School Bus Rocks

The preparations for Saturday night started nearly two weeks ago with Za and Xena’s announcement that there would be a surprise party bus set up for T’s birthday. As the date approached, getting ready got more and more complicated as T began wanting to plan something while everyone around her is trying to figure out how not to completely avoid her plan without giving away the surprise. T, naturally, is one of those people who controls quite a bit of group communication and coordination, so the idea of keeping a surprise with all of her friends involved under wraps doesn’t seem like the most doable proposition.

On Friday, T sends out an email inviting everyone to a BBQ on Saturday starting at 1. Obviously, because we can’t tell T that we’re going to be raging late into the night, we need to show up and be counted for the BBQ. I get there at around 2 to find the Choosy, Blair, Windy and a few others hanging around. Funny thing is that all of a sudden, given the motive and opportunity to lie, people start lying left and right to throw T off, just because they can. Choosy spins a ridiculous yarn about her phone being out of batteries, only to reveal later that that was simply a ploy to let her leave the house. At one moment during the festivities, it’s announced that Lina from the Carol has slipped and mentioned a party bus in front of T, which starts everyone scurrying around wondering if she now knows of the surprise or not. We insist on playing it off as though she doesn’t, but everyone’s pretty sure she does.

Hessica shows up around 830 and Za, myself, McButter, Tri and a few others are playing the “let’s go out to a bar and have a drink or two” decoy game. All the while Za is on the phone with the people on the bus trying to coordinate where they need to go to cross paths with us. T starts getting antsy to get to the Lex, so we start walking. About three blocks from her place, the bus starts coming up. Everyone in our group is watching it, T is walking down the sidewalk completely oblivious, continuing her conversation. As the bus approaches, people start hanging out the window and screaming at T.

She turns to the bus and gives it one of her patented, “What the hell is wrong with those people?” looks that she has. As she’s glaring at them, she slowly starts to recognize one, then two, then more people, until all of a sudden it dawns on her that everyone in the bus is her friend. We start walking towards the bus and I ask her if she’s ready to get on, and it’s obvious at this point that the surprise has been a success because she’s tearing up a bit (which I have definitely never seen). She relates to me later that the slow recognition of the fact that the bus was for her started with, “Who are those dumbasses? Wait, I know some of those people…what are they doing? That looks like fun. Wait a second, are we going over to the bus? Oh shit, the bus is for me.”

The bus has about 30 of us on there, all good friends of T’s from her various walks of life. Kels, Cat, Jacks and Cath, Bini, Danny and others are all there. This bus is a school bus that has been gutted and converted into a party bus. As you walk on, there are no rows of seats, but rather two long benches that run down either side of the bus. In the back, there’s a raised dance floor and there are speakers throughout the bus that you can connect an iPod to.

We make our first stop at the Lex where they’re having an anniversary party of some sort and it’s more crowded than I’ve ever seen it, even though they’ve moved the pool table out of there. This is billed as a quick stop with everyone exiting the bus, heading into the Lex, taking a quick shot of Jager or what have you, then Choosy gets on the mic and tells everyone else to get back on the bus, which pulls up about five minutes later.

For the next several hours, the majority of the trip involves hideously ridiculous amounts of booze being drunk by people with one hand on the ceiling of the bus trying to hold themselves up while drinking and dancing as the bus drives around San Francisco. At one point we ask the driver to take us up to Twin Peaks. As we arrive, Kramer, who’s apparently been chasing the bus all over the city, finds us and joins. As we climb higher and higher, we get to a spot that the driver claims is the top. This sparks an argument between him and Za over what actually constitutes the top, and after some screaming and a cell phone call to his boss, he takes us up further…but everyone is parked up there and there’s not a whole lot of room, so after a few smokes we’re back on and rolling.

The bus then takes us to an Island (I’m still not sure if it was Treasure or the one on the other side of the Golden Gate) where we get out to get a great view of the Bridge and the city. At this point, Drunk is about the only thing anyone is, and as we load the bus again, people start getting over the fact that dancing while the bus is moving is difficult, and start dancing, even as that entails falling on their ass when the bus takes a corner. At one point, the driver hits the brakes fast and the entire dance floor (meaning everyone dancing) slides, falls and ends up in the middle of the bus. He circles the city a bit, circles again and drops us off back in front of the Lex at 1.

At this point, the party fragments. Some of the party heads into the Lex to drink where they left off at the beginning of the evening, and others of us decide there’s no reason to go into the Lex when we can drink on the street. KRigg starts an arm wrestling contest on the sidewalk across the street while Hessica and I smoke js, simultaneously chugging straight from a bottle of pear vodka (despite the fact that I've vowed never to drink pear vodka again). This continues for about an hour or so, which is completely shocking as I have no idea how I manage to stand on a sidewalk in the middle of the Mission, drinking straight from a bottle of vodka and smoking pot without any police interference.

After the arm wrestling, and more pear vodka than probably anyone should drink straight, it’s time for crepes and we load up the cab and take it over to eat. At this point it’s Hessica, myself, T, Za, and Tri. I load up with a banana/nutella/coconut before we get back in a cab and I eat a hot dog and jalapeno chips from 7-11 before passing out on the couch. It was a most excellent surprise party for a most excellent person, and as we're now about to April, it's just about time to kick those BBQs into full gear!

For pictures and videos, check out my myspace, facebook and youtube profiles...

Thief

Only on a night when I decide to take it easy could I come this close to getting in trouble. Friday night I’m feeling a more relaxed evening, which is good considering that in honor of their last day out of town, Chaz has decided to have a party at his place. Nothing too fancy, just about 10 or so of us playing Beirut. We’re multiple games into it when it gets to be around 1:30 and everyone’s hungry. I agree to jet down to Jack in the Box and Glace comes with me to help carry the order.

