My longest serving crush, the one that is as secure and valid today as it was in the beginning, is Jewel. Jewel she will save my soul. She was and is my age, and I didn't really even think about it until just now, while writing this, but that beginning was 15 years ago. I was barely out of my teens. And back then, there was that something about her, maybe the slightly imperfect teeth, the round face, the innocent shy smiles, the alaska upbringing (which Prince Rupert relates to so much, more so than any other town outside of Alaska), and even the championship level yodeling, but she had me at the moment she looked up from her guitar and smiled. My old roommate Jessica B. thought this crush was amusing, even in 1998, when it had been 2 years since she had a hit. Hell, she hasn't been on the radar since then, either. But still, even now, when she appears those rare times and media stumbles upon her, I still surprisingly lose my train of thought, and suddenly cant feel my toes.
Thursday, July 15, 2010
Tuesday, June 15, 2010
I love the Klaxons
These last 4 months, I admit, have been quite pathetic form, even for my standards. Disappearance. The culprit this time though, is a very strange reality to be faced with: My Engineer side of life has been bonkers insane, not necessarily in a good way. Not in a bad way either, because at least it occupies my time, and predominates my thoughts, saving me from incessantly day dreaming and meshing idle thoughts. Its actually not good when you have too much time to think. But its definitely not in a good way either because Im constantly spent now for months on end. Working way too many hours, 60-70 range American style, which is almost not acceptable when one lives in Rancho Relaxo Europe. Its thrown me for some much of a loop that I havent worked out in 4 months, and have only gone for one run that whole time. Probably in the worst shape of my life, at current... just because Im even more driven to, ummm.. not be bothered. Way more so than my usual and Ive lost balance. So all in all the work occupation has just been too overwhelming. The gains from the week off with Morris along with another weekend escape to London have long been eclipsed.
So Im going away. I need to cheer up! That previous paragraph was too darkish. I just sound too many shades of gray. Soooo... Tomorrow.. Im heading back to an Empire state of mind, for a week. Maybe Ill blog there. When my mind is straight. Or straighter... Im already looking forward to easy access to Magnolia Bakery. And New York Deli Sandwhichs with loads of roastbeef and pickle, and wrapped really nice and tight in wax paper... its always the little details.
In the mean time. Here is easily the best album cover Ive seen in my life. It makes me giddy. With this cover, from their new album Surfing the Void, the Klaxons got even more awesomer.
So Im going away. I need to cheer up! That previous paragraph was too darkish. I just sound too many shades of gray. Soooo... Tomorrow.. Im heading back to an Empire state of mind, for a week. Maybe Ill blog there. When my mind is straight. Or straighter... Im already looking forward to easy access to Magnolia Bakery. And New York Deli Sandwhichs with loads of roastbeef and pickle, and wrapped really nice and tight in wax paper... its always the little details.
In the mean time. Here is easily the best album cover Ive seen in my life. It makes me giddy. With this cover, from their new album Surfing the Void, the Klaxons got even more awesomer.
Saturday, June 12, 2010
Just a taste
After a life long search, I have now definitively found the greatest video of all time. This music video is in a rare category where it is actually phenomenal enough to make gays straight, and make all girls lesbian. The director is a pure genius... apart from the inclusion of the un-necessary dude..
Tuesday, May 04, 2010
The Ghost Whisperer
Oh gawd I wish I wrote this. Click Here Instead the closest I get is almost shitting my pants while going out on Thursday night in Dublin.
Wierd thing is, this is actually written by the same guy who writes about the shit his dad says on Twitter, quite possibly the best Twitter account known to man. No exaggeration there, Im not over selling. His tweets are that funny.
Wierd thing is, this is actually written by the same guy who writes about the shit his dad says on Twitter, quite possibly the best Twitter account known to man. No exaggeration there, Im not over selling. His tweets are that funny.
Monday, May 03, 2010
Only Fools and Horses
Just so I can say, this was suppose to be typed up on Friday, just before my Once per Month deadline, but I was knackered to fuck that day, to be completely honest. MWai and I had just arrived back from pretty much almost 8 days straight of being off the grid. He was over for his Afghanistan home leave; and its trippy to think Im actually saying that, I know somebody on Afghanistan home leave. Wierd. And he's not even in the military; just look at his hands, does it look like he'd be in he military?
