say "it's my birthday, and i want to dance salsa. i need a lead, and the bouncer told me to talk to you." so he told the DJ to put on some salsa and took me out onto the floor. i haven't danced salsa since i was in Ecuador, so over a year now... I totally miss it.
friday nights at 9pm they do salsa lessons and dancing. i'm hooked.
so the next day i woke up sick. not hung over, but sick. sinus cold thing. suck.
and now... my next set of orders don't start until the first week of october, so i've got the whole month to just kick it. i'll still be at the gap some nights during the week, but during the day, i've got nothing. sweet.
i'm slowly working on formulating a plan for my life. or at least the next part. including, but not limited to, some form of further education. i'm already missing school. or at least learning. perhaps the east coast is in order.... we'll see.
now i shall go occupy my time with something useful. or not.
-xo-
1.
I am a student at Los Angeles Film School. My class is made up of 87.99999% retards. If I hear one more person talk about BOONDOCK SAINTS as if it is a good movie Im gonna sodomize someone. You should not be in film school if you don't know who Stanley Kubrick is, and if on the first day you need the instructor to explain for ten minutes how to get the XL2's to record. An XL2 is a video camera which actually has three(3) red buttons placed strategically across the camera. As with consumer cameras, these red buttons record. I guess these people that needed that explained would tell me that I should at least know how to spell if I am going to write on my friend's blog page. Oh Well.
Anyways, Im Double Majoring in Editing and Sound Design. Ive managed to seround myself with the 10 or so people that have a slight clue what they are doing and a few that are way better than me. Let me clarify something: I SHOULD NOT BE AMONG THE MOST TALENTED OR KNOWLEDGABLE IN MY CLASS. I spent the last 5 years of my life getting wasted but unfortunately, its a fact: I am one of the "genius' " of the class. Sad. Im having a blast though. I go to school and every class we sit there and talk about movies and how they are made. I dont understand how everyone else in the class is always complaining and skipping classes. You would think this was high school and not something these people are spending 60 grand on. I graduate next August.
2.
Can you believe Ive been with my woman for about two and a half years? I cant. It just seems like yesterday I would get drunk off Rothschild at LAZERBEAMS and write a hate-filled post about her. Ah those were the days. Remember all of the stupid shit I did? Internet public lady issues.
Aurelia is teaching english in S. Korea for the next year. She is driving me nuts, but I guess that is because Im a shitty thoughtless boyfriend. Im glad to get a break from the female energy for a while. Or as I call it STRESSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSXXX.
Our adopted son Geoff is at her parents house. I kind of miss Geoff even if he was a fucker.
3.
I live in Studio City, about 2 blocks away from the Universal Studios lot (Universal City as its called), with a gay couple. So far it has not been too shabby. I think I moved down here at the perfect time. Before I got here, I got to a point where Im kind of numb about everything, which definately helps me here. Wether it will help me in future relationships with people I meet, is unclear. But feeling numb to your feelings and insecurities is a nice little vacation that Im sure will end up costing a shitload in therapy bills to come back from. At least I dont get mad in rush hour traffic. Oh and I drank next to Spencer Moody at a place called the 3 of Clubs bar on the corner of Santa Monica and Vine. Sweeeeeeeeeet.
Sometimes its kind of tough not to have anyone from the Jumpfighters crew here to hang with. But the times have changed. As people get older, their priorities change, and the Jumpfighters are no different. One thing that has become apperant is that things will not ever be the same as it was pre-Portland, no matter how much we tell each other different. We are 23 or 24 and no one can have fun anymore. Everyone is tied up in work, relationships, etc. I need to stop living in the past. The funny thing is that I was thinking just that as I was sitting quietly at the 3 of Clubs bar, drinking my 6 dollar Whiskey and Coke. Then I heard someone walk up to Spencer Moody and ask him about what was happening with SMOKE AND SMOKE. It sounds like hes in the same boat as me.
I don't feel old, although I should start acting like it. I need to start looking presentable for the upcoming 10 year high school reunion.
sleddgg
ps. Burning Man sucks.
In big career news, I started my new job on Monday. I am no longer a lowly intern. Now, I'm a lowly entry-level application engineer. My work is in a totally different group than where I was interning, so it's been tough, having to start over again from scratch, in terms of learning systems and people, but it'll be fun. It's going to be a pretty interesting job, I'm excited to get my feet on the ground and start kicking ass.
Monday I went through the 'new employee orientation,' which was old hat to me. We filled out paperwork (that I had already done through the internship program), went over my benefits (which are totally awesome, by the way) and took a tour of campus (which I already know like the back of my hand). During the tour, one of the 15 new employees starting that week came over and asked me about my watch. Kim got it for me as a graduation gift. He asked me how I liked it, I responded 'I love it, but I wish it had a nightlight on it.' He responded 'yeah, i wanted to put one in, but it would have been way to expensive to fabricate on a large scale. Turns out he was one of Nixon's lead designers. He had a part in desiging two of the four watches that I own. Neat.
My roommates left last weekend, which makes me sad. Good people. I've never enjoyed living with anyone so much. Truly.
I've also been to some pretty amazing concerts as of late. A week or so ago, I went with Ms. Kim, coreysprague and Jack to see A Silver Mount Zion at the Doug Fir Lounge, which was totally amazing. It was so wonderful to see such a talented, tight band in person. I'm so fucking sick of all these bands that sound amazing on their recordings but sound like total shit in a live setting. I value album production, but you should be able to recreate at least a fraction of it live. You know?
Last weekend, Kim and I went and saw Cat Power at the Aladin. She was going solo, so it was just her and a guitar / her and a piano for the entire night. It was a solid 2.5 hours of pure smiles. She's incredibly fucking talented and totally fucking cute, in every sense of the word. She took two smoke breaks and just talked to the crowd, telling some really wonderful stories. In between songs, one guy yelled a song request and she said no, so he yelled another one, which she also said no to. Then, someone elese yelled one, which started off a chain reaction. I sat up in my seat, waiting for it to happen. After about 7 people yelling things, it happened: someone yelled 'FREEBIRD' and I burst into laughter. People are so fucking predictable.
What happened next, however, surprised me. She twirled around, grabbed her guitar and played 3 or four verses from the song. It was wonderful.
Before the Cat Power show, I spent most of the day in the Colombia Gorge at the yearly family reunion. It was really fucking hot and there was no source of fresh water to be found, so I drank lukewarm Coronas for most of the day. That's really the highlight of it all, lukewarm Coronas. Sad.
The shoe giant gave me Friday off and allowed me to leave at noon on Thursday. I hopped in my car and drove down to the valley. It's kind of nice to visit. I'm currently in my parent's house, which is a mini oasis from the heat. It's fucking beautiful here. I love my parents.
On thursday night I went and saw Little Miss Sunshine. I don't really have too much to say about it, but it's the first movie I've seen in a long time that I really, really, really enjoyed. I didn't want it to end. By the end, the characters were so totally lovable. It was nice.
Click
On Sunday, the woman an I climed the fabled Pilot rock. I haven't done it in years and it was a lot more difficult than I remember, but was fun, nonetheless. I think I'm going to take some rockclimbing classes as I think I have some natural ability. I'm like a fucking monkey when it comes to climbing.
Beyond that, things are wonderful. I love you all.