On the way, I remember something I need for the next day that I left at the office, and it only makes sense for me to go get it considering we’re driving right near there anyways. I’ve been to my office after hours before, have the key, so it’s not a big deal. I unlock the door and hear the familiar beep from the alarm system indicating a door has been open. Only, instead of only one beep, it keeps beeping. This concerns me. I run up the stairs, the beeping ticking like a bomb counter counting down, get to my desk, and as I’m two feet back towards the step, the full alarm comes on with sirens going crazy. Trying to run faster, I almost go flying down the stairs, I run out the door, come close to breaking the key off in the lock before getting the deadbolt to go (not that that turns off the alarm), throw my stuff in at a very startled Glace and yell, “I didn’t know the alarm would go off!” before slamming the car into reverse and trying to get out of there before I have to explain to any police what I’m doing at the office at nearly 2 am.

10 Things to Think About on a Friday

We're back...another Friday. Another rolling day hurling you full force into the weekend. I don't know about any of y'all, but I'm ready. As in no track meet Saturday/rested to party type ready. To get you even further ready, here's 10 things you can ponder as you wait for 5pm...

1) Just how ridiculous are we getting in our airport screening procedures when you can't get on an airplane with nipple rings?
2) Are you ready to trust Alex Smith again?
3) If you want to see Nine Inch Nails this Summer, get ready to head to Oakland (9/5/08)
4) Can you imagine Lindsay Lohan as one of Charles Manson's girls?
5) If you're a rapper, and you shoot someone, shouldn't you be above crying after being sentenced to jail?
6) What do you think about a judge who makes people convicted in his court learn the English language?
7) You have to love Texas, where a 12 year old can dance in a strip club and the strip club still doesn't get shut down.
8) Don't click on this one if you're disturbed by violent images, but thankfully the monsters who did this will face life terms.
9) Lookout blondes...I'm dyeing my hair red now...
10) It may not be an indication that video games are making children more violent, but it's certainly an indication of just how seriously some kids take these games without understanding consequences.

Here's yet another reason why our city is gorgeous...

Ah, Religion

Thanks to FoxNews and fanatics everywhere, we have just one more example of reasons why people with strong religious beliefs need to be examined. I'm not saying all religion, or even believing in religion is bad...I've known, got along with and befriended religious people in my life. I'm not one to go overboard on any group and deride all of them for the actions of a small minority, but when you look at the religious backings of the current Islamic Extremists, the Bush Extremists, and then people like this doing something to their own daughter, maybe it's time we sat down with our children and talked to them honestly about the Tooth Fairy, the Easter Bunny, Santa Claus and God....

WESTON, Wis. — An 11-year-old girl died after her parents prayed for healing rather than seek medical help for a treatable form of diabetes, police said Tuesday.

Everest Metro Police Chief Dan Vergin said Madeline Neumann died Sunday.

"She got sicker and sicker until she was dead," he said.

Vergin said an autopsy determined the girl died from diabetic ketoacidosis, an ailment that left her with too little insulin in her body, and she had probably been ill for about 30 days, suffering symptoms like nausea, vomiting, excessive thirst, loss of appetite and weakness.

The girl's parents, Dale and Leilani Neumann, attributed the death to "apparently they didn't have enough faith," the police chief said.

They believed the key to healing "was it was better to keep praying. Call more people to help pray," he said.

The mother believes the girl could still be resurrected, the police chief said.

Telephone messages left at the Neumann home by The Associated Press were not immediately returned.

The family does not attend an organized church or participate in an organized religion, Vergin said. "They have a little Bible study of a few people."

The parents told investigators their daughter last saw a doctor when she was 3 to get some shots, Vergin said. The girl had attended public school during the first semester but didn't return for the second semester.

Officers went to the home after one of the girl's relatives in California called police to check on her, Vergin said. She was taken to a hospital where she was pronounced dead.

The relative was fearful the girl was "extremely ill, dire," Vergin said.

The girl has three siblings, ranging in age from 13 to 16, the police chief said.

"They are still in the home," he said. "There is no reason to remove them. There is no abuse or signs of abuse that we can see."

The girl's death remains under investigation and the findings will be forwarded to the district attorney to review for possible charges, the chief said.

The family operates a coffee shop in Weston, which is a suburb of Wausau, Vergin said.

The Brilliance of 4th Graders

Thanks to ESPN the Magazine for this one...they interviewed fourth graders from a class in New York City for perspectives on the current state of athletics, which always turns into a good laugh....this is what they had to say...

1) Who was the most important athlete of the past 10 years?
Jack: Babe Ruth. He broke a really big record. I heard about it when I was 3, and I saw a movie about it.
Zack: Lance Armstrong. He was one of the fastest racers ever. But he doesn't ride bikes anymore.
Talia: Mia Hamm. She was one of the first women to go to the World Cup for women.

2) What was the biggest event of the past 10 years?
Zack: Olympic ski jumping. It takes a lot to go down a supersteep hill and then jump in the air with skis.
Andrew: The 2004 World Series, because the Red Sox beat the Cardinals. Not only that, but there's been a curse since they traded Babe Ruth, and the breaking of that curse, which was going on for 80 years, was pretty big.
Anna: The Super Bowl, because almost half the world watched it. I didn't though.