Met up with Morris in London last weekend in LDN for two things: 1) Get out of Ireland for a little bit. 2) See LCD Soundsystem at the Brixton Academy, effectively ticking one box on my bucket list (See a concert at London's world famous Brixton Academy) Its been well document how the Iceland volcano with the weird unpronouncable name threatened many things over the last 2 weeks and wrecked havoc over Europe, but I didnt really care about any of the hundreds of millions of dollars lost in the airline industry, or the absolute crippling of general business in Europe alone (for example, no one could even courier anything at work.. no one was flying), the only thing I really cared about, selfishly i do admit, was this trip. Hell I needed a vacay.. what can you say. For anything else I deeply wanted to see this song live, my declared summer song for 2010.
Oh yeah, I also wanted a week of Morris' Afghanistan stories. Because they are amazing. I wont spoil them here, he owns copyright, so youll have to ask him yourself next time you see him. But lets just say he had the intimate undivided attention of everyone we met. Huong and I ceased to exist. And he didn't even get a chance to use his "Im a UN medievac pilot stationed in Kabul" line.
Met up with Morris in London last weekend in LDN for two things: 1) Get out of Ireland for a little bit. 2) See LCD Soundsystem at the Brixton Academy, effectively ticking one box on my bucket list (See a concert at London's world famous Brixton Academy) Its been well document how the Iceland volcano with the weird unpronouncable name threatened many things over the last 2 weeks and wrecked havoc over Europe, but I didnt really care about any of the hundreds of millions of dollars lost in the airline industry, or the absolute crippling of general business in Europe alone (for example, no one could even courier anything at work.. no one was flying), the only thing I really cared about, selfishly i do admit, was this trip. Hell I needed a vacay.. what can you say. For anything else I deeply wanted to see this song live, my declared summer song for 2010.
Oh yeah, I also wanted a week of Morris' Afghanistan stories. Because they are amazing. I wont spoil them here, he owns copyright, so youll have to ask him yourself next time you see him. But lets just say he had the intimate undivided attention of everyone we met. Huong and I ceased to exist. And he didn't even get a chance to use his "Im a UN medievac pilot stationed in Kabul" line.
Tuesday, March 30, 2010
This is what youre supppose to do with iPhones
I have to concede, I have a new crush. Watch the next two videos. This applegirl002? She wins me with her technical and musical playfulness, done in a geeky messin-around kind of way. Any chick this adorable that can just conceive an idea this nerd-awesome to begin with, let alone put in the work to get organized, plan, practice, perform and see it through, like, wow, how can I not be forever smitten after someone puts such inventive and ingenious effort like that ? Of course her singing is not money maker worthy, but she's obviously ESL afterall and still sings better than 90% of the people I know. Plus any girl that thinks creating music off of a few iPhones apps is fun, well, color me delighted, thats a complete winner winner chicken dinner in my books. Of course if a dude did this exact same thing, he'd be the hugest Dweeb. Dont blame me, I didnt invent double standards.
Heres more: I love the way she says 'high hat', and how she cups her hand to her ear when she says 'Listen!', like shes channeling Hulk Hogan. Shes so lovely. lol..
Now if she can only get rid of the sinewy wire cat: scary.
Heres more: I love the way she says 'high hat', and how she cups her hand to her ear when she says 'Listen!', like shes channeling Hulk Hogan. Shes so lovely. lol..
Now if she can only get rid of the sinewy wire cat: scary.
Sunday, March 21, 2010
An essential criterion to live by
Im slowly working my way to improving one critical facet of my life, and its a correction process that involves an exorbitant amount of patience. What is this most important thing? How good I look in the photos on all my picture ID, thats what. Yes indeed, this is very important. It is! Especially when you are passively vain as I am. Like who wants to look like JM in her Drivers Licence, where her face looks like someone just stole her french fries? (Sorry JM, but when the Motors & Vehicles branch attendant says no smiling, they mean 'use a neutral face', not 'go ahead and start frowning'. Its quite entertaining though. If you don't believe me, check through her purse sometime, when she is not looking. Why does her pic seem so sad?)
