Random Day Stuff

It was a particularly beautiful day in Boston and vicinity today. This was the skyline view from around 7:30 this morning (I think it was 7:30. I don't really remember as I got about two-and-a-half hours of sleep last night. Some things are foggy today) I don't know if it comes through in the photo but I found the pink morning mist over the city a bit romantically sci-fi. I love that kind of thing. 

Pete and Nate have been touring as members of the band, Van Hayride, the countrified Van Halen cover band. They've been opening for the band, Puss N Boots. If either band comes to your town I highly recommend seeing them. 

Pete, Nate, and the incredible Daria Grace

Rod (far left, sorry, Rod, I don't know your last name) Pete, the obviously amazing Jack Grace, Daria (far right)

The women of Puss N Boots are forces of nature. They have a seriously entertaining, POWERFUL thing going. Plus they're really irreverent and funny. I cannot tell you how much I wish I could sing like any of them. In fact I was too stunned by their awesomeness to remember to take a picture of them. 

I got to hang around with everyone backstage last night after the show for a while. I ended up not going to bed until 3 AM. Rock 'n' roll. What are you going to do? 

The best thing was how really lovely all the people were. Everyone was so kind and inclusive. It was a family atmosphere, lots of love and fun in the room. Norah Jones is my new favorite famous person. (Did I have a designated old favorite famous person?) Sasha gave me a delicious cookie. Most importantly everyone was really nice to my boys, Pete and Nate, and I love it when people are good to the folks I love. I also picked up a great tip for dealing with a certain indelicate process (okay, farting - without naming names) that I'm definitely going to use later. Very worth the sleep deficit. 

In other news I signed up to take a yoga class tomorrow morning at the (new to me) local yoga studio in Union Square. I got a two-week unlimited trial pass too. I'm irrationally excited about this. I have never signed up for a yoga class on my own steam before. These days I'm all about trying new things. Billions of people go to yoga classes every day. It's not a big deal. I'm acting like it's some big adventure. Well you never know where something's going to lead...

Karaoke

Nine days of blogging and I don't know what to say. Sorry, but this is going to be a filler post. I'll keep it brief.

Pete and I did karaoke tonight with our friends, Spencer and Lisa. Thankfully we had a private room. I think karaoke is a very good thing. Especially when there are lasers.

Every year Pete's band, The Weisstronauts, does a Christmas show and I get up and sing a number. I usually stress about it somewhat. Not enough to practice for the whole week before the gig though. I usually just sing along to my iPod for a couple of hours that day. The words are no problem because I've chosen a song that was on the "Holiday" tape when I worked at The Gap back in the early 90's. I worked three "Holiday"s so I could sing this song in my sleep.

Anyhoo, I'd consider doing some karaoke in the days before the show just to warm up and try and smooth out my performance moves. I usually don't have any performance moves and I feel stilted and awkward.

Oh Practice, will I ever learn to fully appreciate you?

Inspi-stinkin-ration

I hate inspirational posters that boss me the hell around. Do this, do that... "Enjoy life to the fullest!" "Believe in your dreams!" "Breathe!" "Say yes to love!" (oh, wait...) So annoying.

But this one is good:

It's the Holstee manifesto and you can get a copy for yourself here.

Okay, at times it's a little much for me. I get overwhelmed by all that advice. I'm never going to just walk up to someone and demand to know their passion. Also, the "All emotions are beautiful" lettering should be bigger for more impact. Most people don't understand that all emotions are beautiful - or why. 

Whatever my quibbles may be, this poster makes a lot of good points. But I'm on a love jag right now so I'm just going to focus on that part.

It took me forever to realize that "do what you love" really means do everything you love as much as you can. It's a good idea to fill as many moments as possible with as much of the stuff you love as possible.

Eat the food you love, wear the shoes you love, be with the people you love, surround yourself with the colors you love, listen to the music you love, go to the places you love, do the things you love to do no matter what their value seems to be. Don't be ashamed if the things you love seem stupid. You love them. If they bring you joy then that's enough and screw what anybody else thinks. 

It seems to me that this is how you build a life that has value for you. So that's what I'm going to do. 