3) What should happen to Roger Clemens?
Immanuel: He should quit steroids. But he should be in the Hall of Fame. Barry Bonds shouldn't. He isn't nice to kids.
Sabina: He should be kicked off his team. He's so strong he's going to knock down all the people. And people can't walk into the grocery store and say, "I want steroids."
Max: They should put steroids near him and put secret cameras in the room and see what happens. He would think they forgot about it and say, "Oh, steroids, I'll take them!"

Getting Real

I've got a few thorns in my side this morning, which is odd because I don't remember laying down in a rose garden last night. Then again, I was coming off three hours at the Skylark, so who knows where I really slept. But where I slept or didn't isn't really my point...I'm tired today of people around this country trying to fool themselves...fool themselves into thinking that extra Twinkie isn't going to make them fatter...fool themselves into thinking that the war is still a good idea...those people that say, "He's the worst President we've ever had, but I'd vote for Bush again." (I promise, I've heard people say that) We need to hang up our inhibitions, break out some honesty, and get drunk on the idea of getting real...Here are a few winners and losers in my book today...

- I'm a bit fed up with people that want to keep treating sex like some taboo or sacred sacrificial lamb. There's a bit too many puritans in this country who think that pre-marital sex, homosexual sex, purchased sex and any other type of sex falling outside the "norm" of married heterosexual sex is wrong in some way. People, wake up, it's 2008. If you don't want to have sex, or a certain type of sex, don't...no one is going to force you...but stop trying to enforce those opinions and beliefs on others. I urge these people to check out just how much healthier they would be if they had some sex in their life. I also would encourage them to get in touch with just how in tune with nature our bodies are, and how ridiculous the idea of taming them is...

- Not surprisingly, there are just as many people out there that want to tell other people what they can put in their bodies as there are those that want to tell others what they can do with them. Our government protects tobacco and alcohol, yet draws the line at pot and other substances it can't control as easily. I'm sick and tired of this. If someone wants to kill themselves shooting heroin into their veins until they lose any desire to do anything else, I think that's a very sad thing, and I wouldn't do it, but I'm not so judgmental as to think I should be able to tell that person not to or in some other way control them.

Luckily for us, there's a few politicians coming around who think that honesty is the best policy. Let me introduce you to Congressman Barney Frank, who this week proposed a bill to decriminalize marijuana, and new New York Governor David Paterson (taking over for recently ousted Spitzer on the heels of his affair with Kristen, which, by the way, I think the brew-ha-ha over further brings to light the stupidity of people's views on my last point) who has no problem admitting that he did both pot and cocaine. What's that? An honest politician? Are there any more where he came from?

- I'm out of time for ranting, but I'll close on our current Executive branch. When Bush flew onto an aircraft carrier and announced in 2003 that the mission was accomplished, it was not only probably the first time he had been in a fighter jet since bailing on his National Guard service, but it also marked one more in the long and sordid series of Bush saying things that aren't true, and being allowed to get away with it. Let's get real, Democrats and Republicans...In 1999, you actually spent time and money seeking to impeach Clinton for an extra-marital affair. Yet not once in the past 8 years have I heard any serious push for impeachment of Bush for exaggerating intelligence leading us into the war, lying about the war being over, authorizing illegal wiretaps, and other examples of general douchebaggery. I mean, shouldn't we be appalled at this point?

That's it for me today. Be good to each other.

Easter Weekend

You have to love Easter...go to the buffet, eat prime rib, made to order omelettes, eggs Benedict, lox and bagels, chocolate covered strawberries, bacon, eggs, fish, chicken, salads...and those are just the things I ate!

Went out Saturday night to Rickshaw. Had a rather odd moment, although it contributed to one of the funnier things I've heard in a bar....I'm standing there, waiting for the bartender, minding my own business, when this girl walks up to me. Now keep in mind, I'm well aware I'm in a lesbian bar...I'm not trying to be flirtatious, or talk to anyone, or heck, to even be noticed. So it shocks me when this girl comes up to me at the bar. She looks at me and says, "I forgot there were guys in this bar...you're kinda turning me off."

The music is loud though...I can't tell exactly what she said, so I lean over, "Did you just say I'm turning you off?" She says yes, to which I respond, "Um...thanks for letting me know," pick up my drink and go find my friends. I was shocked though...one of the reasons I enjoy hanging out in these places so much is that there's no expectation of me hitting on someone. I'm not there to do it, no one there wants me to do it, and it seems like a natural and symbiotic relationship to hang out and not have to worry if some girl thinks I'm flirting or not. I go to great lengths to be unobtrusive, so it was humorous to me that without doing anything but standing at the bar, I was told that...

Next up? Welcome to Ultimate Season!

Parkour

We've seen Parkour recently in a spate of movies including District B-13 and Casino Royale.  It's the amazing art of running everywhere...buildings, trees, stairs, you name it.  I found this video on YouTube and had to share it.  These guys are nuts.  I start training tomorrow.

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10 Things to Think About on a Friday

Can you believe taxes are almost due? Depressing. On the other hand, we're in the middle of March Madness, Lake House season is almost upon us, and I've started smelling BBQs on my way home from work...these are all good things. Here are a few things you can think about today, waiting on the weekend...
1) Who deserves the tip money at Starbucks more...supervisors or baristas?
2) What kind of applications do you want on your iPhone?
3) Do you think they need to change the Eiffel Tower?
4) I love this whole "let's look at non-citizens in the army" thing CNN is doing...recruiting push anyone?
5) How much of this is actual patent infringement, and how much is just a grab at settlement money?
6) Isn't our city amazingly beautiful?
7) How awesome is it that you can watch any March Madness game you want?!
8) Just how fucked up would you be after this many substances?
9) I love when I have trouble remembering who I left the bar with.
10) I'm glad I just replaced all my light bulbs with energy savers!

