+ Sunday, January 28th, 6:27pm +

I rarely ctach 'This American Life' on Sunday mornings (NPR), but this morning I got lucky. Amazing story of Dr. Ronald Mallett and his life long obsession with time travel. Very, very inspiring. It'll be free to listen to next week, so maybe I'll throw up a reminder. I just ordered his book as well.

-All these days of work are catching up to me...but it's less than a week to LA.


+ Wednesday, January 24th, 6:27pm +

Holy crap.

I just finished watching the DVD of Botch's last live show in Seattle on June 15th, 2002. Insane. Although I should have attended I didn't. I was lucky enough to see them more than a handful of times on both coasts playing with a variety of bands. Such amazing shows. A truly great band.

Watching this on DVD made me realise that my days of discovering new hardcore music is pretty much over. It's doubtful I'll be driven to discover new bands at shows at this point. I really only see bands I already enjoy and know well. I guess it makes me a bit sad, but I've had a good run. Besides I can always be that old guy who talks about the good old days with bitterness and pride.

Besides, I doubt any band will write and perform a song as good as 'C. Thomas Howell As The 'Soul Man' ever again. It's certainly on my hardcore short list.

+ 10:38am +

- The weather yesterday was great. It snowed last week? Warm and over 50 degrees with sun. Took a long dog walk and then started up the car and did a quick lap of Sauvie Island. Completely open roads and no cars at all allowed me some pretty high speeds to flush out the cob webs.

- Speaking of cars, Deadend Magazine is a great online magazine. So many amazing photos of rods and bikes...and the design isn't too shabby either.

- Anyone have any Los Angeles tattoo shop recommendations?




+ Sunday, January 21st, 10:23am +

- I'm back from the warm air of Northern Califonia. Not that Oregon is cold right now, far from it...but earlier this week is was something (or so I'm told). Here are a few photos of my house coated in four inches of the white stuff. Photos by my wife.

- Last night I witnessed AVAIL play for the first time in over five years. It's crazy to think the first time I saw them was close to 17 years ago. That's right seven-fing'-teen years ago. After all that time Tim and Beau Beau still bring down the house. Tim Berry is one of the most sincere people I've ever seen on stage. He is really happy and honored when the crowd sings along and gets excited. It was an old timer fest last night and was a damn good time.


+ Thursday, January 18th, 8:27am +

My "holy shit, it snowed in Portland" post will have to wait until Saturday. I'm sitting in a client's office in Palo Alto, California and have been in the area since Sunday night. I missed it. The wife, however, was right in the middle of the 4 plus inches that feel at our house. Photos have been taken, dogs walked and roads driven. And I missed it all.

I'm here with people complaining about 50 degree mornings while wearing huge overcoats with scarfs. A bit pathetic.




+ Sunday, January 14th, 5:55pm +

- I got my tickets for the sold out LA Morrissey shows happening the first weekend of February. He'll be playing for three nights and I'll be there for two. Of course, Ticketmaster was the worst...but I got seats in the middle of the 13th row on the floor. Should be an experience.

- Thanks to the great second run theaters in Portland, I was able to catch Stranger Than Fiction this afternoon. Great film. Will Farell did a solid job.

- Nothing like sitting in the airport waiting for a delayed flight. Especially when a jug band with a fiddle is playing LOUDLY in the waiting area. And I don't mean a recording, an actual band. I can't bring a coffee through the security gate but these morons can play at full volume while people try to read and sleep? On goes the iPod.

The only saving grace is that PDX has wi-fi. That and the fact that I'm traveling to a place that HAS to be warmer than the 20 degrees here in Portland. Way, WAY too cold.




+ Friday, January 12th, 11:19pm +

Congratulations to my good friend Tom and his wife Maureen on the birth of their son Liam Thomas. Born 7lbs, 19". Another little guy to join the skate army.


+ Thursday, January 11th, 2:27pm +

It seems that LA Galaxy want to mirror the brief, blazing success of the Metrostars in the 70's and have laid out $250 million dollars (a million a week) to get David Beckham to play for their MLS team.

Will soccer catch on in the US? Nah, but a few more people will go to LA games and a few people wikll make a shit load of cash.




+ Wednesday, January 10th, 6:35pm +

It seems Bush is not going to admit the real mistakes and is now moving to get more people killed. Fuck. I never thought there would be a second Vietnam. Thanks Bush. My parents had to deal with being part of a failed 'war' and the sorrow of a mistake that cost 58,159 US lives. How can that not be a lesson learned?

Bush said that the situation in Iraq is 'unacceptable'. How can adding to the US body count of 3019 with no end or solution in site be an 'acceptable' next step?

Fucking insane. And a terribly sad time.


+ Sunday, January 7th, 7:43pm +

Well, GM has announced their new plug-in hybrid, the Chevy Volt. It looks slick, sexy and high tech. There is no fucking way it will be made widely available.




+ Friday, January 5th, 9:21am +

In the past few days I have spoken a few times my past rap music past. Yeah, now it's hip-hop but from around 1986 to 1990 it was rap. Run DMC, Ice-T, Eric B and Rakim, NWA, Stet, Public Enemy and others. I also had quite the thing for 3rd Bass.

Now, MC Serch is back with VH1’s The (White) Rapper Show. Ugh. Throwing the eliminated contestents shoes over utility lines? Man, this seems to be quite the sell out for a guy who bashes the Beastie Boys at every opportunity. I have to say I am curious to see the show and look forward to giving it the 'Gas Face'. Although 'Ego Trip' is involved so...who knows.


+ Wednesday, January 3rd, 9:44am +

No disrespect to the former President, but since the announcement of his passing all I can think about is this Saturday Night Live sketch. I think the wife is over me trying to do Carvey's Tom Brokaw every time I see the coverage on TV.

"At the SENSELESS age of 83..."




+ Monday, January 1st, 2:13pm +

Ring in the new year by remembering the past. Savannah Slamma circa 1988. And here's Gonz skating in 87. Yes, it's been twenty years.

9:34am
- Almost a year here in want the cool kids call PDX. Feels good. Last year at this time we were walking the parking lot at the 'Anti Football Run' in Nor Cal (photos here). Hopefully I can do more car events this year.

- Last week was the five dollar Jeremy Enigk show at Dante's. As always, he put on a great show playing almost everything from both solo albums, the 'Leland' songs and a piano only version of 'How It Feels To Be Something On' from SDRE.

The downside was the horrible smoking at the club and the crowd in general. I can't understand why people would stand in the front of the stage while someone is playing a quiet accoustic song and have a full conversation. Go to another part of the damn bar or something. I also don't get going to a show where you don't know the artist at all...even for five bucks. People suck.

- My Black Metal Of 2006 page can be seen here.


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