Wild Women

Pete, Marc and I went to see Neko Case on Thursday night.  She was excellent.

There was something about the crowd that surprised me though: it was packed with prim looking women and their suit-clad dates.  The women had perfect hair and tasteful cardigans and silk scarves knotted daintily at their throats.  This was not what I was expecting at all.

Maybe I was envious of their perfection but they made me want to be more messy and unruly. 

Neko Case is kind of a barely-contained force of nature.  She has thoughts and emotions she needs to GET OUT.  When she sings these thoughts and emotions are ejected right out of her body.  It's powerful and beautiful to see.

Watching her also made me want to be more messy and unruly. 

Overall the whole experience made me want to be worse.  By worse I mean I want to feel good about dropping balls, doing things wrong, not doing what I'm supposed to do, going out with bed head, basically exploiting my flaws.

I don't want to go overboard and start wearing a hipster homeless-Bjorn-Borg costume or anything.  I'm not going to invent new flaws for myself.  It's just that being comfortable inhabiting your entire self including the ways you fuck up has to be really powerful.

So I think I'm going to start taking it easy on my rougher edges.  Maybe I can talk myself into seeing my failures as successes.

Here's My Breakfast

I'm in Vegas.

Pete and I are staying at Treasure Island. It smells funny. I think it's some branding gimmick where they have a signature scent that permeates the place. It's not bad exactly, just kind of cheap-o. The waffles and the bun are fantastic though (there's a Vietnamese section in the coffee shop - who knew?).

The awful top forty music is inescapeable. Good thing I brought my ear plugs. I will wear them by the pool later.

Last night the place was swarming with partially sequined and spandexed women. Everyone is wearing the same five-inch black stiletto platform shoes - tedious. It's kind of funny to see what people do. "I'm going to Vegas! Time to get out the whorewear!" There's less of it this morning but it's still there.

Don't get me wrong - I'm not complaining in any way. I love it. It's all so interesting and everyone seems to be having a really fun time. That's what we're here for. So whatever makes it work for you.

And now, off to the pool!

Phoning It In

I just ate half a box of Burdick's chocolate. And I'd do it again. In a heartbeat. Someone hide the box!

I'm enjoying myself right now. Pete and I watched "Down By Law" for the first time (I know, we're bad whatever-generation-we're-supposed-to-be-part-of-ers) I've had some Jameson's and I've got "O.K. Computer" on the iPod.

Tablet schmablet - that has nothing to do with my life. Chocolate, whiskey, old Radiohead albums and doing the dishes. That's the life for me! New Radiohead albums would be good too.

The Down Side Of Flashbacks

Driving up to Vermont last night I saw gas for $1.69 and it gave me the creeps. I'm not sure why but I think there's something wrong with cheap gas. Is it a flashback thing? I'm not comfortable when something triggers powerful feelings of being in the past? Do I think it's an OPEC or a Bush administration plot? Maybe it's just that I know gasoline is a dying fuel so it shouldn't be that easy to come by?

The other night Pete, Marc and I were out at a bar that was playing some 80's revival band's music. It sounded pretty good. It had a very accurate 80's sound. I was giving them credit but not that much credit. The music made me remember why I really liked New Wave almost thirty years ago: because it sounded new, like the future. Now the "New Wave" sound is retro. Its sounds fresh(ish) to people who are nineteen now and weren't around to hear it then. It's not ground breaking anymore, it's nostalgic.

Someone out there right now is making the new sound, the sound that will make us think of the future as progress. I can never imagine what it is. When it registers with the popular culture and I finally hear about it I know I'll be really surprised. I certainly didn't predict Grunge (Actually I found Grunge disappointing after Punk. Not in a Robert Hughes "young people today can't produce anything but trash" way though. Grunge just seemed apathetic to me - I couldn't relate so well)

I probably do have an aversion to being propelled into the past. I'd like to preserve some distance between me and the mistakes I've made. I keep hoping that the future can provide something better than what's already been. In my experience I keep becoming better equipped to deal with whatever arises. I consider that improvement.