A Couple's Oddity

{for all music related posts, see .Evolving.Music}

In 2006, St. Elsewhere, an album of collaboration between producer Danger Mouse (The Grey Album, Ghetto Pop Life) and rapper Cee-Lo Green (...is the Soul Machine) dropped and instantaneously brought a variety of new mixmatched sounds to the hip-hop industry. The album covered Funk, Soul, R&B, Hip-Hop, Lounge and Electro in equal parts, never hesitating to throw them together and see what came out. This excellent album was an instant hit and spawned the ridiculously popular "Crazy" which began popping up anywhere you could find music. Following the success of the album, the DJ Sound Advice put his own re-mix spin on the tracks by releasing, for free download, Gnarls Biggie, an album comprised of mash-ups between Gnarls Barkley tracks and Notorious B.I.G. vocal tracks. Yesterday, weeks ahead of the scheduled April release date, St. Elsewhere officially became the freshman offering from Gnarls Barkley as they released their sophomore album, The Odd Couple.

Clocking in at 13 tracks and a brief 39 minutes, The Odd Couple finds Danger and Cee-Lo picking up right where their off-beat and stylistically vibrant and diverse St. Elsewhere left off. "Charity Case" opens the album with the funk baseline and oldies feel made popular by Andre 3000's "Hey Ya." The female backing vocals and bell chimes help keep Cee-Lo grounded in the track, and the moving rhythm and hand claps help the head keep nodding. Two days ago, when I watched the season finale of AMC's show Breaking Bad, I thought the song they ended the episode to was a fantastic one. It was haunting, mixing a Western and Soul feel with slow and emotionally infused lyrics reminiscent of Bill Withers vocals. Now imagine my surprise when I get to track two and that song turns out to be "Who's Gonna Save My Soul."

For the remainder of this review, see "The Odd Couple"

Green Monday

When I get to the club, I think the best way to honor Saint Patrick is to race the cheetah. For those that missed my first race with the cheetah, see here. Needless to say that as I'm taking these rips, my internal body temperature starts to skyrocket, I start to sweat, and I wonder if I can make it out alive with Joe going, "there's just one more hit in there." When I leave the club, I feel like my head is about to explode and somehow my body's up to 200 degrees. I spend the next thirty minutes trying to find some type of coherency without making a complete fool of myself.

I meet up with Za and McButter for a foray to a speaker at the SFJ. The speaker is Jennifer Baumgardner speaking about her book Look Both Ways, a book about bisexual politics. While I find her well spoken (despite her need to start every answer with, "Ya, um," I'm a bit disappointed in the discourse in general as the moderator of the event asks pretty repetitive questions with no real dialogue between them.

After that, we need to get our Green on, so we head to the Chieftan in the SOMA which provides a perfect atmosphere for the Patrick celebration. We have some black and tans and I amuse myself by picking out douchebags in stupid shirts (winner: Blow Me, I'm Irish). But c'mon, even if it is St. Patrick's day, that doesn't change the fact that it's Monday, which to the faithful out there means Skylarking!

We get over there, and I'm happy to say that it's in full swing. The problems of the last two weeks in terms of more subdued and hidden smoking isn't a problem this week as the holiday crowd has boxed the entire dancefloor with joints and blunts. The ashtrays are out, the mood is festive, and due to the fact that it's the DJ's birthday, the usual reggae of the evening is peppered with hip-hop and other dance music because the birthday boy feels like it.

After we leave, we make a failed attempt at some crepes (I hate it when that place is closed), before I drop off the two and head home. Love the green.

Adding On

One of the factors of my personality that I find most enjoyable, and is surely tiresome if not downright uncomfortable for others in long duration periods with me, is my constant desire to do more. When I look at a particularly busy day or week, rather than looking for ways to simplify, I look for opportunities to squeeze a few more things in. With each new activity, the question automatically becomes, "what else can I add on?" With that in mind, I introduce you to my weekend...

1:30 PM, Friday: I get off work and head to school to pick up the F/S team I coach and take them to CastroValley for an invitational. When we arrive, it begins to rain, and does so sporadically throughout the entirety of the meet. We've got about 17 13-15 year olds for the duration, and the meet, which begins at 4pm, somehow doesn't end until 11. Of course, the team doesn't want to just go home, they want to go out to eat. By the time we return to school to drop them off, it's 12 am.

12 AM, Saturday: At this point, any rational human being, having just spent 10.5 hours with a bunch of high schoolers, and looking at the weekend I was looking at, would pack it in and go to bed. I decide that going up to the city to hang out with Glass is a better way to spend my time.

1:40 AM, Saturday: After hanging out for a while, I start on my way home, ready for bed. Of course, in my car, on my way back, E calls me and wants me to stop at the I. At this point, I've already gone out when I shouldn't have, and am in the city anyways, so the "it's on my way home, and it's just one more thing," mentality kicks in and I meet up with him in the same old place. Now I was just going to have a relaxed evening in, some tv, whatever. Picture me now, in my house slippers, a pair of sweats, a hoodie and a baseball cap in the club 5 minutes before last call. I haven't been in one where they've turned the lights on, but that's what happens here and I'm back in the car and on my way home around 2:15.

3 AM, Saturday: By the time I've gotten into bed, I've been up for 20 hours. 3 hours and 15 minutes of sleep should do, right?

6:15 AM, Saturday: I'm up and in the shower after what feels like a cat nap. I've gotta be packed, dressed and ready to take the other half of the team, the Varsity athletes, back out to CastroValley for the Varsity portion of the meet. We meet at 6:45, getting out to the meet around 8 am.