See I dont have the self confidence to pull off bad pictures, intentional or not. My buddy Hermes actually prefers to make funny faces in almost every picture taken of himself... because to him, its a funny momento that lasts as the years are long. He's a great photographer as well, who is is just as comfortable in front of the camera as he is behind it, and most importantly he doesn't give a shit, so he can completely pull it off. Morris is the exact same way, he actually prefers being goofy. And he has that type of moxy that makes it totally completely okay. I bet his Passport has him looking like a Hong Kong film triad gangsta avec his Cobra Kai- Johnny Lawrence scowl and he'd be proud of it. It those of us with weaker minds that fall victim.
And at least personal pictures you can eventually scrap, delete, and forget about. Bad pictures do happen, even when you are a wee bit handsome like me. (Im glad I dont have the same problem that ugly people have, for them pulling off a good photo is a lot of heavy lifting. But it is what it is) The matter compounds quite badly though for ID photos... since they last 5 years or more, and you are forced to display them to identify yourself again and again and again; they get a lot of repeat play action. And therefore a lot of self-reflective groans when its time to display them, if they are bad. Lets not forget, ID photographers are bad photographers by prerequisite, its part of the job description. Its takes a lot of hard work, favorable genetics and out right dumb luck to avoid the kisses of deaths they like to dole out on a daily basis.
One caveat though, I am not saying Im a big a proponent of the glamor ID photos either. YUCKS. Thats completely over acting, unnecessarily over the top. This is not your Facebook photo, you are not suppose to try so hard. Im more from the pure and unrefined school: I love candid photos, I love sans makeup photos. Its because they are natural and real. And thats the ideal look you want to pull off in any ID pic. Those that spend 2 hours in the bathroom to make themselves look good for a Passport, practicing their Zoolander look, and then pose for ID photos as if they are headshots for an auditioning call in Hollywood; those are just as offensive. I wont go there, so don't worry. The aim here is to hit a 7.5 on the dot; 5s and 10s are equally dreadful.
Now my Photo ID history has been a mixed bag of take some, leave some: never ever really achieving the consistency that should be the essential criterion to live by. My first Drivers Licence I was 16 years old, yet I looked twelve. Not good. Following that was the replacement when I was 18, which was better, and by better I mean I looked at least 15 by then. My UVic Student ID was next, which is more of the same, but during those years, I really cant help that I looked at least 4 years younger than everyone else my age. Since then I've been quite happy with my BC Drivers License, including the most recently renewed one last Christmas. And my Irish Drivers licence you may wonder? Its barely alright, but its only a laminated piece of pink flimsy paper, so no one takes it seriously anyways.
My Passports however were an area that was definitely left wanting, highlighted by the 2003 to 2006 stretch where in my passport pages, I looked mildly retarded. And I mean it. My true handicap? My eyes cant focus worth shit when I take my glasses off and dont have contacts, which has the same effect as hitting me with an ugly stick; my eyes go bug-eyed and wander in different directions. A picture was taken during this state. I would of rated it a 3 at best, which is an awful thing to carry around for 3 years. Thankfully it wasnt a full 5; Id been traveling so much, I quickly filled every page with Visas and stamps, requiring an early replacement. It was as if I done that by design, all in an aim to get rid of that abomination of a photo. The next two replacements have been quite good though, especially my current one, which nails a 7.5. Cant get better. Ive got to make this one last, which will be easier now since I have a jumbo size Passport with double the pages.
Now this leads me to my most current ID photo session, a renewal of my Irish Immigration card this past Friday. This was a sore spot as well, and for the last 5 years, Id been dealing with a photo that looked like my face had been stretched horizontally, making me look like Jabba the Hutt. Why in the world would they stretch my photo? Its yet another reason why I loath the Irish civil service: even if they do take a good photo, they manipulate it until it turns bad, which is the worst form of photoshop cheating. Luckily the stupid guy Ive dealt with the last few years is long gone, and the new officer at the Immigration office took a nice picture of me, and did not manipulate it this time. A saint. And I was wearing my black Banana Republic wool hoody contrasting with grey jacket, which Im now convinced is a awesome combo for IDs. Happy days.
So for the first time in my life, all my major IDs are decent. Phew!! Its a great accomplishment, probably one of the most under-rated accomplishments of all. Like how many can say they dont mind people rummaging through their wallet / purses anymore? At least I dont, not since Friday.