Some things just seem to be getting worse and worse though. Then I think, "well people have always felt that way". That doesn't mean they were wrong - some things have been getting worse and worse. But we find ways to adjust. Sometimes we find ways to improve things. For example there's a flock of wild turkeys living in the Brookline High neighborhood.

I hope to God we can improve on gasoline.

Another Example Of Why It Doesn't Suck To Be Me

That would be today.

Key: asterisked (*) words denote special privileges.

Okay, I am on vacation* but when you have a laptop* that's a relative term. I can say that I'm mostly on vacation.*

Have you heard "Love Is Only Sleeping" by the Monkees lately? It's really good. Listen to it again. I think you'll be pleasantly surprised. So is this song by Empire Of The Sun, "Walking On A Dream," which I heard on Dave Allen's blog*.

Yeah, that and Pizzicato Five are playing* as I write.

Today I made some killer garlicky potato salad* with potatoes from a local farm stand* and fresh dill*, cleaned up after the dog (all day but that's just how it has been and will be for the foreseeable future) and went to the beach*. I just came in from having a giant gin and tonic* out in the (beautiful*) back yard*. I had my iPod* plugged in to the outdoor speakers* enabling me to listen to my very favorite music* while gazing at the sunsetting sky* which was full of mare's tail (fair weather) clouds. Did I mention that I had skull and crossbones ice* in my gin and tonic? This is one of the things I've been waiting all summer to do!

I got to feel quite magical* in fact. After my outdoor shower* I pulled on this friggin' awesome cotton dress* that I got on sale*.

Then I sat out there on the chaise lounge,* listened to my music,* sipped my gin and tonic,* accompanied by my dog in her wheelchair,* and watched deer course through the back yard*.

Really the only onerous thing I did today was buy plane tickets* to go do something I really want to do and fully expect to enjoy*. And I bagged up a bunch of trash to take out*. Boo-hoo.

Soon I will make myself a nutritious dinner* from leftovers*. Then I'll probably play video games* or watch some cable T.V.* and knit*.

It's Still Summer At The Beach

It's still hot and sunny on the east end of Long Island. Weather Underground says sun all week. I'll be here.

Yesterday there were two guys on the beach playing live jazz. One had a guitar, one an alto saxophone. Thanks guys - that was great! My favorite saxophone experience ever. I think Pete and I stayed on the beach an hour longer than we would have just because of them.

I've been knitting a sock on the beach with Noro Kureyon sock yarn (Japanese yarn, by the way) It's self-striping and probably itchy. Someday I'll learn the "magic loop" technique and be able to knit two socks at once. This time I got impatient and just cast on to two circular needles.

Usually I don't like to knit at the beach because I feel like I'm getting sun block all over my work. This yarn feels so rough though that I know I'll need to wash it if only to soften it up so I'm not worried.

Last night we had dinner at a restaurant in East Hampton called Fresno. We called at around five and got a reservation for 7 PM. We were a little worried about that. What's wrong with them? It turns out that nothing's wrong with them. Best dinner I've had in quite a while. I know it's nothing new now but whoever invented that molten chocolate cake thing should be rich and famous.

Two Week Overview

I guess I kinda dropped the blogging ball, huh? Probably because I seem to be brainless these days. So here's some of what I've been doing in list form:

Developed a mania for anything Japanese
- cute beer bottle from last post
- Manga (Sugar Sugar Rune and xxxHolic mostly but I'm not even that picky. I even like the tripey romantic vampire ones)
- learned to make age dashi dofu (one of my favorite dishes) and onigiri
- got some "teach yourself Japanese" cds. I've listened to the first ten minutes about twenty times.
- tried some sparkling sake a couple of days ago. It's a little too sweet for me.

Knitting
- some cabled fingerless mitts that I'm making up as I go along
- a new sculptural plate project (more on that much later)

Waiting for my brain to return to work

Playing video games
- Izuna 2 (fun!)
- wii (just the games that come with the machine and the second controller)
- making mii's (the most fun thing to do with the wii so far. I should probably branch out)
- wishing they had a "My Japanese Coach" on DS - wait - I'll just look on Amazon... There's one coming out on September 23! Yay!

Bought these fa-reakin' awesome boots:

They're very Sugar Sugar Rune.