3pm, Saturday: 12 hours after laying down in bed, we've finished the meet. Again, the athletes want to eat on the way home, so when we drop them off around 4:30, we've been with them a little over 9 hours.

4:30 pm, Saturday: After dropping the athletes back at school, I'm in my car and on my way to HMB to drop off some RE related documents that needed to be there before Monday. It's a small bit of work and a quick turnaround, but still requires driving, and still takes time off the front end of the nap I've been thinking about since 6 am.

6 pm, Saturday: I get home and get in bed, for three hours of sleep.

9 pm, Saturday: I get up, shower, dress, pre-party and head up to the city, where I meet up with Za, McButter, T, Ish, and others for Ish's serial killer themed house party. And spend the evening getting freaked out by Dahmer, Gacy, some creepy guy in a mask. The serial killer costumes are creepy enough, but the drinking Jenga that ensues is also on the creepy side with such dares as blowing a raspberry on someone's stomach (raspberries being one of the grossest things I can think of) and slow dancing with a broom. Lucky for all involved, they happen to have a broom handy.

After a bit, it's time to hit the crepe stand. As we get there, I order a nutella/strawberry/lemon and a nutella/banana/coconut, Za orders a savory. I only order two because McButter and Za can't decide what type they're going to have, so I get two that I know will be good and intend to share them. It's only once they arrive that I'm told that these two are on a "no sweets" bend right now, and won't break it for the crepe stand. They laugh at me as I sit there and demolish both crepes by myself. I start to wonder just how fat I'll end up if I eat two crepes everytime I'm out drunk.

After dropping them off, I return home, but, amped with all the energy circulating from the past day and a half (I don't use energy, I make more), I can't get to sleep until 5, even trying such tried and true artforms as the j coupled with bad TV.

5 am, Sunday: I finally get to bed and get 5.5 hours of sleep.

10:30 am, Sunday: I wake up and get ready for my open house.

1:30 pm, Sunday: I sit in my open house taking time to enjoy the sun, pace the room and try to ignore the desert that is steadily forming in my mouth. I pray for 4.

After the open house, I head home, eat a Bonne Sante, watch a movie and a few tv shows and entertain Gavroche and Jarles (though not at the same time)...when everyone leaves, I watch some tv until 1 am.

By the time I get to bed at 1 am on Sunday morning, the final weekend tally looks something like this:
Starting when I woke up at 7 am on Friday, and going to when I woke up at 7 am this morning, the total weekend was 72 hours. Of those 72 hours, I've gotten about 17.5 hours of sleep, and was either coaching, working, or drinking for the other 54.5, which means that I was active for approximately 76% of the weekend. I think that qualifies as making the most of it, and certainly proves Chaz's age old adage, "you can sleep when you're dead."

10 Things to Think About on a Friday

1) How long will it be before all of our electricity comes from shit?
2) How many soldiers in Afghanistan do you think find their jobs romantic? How many do you think would like a word in private with President Bush for saying so?
3) What's the most trouble you've gotten in in for hugging someone?
4) How would you go about cleaning up your facebook and myspace profiles if you were a prostitute?
5) How much are the record labels spying on you?
6) Wanna live in a spaceship?
7) Gotta love anyone willing to significantly tamper with design...
8) Why do we need to keep worrying about how corrupt the government is?
9) There's a few salvageable tracks on Snoop's new Ego Trippin'.
10) Would you want to be Paris Hilton's new best friend?

Seeing Ghosts

{for all music related posts, see .Evolving.Music}
When Radiohead released In Rainbows using the pay what you will download format, it was announced that Trent Reznor of NIN would be releasing something similar for his next album. And so he has, releasing the 36 track Ghosts I-IV album. While Radiohead went simple and released the tracks in a basic "name your price" style, with a physical CD following, Reznor has upped the ante with a multi-tiered release of his album last week. To date, he has realized $1.6 million in orders and over 780,000 transactions.

Ghosts I-IV is not just available as an MP3 download, nor is it, as Radiohead's was, available for free. What Reznor has done is to release various formats of the album for different prices. At the low range, you can get the first 9/36 tracks for free download. After that, it will only cost you a mere 5 dollars to get all 36 tracks in one of 3 of your choice downloads (Apple Lossless, MP3 or Flac Lossless). All these tracks are DRM free and come with a 40 page PDF booklet as well as various digital goodies like wallpaper. If 5 bucks is too cheap for you, you can bump to 10 and not only be given access to the 36 tracks immediately, but you will also receive a 2 disc hard copy sometime in early April.

To see the remainder of this post, go here.

The Face That Destroyed a Governor

I normally don't go in for kicking people when they're down, but when you're a New York Governor and get caught up in a prostitution scandal, you're asking for it. So here she is..."Kristen," Governor Spitzer's personal pink slip and $18,000 dollar drain on his bank account....which, depending on just how many dates he got, he might not consider such a bad deal.

RIP Cellar Door

At 11:51 am today, The Cellar Door passed away. It wasn't that it didn't work for me, because it did, for a long time. But it was time for a change. It died with 3,351 visits and 4,271 page views. I needed a title that more closely reflected me rather than an excellent thought from a movie. I needed something new. The Cellar Door and mugenscomplex.blogspot.com will always hold a special place in my heart, but here's the newness. For those that don't understand the title, you can find the meaning of it in "now's in between."

Here's a look at the Cellar Door on its final day, so we can always remember how it used to be. Welcome to my new name, new home and new look. Enjoy!