See I dont have the self confidence to pull off bad pictures, intentional or not. My buddy Hermes actually prefers to make funny faces in almost every picture taken of himself... because to him, its a funny momento that lasts as the years are long. He's a great photographer as well, who is is just as comfortable in front of the camera as he is behind it, and most importantly he doesn't give a shit, so he can completely pull it off. Morris is the exact same way, he actually prefers being goofy. And he has that type of moxy that makes it totally completely okay. I bet his Passport has him looking like a Hong Kong film triad gangsta avec his Cobra Kai- Johnny Lawrence scowl and he'd be proud of it. It those of us with weaker minds that fall victim.
And at least personal pictures you can eventually scrap, delete, and forget about. Bad pictures do happen, even when you are a wee bit handsome like me. (Im glad I dont have the same problem that ugly people have, for them pulling off a good photo is a lot of heavy lifting. But it is what it is) The matter compounds quite badly though for ID photos... since they last 5 years or more, and you are forced to display them to identify yourself again and again and again; they get a lot of repeat play action. And therefore a lot of self-reflective groans when its time to display them, if they are bad. Lets not forget, ID photographers are bad photographers by prerequisite, its part of the job description. Its takes a lot of hard work, favorable genetics and out right dumb luck to avoid the kisses of deaths they like to dole out on a daily basis.
One caveat though, I am not saying Im a big a proponent of the glamor ID photos either. YUCKS. Thats completely over acting, unnecessarily over the top. This is not your Facebook photo, you are not suppose to try so hard. Im more from the pure and unrefined school: I love candid photos, I love sans makeup photos. Its because they are natural and real. And thats the ideal look you want to pull off in any ID pic. Those that spend 2 hours in the bathroom to make themselves look good for a Passport, practicing their Zoolander look, and then pose for ID photos as if they are headshots for an auditioning call in Hollywood; those are just as offensive. I wont go there, so don't worry. The aim here is to hit a 7.5 on the dot; 5s and 10s are equally dreadful.
Now my Photo ID history has been a mixed bag of take some, leave some: never ever really achieving the consistency that should be the essential criterion to live by. My first Drivers Licence I was 16 years old, yet I looked twelve. Not good. Following that was the replacement when I was 18, which was better, and by better I mean I looked at least 15 by then. My UVic Student ID was next, which is more of the same, but during those years, I really cant help that I looked at least 4 years younger than everyone else my age. Since then I've been quite happy with my BC Drivers License, including the most recently renewed one last Christmas. And my Irish Drivers licence you may wonder? Its barely alright, but its only a laminated piece of pink flimsy paper, so no one takes it seriously anyways.
My Passports however were an area that was definitely left wanting, highlighted by the 2003 to 2006 stretch where in my passport pages, I looked mildly retarded. And I mean it. My true handicap? My eyes cant focus worth shit when I take my glasses off and dont have contacts, which has the same effect as hitting me with an ugly stick; my eyes go bug-eyed and wander in different directions. A picture was taken during this state. I would of rated it a 3 at best, which is an awful thing to carry around for 3 years. Thankfully it wasnt a full 5; Id been traveling so much, I quickly filled every page with Visas and stamps, requiring an early replacement. It was as if I done that by design, all in an aim to get rid of that abomination of a photo. The next two replacements have been quite good though, especially my current one, which nails a 7.5. Cant get better. Ive got to make this one last, which will be easier now since I have a jumbo size Passport with double the pages.
Now this leads me to my most current ID photo session, a renewal of my Irish Immigration card this past Friday. This was a sore spot as well, and for the last 5 years, Id been dealing with a photo that looked like my face had been stretched horizontally, making me look like Jabba the Hutt. Why in the world would they stretch my photo? Its yet another reason why I loath the Irish civil service: even if they do take a good photo, they manipulate it until it turns bad, which is the worst form of photoshop cheating. Luckily the stupid guy Ive dealt with the last few years is long gone, and the new officer at the Immigration office took a nice picture of me, and did not manipulate it this time. A saint. And I was wearing my black Banana Republic wool hoody contrasting with grey jacket, which Im now convinced is a awesome combo for IDs. Happy days.
So for the first time in my life, all my major IDs are decent. Phew!! Its a great accomplishment, probably one of the most under-rated accomplishments of all. Like how many can say they dont mind people rummaging through their wallet / purses anymore? At least I dont, not since Friday.
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)