Became obsessed with nail decals (made in Japan!) and how to use them in my artwork

Made Cookies and Cream cupcakes:


Tried Miracle Berry Fruit Tablets made of the fruit that makes sour things taste sweet. They really do work. It works best with fruit though. Limes taste sweet and delicious but they still make your mouth go all squinchy. I guess your body knows something your brain missed. Vinegar tastes sweet and gross. Some things just shouldn't be sweet.

Pete and I went to see the Radiohead show back on August 13 at the Comcast center. It had been six years since I'd been to a giant show like that. Now I remember why. Radiohead were very good of course and the light show was really impressive, but by golly if you want to feel like a faceless nothing then go to one of those giant shows. I may be a faceless nothing but I don't like to feel like it. I think I'll stick to the smaller venues from now on.

The weather has been gorgeous so I can't complain about that. Fay's digestion has mostly settled down too so there's some progress in that area.

I had girls' night with my friend Michaela last night. She told me she thinks I should start a "Factory" like Andy Warhol because I have too many ideas for one person to execute by herself. I think that would be great. I'm not sure how I'd pay for it. I guess I'd have to work on my mystique too so I could attract acolytes who are willing to do as I say for cheap. And I'd probably have to move back to the city where there are people.

PotLuckCon '08 - A Thought Or Two

There's so much I want to say about the PotLuck/TapeOp trip but I won't do it all at once.

As always I had a wonderful time with the Tape Oppers at PotluckCon. Every year I meet a bunch of interesting new people and enjoy getting to know the people I met during previous conferences better.

I've mentioned before that I'm not so good at socializing or meeting people I really connect with. Well these conferences are a really easy way for me to do just that. The folks who go are intelligent, funny, approachable and easy to talk to, passionate about their work and yet also interested in other things that are happening in the world. Yeah, there's a lot of technical and gear talk going on but these are people whose business is creativity and who have had to craft their lives unconventionally to accomodate what they want to do. Music isn't my business but we do have shared experience. It's definitely a highlight of my year to be in such a large group of people who either think kind of like I do or blow me away with how their brains work.

If you idolize an indie-rock music producer or recording engineer do not hesitate to go talk to them. The vast majority of them are incredibly modest and happy to talk to anyone about what they do. Ask them anything. Except "what was it like to work with Nirvana?" or whatever their big band is if they have one. They're funny in that they can totally idolize each other and yet have no concept of how they themselves are idolized in return.

That's all I have time for now. I hope I get back to the topic because I learned a lot of interesting (well, to me) things this year. And then there's the whole New Orleans experience to get into. You know how life is though: it keeps coming at you.

PotLuckCon '08

We're off to New Orleans tomorrow for PotLuckCon, the continuation of TapeOpCon.

I was just looking at the web page for the Sheraton where the conference will be held this year. It's a little daunting. Just a little. We used to stay at the Fairmont a few blocks up Canal Street during the pre-Katrina Tape Op days. It's not in operation now. That place had character to spare. I believe I will miss it. I hope the Sheraton's not too corporate in comparison.

If any of the old bars near the Fairmont are still there I'm sure they'll get some Pot Luck business. The Piccadilly Pub, for instance. And the tiny little hole-in-the-wall bar that was attached to the tiny little hole-in-the-wall hotel next to the Fairmont. I forget what it's name was - either of them.

I managed to swing some antibiotics for Fay today. That was a relief. Now I don't have to worry that she might have an untreated UTI. I just have to worry that she doesn't have a UTI and I'm giving her unnecessary antibiotics. I guess I'll cross that bridge when I get to it.

Well, I'd better go finish packing since it's almost midnight and our flight leaves at 8 AM. Classic me.

Weisstronauts Album Review

Pete's got a band, The Weisstronauts. Their newest album, "Instrotainment," just came out. Here's where you can read a review of the album and an interview with Pete.

Inspiration

This stuff is infernal. It gets everywhere. It has inspired the first song I'll ever write (I haven't written it yet) entitled "I Crap Glitter." I haven't actually checked to see if this is literally true but it wouldn't surprise me.

My Sin

Lately I've really been enjoying music where the subject of the song is so overpowered by emotion that he/she acts without regard to the consequences. Swept away beyond reach of reason, overmastered, out of control.