Dr. Feel Good

{for all music related posts, see .Evolving.Music}

While a lot of the conversations around here center around evolving and mixmatching music, and the resulting sounds, an important aspect of the MixMatch culture centers around combinations of various media methods and the resulting entertainment. Down in Los Angeles, DJ Denkym (Denny Kim) has created just this type of event in his once (but soon to be twice) monthly event, Feel Good Fusion. A few months ago while I was down in LA, I met up with DJ Denkym, a former roommate and colleague from USC and KSCR, for his first Feel Good Fusion event. Denkym worked as Hip-Hop director while consistently honing his craft as a DJ. While a large portion of his influence is rooted in hip-hop, his love for numerous cultures and musical styles is a cornerstone of his mixing. The idea behind Feel Good Fusion is based in the notion of bringing together mixing, free-styling, painting, sculpture, dancing and other performance art into the same place to celebrate the combinations that are created when these cultures and mediums intertwine.

At the inaugural show, the turnout was great. Everyone in attendance was genuinely glad to be there, and the vibe was stellar. From outstanding turntable work to interesting MCs to the collaborative painting shown below, the connection between art and music was greatly pronounced, and everyone there was into the crafts. These two artists worked on separate canvases throughout the evenings, bringing their creation together at the end of the night.

For the rest of the article and more details on the upcoming Fusion, click here.

Immortal

{for all music related posts, see .Evolving.Music}

When word of underground revolutionary rapper Immortal Technique's visit to the Fillmore in San Francisco reached me, I knew it had to be first on my list of concerts for the year. Having never seen live footage of him, I had no idea what to expect from a rapper that brings a huge variety of social, political, economic and musical issues to his songs. Considering the detail and complexity in his lyrics, I was a bit concerned with how it would translate to concert where numerous MCs have failed due to an unfamiliarity with their own lyrics, or a habit to truncate songs for a live setting. And I can say that while there are only a handful of artists that could share a stage with Immortal Technique based on their lyrical complexity and stage intensity, it would be difficult, if not impossible, to replicate the tenacity and focus Tech brings to his issues. From opening song to his finale, Immortal Technique's show was a textbook demonstration of a rapper using an unreal level of energy, an extreme amount of intelligence coupled with social consciousness, and an uncompromising approach to his own music to put on a show that was incredible from start to finish.

I wasn't sure what to expect from the crowd at this show...IT is only slightly well known, even among people into underground hip-hop, but at the same time has built up a huge following from the grassroots level. His subject matter attacks various issues from several perspectives, and I was interested to see if there would be one overriding demographic to his live audience. There wasn't. The crowd was incredibly diverse both in ethnicity and style. It ranged from serious hip-hoppers wearing hoods to bikers with neck tattoos. It seems the social aspects of rap that Tech represents hit home and help to unify a large and disparate group of people.

When he arrives on stage he goes into an almost a cappella version of "The 4th Branch," and I can hear people all over the audience join him as he spits out, "Jesus is the most quoted prophet in the Qur'an/and bombed innocent people trying to murder Saddam when you gave them those chemical weapons to go to war with Iran." It's clear from this early point that not only does the crowd know his songs, but the anger and identification they share with him over views of the systems in place within our social infrastructure is what brought a good number of them out. Following this, he drops the cricket sounds of "Industrial Revolution" and at the first beat the crowd is already moving with the beat. Tech's delivery is crisp and clear. Unlike other live rappers, there aren't any muddled lyrics or incomprehensible words here, just viciously deployed sentences with a staccato tempo that makes it feel like every word and sentence is waiting to explode from him into the mic. And the energy is contagious throughout the crowd.

To continue this review, click here.

10 Things to Think About on a Friday

Just because I have to work all weekend doesn't mean that it doesn't feel like Friday. The sun is out, the birds are chirping, and I'm going a bit nutty with the chocolate binge at 9:30 in the morning. Here's a few thoughts you can use to procrastinate today...

1) What's your opinion...do things fall off of race cars?
2) Does the Dalai Lama really have an interest in sabotaging the Olympic games?
3) Just how much is too much for a CEO to make when the company is failing?
4) How are you going to mourn The Wire?
5) Would you rather be a drug mule or a sex slave?
6) This is disturbing...who uses a baby as a rope?
7) How can a man so funny be so retired?
8) Just how drunk do you like to get off your wine?
9) Were you aware that March and November start on the same day of the week?
10) Reese's Peanut Butter Cups or Kit Kats?

Now it's 11 am, the chocolate is coursing through my veins, and I think, if I manage to breathe, I might just make it to the end of the day. Enjoy your Friday!

Say Uncle

It's official...my sister, Emmy Jo Bioloski, gave birth last night to what I can only imagine will be her first of many children. Arriving at about 7:30 PST, Brennan/Ryan/Gibson weighed in at 9 lbs., 4 oz. That's a big kid. In the years to come, this innocent child will be brought up the Mormon way, although how long that lasts after I get a chance to meet him is up for debate. I'll finally have my place in the sun as the black sheep Uncle that everyone warns the kids about.

While I drink lemon drops at family gatherings, he'll ask me why my words come out funny, and when I give him his first Ayn Rand book for Christmas, I'll have to explain to him how reading it isn't a sin. As he grows older, he will either come to admire me and wish to emulate my heathen ways (which will undoubtedly turn my sister against me), or he will come to despise my sin with a passion reserved for the staunchest clerics (which will no doubt make me laugh.) Either way, Uncle A will be a conundrum wrapped in a riddle and fed to him as an enigma.

My sister (shown here the weekend she announced she was pregnant with her husband) is living her dream, and is now a mother. Congratulations to you Em! Not only have you enriched the lives of those around you, but you've successfully brought one more human into this severely overcrowded world! Mazel Tov!

Live Amp

{for all music related posts, see .Evolving Music.}

AmpLive has been one of the most talented and diverse producer/DJs of the last ten years. His work as part of the Zion I duo has exemplified an ability to bring in a variety of musical styles and genres to the hip-hop world. In addition to this work, Amp has worked with or done remixes for Goapele, Akon and Nicole Scherzinger of the Pussy Cat Dolls. He has also produced music for ESPN's Sportscenter, So You Think You Can Dance?, America's Next Top Model, and MTV's shows Cribs and The Real World. On top of the musical creation, he has earned a Platinum Plaque for his Linkin Park remix as well as The Guardian's "Best Producer in the Bay," and San Francisco Weekly's "Best Hip Hop Group in the Bay" awards. AmpLive's recent release, Rainydayz Remixes, a remix album of the Radiohead album In Rainbows, has received considerable press, word of mouth, and excellent reviews. The mash-ups, utilizing and remixing pieces of the original album, received Radiohead's blessing to be distributed for free. Because of the MixMatch nature of this album and the various production, distribution and copyright issues associated with such an undertaking, we thought it was about time to catch up with Amp and talk to him about his musical history and future, his run at the Radiohead album, and the future of the music industry and distribution models in general. Below is the interview Amp granted to Evolving Music to talk about these issues. Insert gratitude and round of applause here...

AC: Your music and production, from Mind Over Matter to Heroes in the City of Dope, always exhibits a huge variety of sounds and influences from different genres that speaks to a diverse musical enjoyment. What genres catch your ear, what is the foundation of your personal musical enjoyment, and when starting out on songs, is it a conscious effort to bring these genres in, or are they embedded and just come out in your music?

Amp: Well, I grew up exposed to different types of music. I am from Texas, so I was surrounded by country music. I played the drums at my church, listened to hip hop, skate punk and techno in middle school, took piano lessons, and was forced to watch the local symphony at least twice a month. So I look at music as a big bubble. All genres catch my ear. I feel that you can find something good in everything. When I am creating songs, I generally go off the feeling that I have or the point I want to get across versus thinking of the genre that it would be in.

AC: Zion I, at various times, has brought in collaborating MCs and producers. For Heroes in the City of Dope, Grouch was brought on for the entire album. What process do you use when determining who you'd like to work with on upcoming tracks? When you do collaborate, is there a set formula you like to use for combining with another musician, or is it a more organic process? How have your collaborations contributed to your personal growth as an artist, and do you find yourself revisiting methods you picked up from people you've made music with in your own?

Amp: Collaborations and observation has definitely helped me grow as a producer. When I first started in the early 90s, Spearhead X, who was a producer for Dallas Austin, taught me how to tighten my drums. While L Rock, who now is a main producer in Lil Jon's camp, helped with musical arrangements and learning how to play. So as I evolved and started becoming a professional years later, I took these experiences and applied them to my music. So in doing the collaboration album, Heroes in the City of Dope, I wanted to make sure there was equal input from everyone. For that album Grouch and I gave approval on the beats and the songs as they were finished. So we both had our touches on the music, even if I produced the track.

For the rest of this interview, go here.

Chair Ride

All I manage to do Saturday is eat Nini’s and pass out. But this lack of any real activity means I’m ready when the evening comes around. This time I head up to start out with Topher where he, Foster and Morty are. We get in some Wii bowling and baseball before heading out around 11 to the bar. This is where we almost kill Topher. As we’re walking down the hill from his place on Vallejo, we find an office chair that someone has put out on the sidewalk to be thrown away. We believe that there is no better purpose for this chair than to put Topher on it and push him down the hill. I’ve often wondered, while watching any movie or show with jackass-like stunts, why they would do something like that. I now know that after a few drinks, when you find a chair on a hill in the city, there’s several things that normally wouldn’t seem like a good idea that you’ll probably go for.

As Topher gets on the chair, the wheels don’t seem to move too fast, so Morty grabs the back of the chair and gives Topher a running push start down the hill. The chair starts to fly. As it picks up speed, he attempts to steer/slow it down by putting his feet out, but it’s almost going too fast at this point for that to work. He hits a flat part of the sidewalk before it dips again, this time almost spinning the chair around so he’s heading down the hill backwards. He manages to avoid this, but I’m still quite concerned that he’s not going to be able to stop the chair before he flies off the sidewalk at the bottom of the hill.

Foster’s close to running after him, when a brief lull in the speed helps him get his feet under him and stop the chair. As he stands up, the wheels and legs separate from the main portion of the chair, further confirming that had the chair gone to pieces mid ride, Topher definitely could have spent the better part of his Saturday evening in a hospital. On the rest of our trek, we stop outside Matrix to pick up FSU and her contingent of friends, apparently not thrilled with the older yuppie crowd there. We head to City.

At the bar, Chris is tending and Morty pays for the first round before cutting out. Apparently his nerves are still a bit shot from watching Topher careen down the hill. I step outside to smoke, and get about 2 minutes into that before Chris sticks his head out the window and yells at me to move down the block. When I come back in, he explains how my preferred spot actually blows back a considerable amount of the kind smell back into the bar, and while he likes Reggae music, he doesn’t want the back bar at City smelling like an Amsterdam coffee shop. He yells at me for having told me this numerous times before, but I guess he doesn’t feel too badly about it as he buys me my next round.

As FSU and I follow Topher and Foster across the bar, we hear a group of girls expressing disappointment…apparently they thought the two were on the way over to talk to them, and really they were just picking a new bar position. The remarks from the girls are both let down and sarcastic, and I can’t tell which is getting the better of them. By the end of the night, Foster has moved on, and FSU, Topher, myself and the twins pass on the ridiculous line at Orgasmica and head back to bowl some more.