This is an intoxicating concept for me theoretically. I am generally a cautious person. I tend to keep my behavior on a tight leash and avoid situations where such things might actually happen to me. I like my self-control (I'm way more loosey-goosey about other people though)

I've usually got an eye on the repercussions of my behavior - at least about the important stuff. I'm not afraid to act like a goofball on a stage or to dye my hair pink (I've been thinking about it lately) or to look generally odd. I just don't transgress. No theft, no gambling, no insulting people (well not on purpose) no dishonesty, no cheating, no excess. I try to always be rational and reasonable.

God it sounds tedious! That feeling of being overmastered by some outside force has pretty much never happened to me. Except in one area: shoes.

SHOES ARE MY SECRET SIN!!!!!!

I almost wish there were a shoe version of Ravelry but then everyone would know just how bad I am. I don't know how many pairs I have. I'm not going to count either. I have WAY more than I need. I'm five-feet, nine-inches tall but I LOVE platforms and heels. The more outlandish the better. It's totally inappropriate to my life.

In my life I'm either working alone in my studio at the heart of the muddy, snowy gravel pit that is our acreage in Vermont or else I'm walking my feet off in the sleet in Boston, climbing over ice barriers on my way to the local bar or alt rock show.

But am I thinking about appropriateness of attire or of behavior? Everyone I know is a puritan. We're all so goddamned measured and sensible! At least that's all anyone will own up to. Not that I want to hang out with sleazebag cheaters - or, God forbid, be one!

Maybe it's better to keep the disregard for consequences in the realm of fantasy.

Or maybe it's not. I guess there's evidence that it's human nature to make the best of whatever comes of the choices we make. And there's no real way to know if you'd be better off one way or another: you can't do both and then decide.

I'm too chicken to risk it and find out for myself. I think I'll just stick to immoderate consumption of shoes.

Overmastery doesn't come by choice. Maybe I have been overmastered - by good sense. How unromantic and not at all intoxicating.

My Awesome Outfit

Voila mon awesome outfit! I am wearing it to perform my rendition of "Santa Baby" at the Weisstronauts' annual Christmas party gig. This year's party was at Toad in Cambridge and it was a particularly good one. Those of you who couldn't make it were missed but those of us who were there had a really good time anyway.

Now back to my awesome outfit. It all started with the sneakers which I couldn't resist.


From there I spun off into some 1979 seventh-grade fantasy of what would be great festive attire. Have I mentioned that I'll be forty-two in a few weeks? Thank God I've arranged my life so that I can do stuff like this and not get locked up.

I wasn't 100% sure about the wisdom of the shorts but then I decided that this outfit isn't about wisdom. So I went for it and I was really glad. I'm still glad! I LOVE this outfit. Can you tell? The odd thing is that I can't stand wearing shorts in the summer. Blech.

Back in about 1981 I bought myself some high tops kind of like this from Commander Salamander, the punk rock supply store in Georgetown in Washington, D.C.. The original pair has aged beyond wear-ability. How could I pass up this replacement pair?

As for the rest of it, I believe I'm genetically part clown.

Prednisone Bomb

I'm nervous. Fay was getting a little worse - weaker back legs. So on the vet's orders I'm now giving her a prednisone bomb every other morning. Today was the first day - 30 milligrams. She had been getting 20 every other day. I just hope it doesn't make her sick or feel bad. I hope it helps. But I feel like we're just holding back the tide. It'll be great if she can walk better but for how long?

On the other hand we've bought her many months of enjoyable life and we can continue to do that. She's happy. She gets patting and treats and everybody wants to know about her. Everybody wants to talk to a dog in a wheelchair.

On a different note, I LOVE RADIOHEAD!
They can do anything they want and they still want to have fun. Luckies!

Ordinary Day in Vermont

A couple of photos of some wet grass seed heads outside my door. It rained last night in VT for the first time in weeks. The wet seed heads are lavender colored in real life too.

I downloaded the new Radiohead album today: "In Rainbows." I've listened to it three times so far and I really like it. It's outrageously beautiful.