After bowling, as we’re walking back across town, I need something to eat and decide either Shell or Chevron will have something. We encounter a girl standing outside the Shell station, and she tells us that the guy at the Chevron station was ignoring her while he was on the phone. We approach the booth at the Shell station, and in an almost unbelievable moment, the attendant tells us that he can sell us cigarettes but no food or drinks, basically informing the three of us that killing ourselves with cancer sticks is totally fine, but he can’t help us sop up any of the alcohol in our stomach or prevent us from starving. We decide to go back across to the Chevron station where the attendant, still on the phone, lets us know he can sell us food. This girl is hilarious as her eyes light up. She thinks it’s Christmas as she gets some Mrs. Fields cookies and leaves contentedly. What she was doing out in the Marina, around 3:30 am, by herself, buying Mrs. Field’s cookies from a gas station is beyond me.

I have to settle for a knock off cupcake that is nothing like a Hostess.

Next up...Immortal Technique.

Biedrins!

Following a Warriors win on Friday night, and the finishing of the Bar exam for Gavroche, he and I head up to the city for some mayhem. Little do we know just how much mayhem is about to ensue. When we get up to the city it’s about drinking time and we head to Bus Stop to meet up with Topher and a few others. And there, in front of Bus Stop, is a “bouncer” with a rope across the doorway. Gavroche and I wait for a second, thinking he’ll let us in as the crowd inside the bar is sparse, but he just ignores us. After a few girls walk past us, he asks the guy, “Hey, is this a private party?” I start laughing, which the guy doesn't like. The doorman tells us that the place is being audited by ABC. He and I stand there for a minute trying to figure out what that stands for before deciding on Alcohol Beverage Committee or something like that (Alcohol Board of Control?) We step away from the door and start making calls, and he lets like four other people in. Gavroche is convinced that this is anti-semitism at work.

All of a sudden, Topher’s inside, we try our luck at the door again and get accepted. But I’ve already called Maurod, who’s on his way, so it’s a quick in and out. We step to the bar, it’s shots of vodka and Patron, and then Maurod’s there and we’re gone. Topher’s girlfriends give us quizzical looks as we say goodbye hastily to all the people we had just hastily said hello to. Maurod takes us to meet up with E at the I. E’s outside and in high spirits when we show up, and inside, I get to point out to Gavroche the “Eve”/whatever her name is girl who got in my face a weekend or two ago. Things are pretty standard for a Friday night until the music stops so everyone in the place can sing happy birthday to one of the girls. This prompts Gavroche to suggest that the name of this post be “A Stripper’s Birthday.” But the night is young yet.

Outside on the sidewalk, I’m looking over Gavroche’s shoulder at this girl who makes eye contact with me. She looks at me and says, “You’re _____.” My only response is, “you don’t know me” to which she replies, “You went to SM/HS.” Check and mate good chum, so she does know me. I stare blankly and she tells me she’s Alison Weil, a girl who ran cross country and was a year or two below me. She glares a bit before going to get in a cab, and before I can say, “hey! What’s going on? Long time no see!” Then Valla comes down the street, apparently out testing the Broadway waters on their own. Next thing I know, Topher has come over solo from the Marina to the I.

After two drinks there, it’s time to make a jump. But we run into a dilemma here…one of our options was PatS, who previously indicated an evening with girls out at Holy Cow. Another option was FSU, who indicated her opinion that the Holy Cow sucks, and was going to be at Rye with a group of girls. As we look for the new spot, it turns out that FSU got done in by happy hour and didn’t make it out to Rye at all, and PatS is with a crew of guys and is so plastered when I talk to him on the phone that he makes no coherent sense.

We decide on a third party, Berg, who’s over with a few other high school people we know at Ambassador. Big surprise though, when we get there, all of those friends are gone and Berg’s the only one left. Standing by the door, we’re talking about the club when in walks Andris Biedrins. With a 7 foot wingspan, expensive suit, crew of guys and gel spiked hair, he walks in and can’t possibly be anyone but Biedrins. Gavroche decides we need to seek him out, and when we do find him, he’s at the upstairs bar. Luckily for Gavroche, he paid attention to his parents, and as a result, can walk right up to Biedrins and start speaking Russian with him. The friends aren’t sure how to take this, and one of them, who Gavroche dubs a “Moscow asshole” basically tells him to get lost. The other one tells him not to worry about the first guy, and that Biedrins in chill. Chill or not, we get into a few shots, let Gavroche spin some more Russian for the man, and then make ourselves scarce. As I give him a handshake on my way out, I drunkenly mumble something about hoping he gets better soon.

And there you have our Friday night. It was much cooler than kicking it at a frat party with players from the college team like we did back at SC. It wasn't quite as cool as The Wire. But it was Biedrins! Just be sure that if you see him, you have someone to speak Russian.

February's Films of Fancy (11)

Even a leap February couldn't keep the movies on track. From the Super Bowl (atta way Giants!), to birthdays (cheers Hayley, Gavroche, Jean and Marc), random nights in the city, Skylark and a TMTS show at the Great American, movies just took their rightful backseat. Unfortunately, what I lacked in quantity, I did not manage to make up in quality. There were quite a few letdowns this month, which doesn't usually happen. Some obvious classics, but I'm not going to bother to link to the ones that let me down.

6: The Hunting Party
10: American Psycho
11: Moonstruck
12: Panic in Needle Park
16: The Kingdom
18: Flashdance
19: Gone Baby Gone
20: Trade
23: Gattaca
26: The Power of One
27: Enron: The Smartest Guys in the Room