Also, I made a butternut squash polenta from a recipe I got from the Washington Post. Usually I'd bake the squash first to make the puree but this time I nuked it. It came out perfectly cooked. That butternut squash was so sweet just plain, I couldn't believe it. I'll be making that again soon.

I find that lately I've been using way too much salt and eating too much sugar. What's that about? Not too much for me, but more than experts would approve of.

Whoops! A certain aroma just reminded me that I'm also toasting the squash seeds in the toaster oven. I didn't burn them - phew - they're just done. But I did over salt them! You know, if I made the extra puree into soup I could use the toasted seeds as a tasty garnish.

Other aspects of my ordinary day in VT: I finished reading The Subtle Knife by Philip Pullman, worked in my studio, did my Yourself!Fitness XBox workout, ate a (frigging) salad and got the dog to chase a tennis ball in the house while in her wheelchair. Eventful! Productive! How ordinary is that really?

Radiohead Illuminates "Riverdance"

First, about Radiohead:

There are a number of things about Radiohead that ought to be deal breakers for me. The first several times I tried listening to them all I could think was "Pink Floyd did that bombastic, over-dramatic whiny thing twenty years ago."

For some reason though I kept trying and finally something clicked. I realized that they don't sound all that different from a lot of other things l like to listen to.

Now I'm obsessed. I can't stop listening even though I want to. Some mornings I wake up after a night of their songs going through my head and I think "I really have to stop." But I can't. I need to hear those strange sounds. Their sounds twist my brain in a way I really love. It's almost consciousness altering. They open other worlds up in my mind. I LOVE that. Because heaven knows this one's not good enough. And I can do it myself but it's nice to have help from time to time.

I would think that the relentless moping or the U2 level drama or T.Y.'s whiny tones would drive me nuts but no. His voice scratches an itch I didn't know I had. Can't. Stop. Listening. They don't even have that many albums and I don't even have them all. Some of the stuff I used to like to hear sounds lifeless and dull now and I blame them.

It's all about compulsive behavior that you don't like but can't help. Sex, death, and consuming. Painfully animal - and natural and beautiful. And then there's escape into the ether of one's mind. Torn between the carnal and the ethereal - being both and needing both.

This is why we invented monsters: because we are monsters. Every one of us has a Mr. Hyde that doesn't always stay inside. Sometimes we don't even notice that he's out and active.

Drama drama drama! And I can't get enough. As long as it's in the art I like and not in my life.

At the moment my favorite is "Everything in its Right Place" from the Kid A album. It sounds multi-dimensional. No I have not been smoking whacky weed or ingesting other illicit substances.

And what the hell's with Thom Yorke anyway? He ought to be unbearably annoying but no, he's kind of fascinating. That's a guy with charisma.

There's nothing annoying about the drumming though. Phil Selway is one of the rare drummers who uses his kit as a musical instrument. Most drummers seem to think only about rhythm or texture but he thinks about the notes he's playing too.

John Waters once said that the best art is the kind you don't like at first. I think that's right: it's the kind that really bugs you to the point that you are forced to figure it out. Art that comes and gets you without your permission.

This is where Riverdance comes in. I tried to understand the appeal of Riverdance once, since it was all over PBS and it was bugging the hell out of me. I sat down and watched it a couple of times and then I spent weeks with it in the back of my mind trying to figure it out. During those weeks Pete and I drove out to Las Vegas for a wedding. We passed innumerable houses in the middle of nowhere. Places where it was hours worth of driving just to get to a gas station. Maybe these were the people who made Riverdance such a huge hit? Or Monster Trucks or Rob Zombie movies? They have plenty of natural beauty around them to develop an aesthetic sense, but not much access to culture. Obviously they get some culture but not much in the way of variety. Riverdance must appeal to people who don't have much in the way of man-made spectacle to compare it to.

Art is supposed to transport the person experiencing it to another level of awareness. Now, probably ten years later, I suppose that Riverdance (and monster trucks and Rob Zombie movies) evokes the same sense of mystery, strangeness, beauty and otherworldliness in some people that Radiohead does in me. So for some people I guess it would be art. I could definitely see Riverdance starting some people off on their search for the extraordinary.