electricity and lust won't break the door

Just as soon as one member of the red and black is the new black and red family leaves us, another joins us. I ran into my friend Kevin tonight, who informed me that he's been blogging for a few weeks now. Here's his link. He's kinda new to this, and from what I've read, he likes to run a G-rated site. Don't let it stop you. He's a very intelligent and witty guy. Give him a read.

Kevin turned me on to a site, which I'd like to introduce to the lot of you. This guy Jamie Rieger has a site that I might not have thought twice about, but there's something really amazing there. He decided to read Homer's epic poems The Iliad and The Oddysey. Just for shits and giggles. When he discovered how daunting the task would be, he decided to take comedic notes as he read, and he indexed those notes for the Iliad here and the Oddysey here. I strongly encourage you to stop by and give him a read. You might want to empty your bladder first, though. Start with the backstory to the Iliad, which had me in tears.

Now. Here's the question. Who reads The Iliad for funsies? I seriously have to give this guy mad props for undertaking the Sisyphean task of not only reading it, but taking notes the whole time, then taking the time to catalog those notes for our pleasure. And then to make it all be funny?

now playing:

Pixies Doolittle

i've got a lot of things i want to sell, but not here babe.

It is with a tear in one eye and adobo sauce in the other that I must announce the de-linking of a dear friend to the red and black is the new black and red family.

The author of You Think You Know, but You Have No Idea has given up. Upon noticing the dead link, I actually was a little worried about the safety and well-being of its author, but she's totally fine. At a 1:00 press conference in Chapel Hill today, she offered a couple of reasons for pulling the plug on the blog. The chief one among them was that she didn't really like what she had written. Dang. I'd have given up on this a long time ago if that was the case with this blog. However, she has her other reasons, and although it saddens me, I must find a way to get over it. The good thing is that I still get to be her friend, and you poor saps will be missing out.

I hope that Amanda someday finds a way to get back in the blogosphere. She's a wonderful woman, and I wish that you all could know her (even if only in the blogosphere).

now playing:

The Decemberists Picaresque

mixing cocktails with a plastic-tipped cigar

I will thoroughly enjoy this day off. I got irritated with some of my co-workers yesterday, and my two days off are coming just in time.
If all goes according to plan, we'll have Whiffle Ball in the Park, version 2.0. If it indeed goes down, I'll get some photos for you to enjoy.

Last night was insane. The city was promoting this "get downtown" theme, trying to get the college kids to come to the downtown area and hang out. They had a couple of bands playing right in the street between my current place of work and my former place of work. Lining the streets were all sorts of crap. T-shirts, hotdog stands, information kiosks about area businesses, beer stands, and the like. It was a damn madhouse. I didn't think it would be as successful as it was. There were still several hundred people roaming the streets at midnight. Frame of reference -- normally on a Saturday night at midnight, I might see a dozen pedestrians. The only thing is, it won't be like that next weekend or the weekend after. Unless there's a big production like that, there just isn't that much to do. There's 3 restaurants on our corner, then there's a boom-boom club a couple of blocks down, but that's about it. No music venues, no sports bar (yet), no movie theatre, a very weak "arts district" and the baseball team only has a few home games left. If the kids come back downtown next weekend expecting another fun-fest, they'll be sorely disappointed. Everyone takes the re-active "if they come, you will build it" approach, rather than the pro-active "if you build it, they will come" approach.

I'll get some pictures tonight of our rock and roll good time.

now playing:

Björk Vespertine

i was dressed for success, but success it never comes

I forgot to mention this the other day. I had the day off on Monday, so I took care of some important car issues, then I took myself to the picture show. After a long and furious debate (with myself), I finally decided on March of the Penguins.
I thought it was incredible.

I actually thought it was going to be a documentary about the Pittsburgh Penguins and their two consecutive Stanley Cup (1990-91 and 1991-92) victories, but I liked it anyway. Who knew that it would be a documentary about actual penguins? The preceding joke was brought to you by our good friends at red and black hockey

Anyone remember smell-o-vision from the sixties? I think the theatre I saw it in was experimenting with a similar concept called feel-o-vision. We all know that movie theatres are notoriously cold in the summer. But this was ridiculous. All kidding aside, I genuinely think that they may have been asked by the studio to keep it slightly colder in the rooms showing "March of the Penguins" for dramatic effect.

I really enjoyed this film. If you haven't seen it, run out and do so now.

After the first few minutes, you won't be bothered by Morgan Freeman's droning.

One complaint, though. They never explained if there is a way for us to visually distinguish a male penguin from a female. It doesn't seem like there is a way.

now playing:

Mojave 3 Spoon and Rafter

and the jokes, they are so bad. but they're not as bad as this

I finally got around to watching Catch 22, which I've had from Netflix for like a jillion years. Somehow, I managed to make it 33 years without reading that book. I don't know how. It seems like something I would have read in high school, but I haven't.
Holy crud! What a cast that movie has! I've said it before, and I'll say again: Alan Arkin is great. Although he's a gifted comic talent, most of the funny bits belong to the other people. Most of the funny stuff is Bob Newhart or Anthony Perkins.
So.... What's the deal with war/comedy movies? They all have hysterical bits in the first 45 minutes, and then it sort of drops off after that. This one is no different.

Anyway, I liked it quite a lot even though it stopped being funny after the midway point. I'll recommend it to all of you.

If for nothing else, Bob Newhart's character is hilarious.

Up next, I have two Gene Hackman movies: The Conversation, and Heist

now playing:

Built to Spill Ancient Melodies of the Future

i'm the only one who laughs at your jokes when they are so bad

I've been meaning to pay more attention to this thing over here, but I haven't been doing a good job. I'll attempt to bring something to the table each day this week. Hopefully it all pans out.
I know for a fact that Hansy hasn't seen the series finale of Six Feet Under, but I'm gonna go on about it anyway. Hans, avert your eyes....

Holy crudballs. I haven't wept like that in a long time. There was no one thing in particular that made me weep. I guess it was just the overall sadness of it. I dunno. I actually kinda liked the way they wrapped it up. I was thinking that maybe they would give us the written version of everyone's ending (the way they do in non-fiction movies), but I kinda liked how they did that. My only thing... Claire living to be 102?!?!?! I doubt that very much. I also doubt very much that she would have married that Ted dude. What do you think?

In other news, despite my inactivity on these pages, I've been getting lots of google search hits. Here's some of the new ones:

fantastic four coming soon film database
pimento cheese sandwich
watch six feet under greensboro bar
are red and black good for a room
progressions hair salon in greensboro
czechoslovakia neko
music by the magnetic fields tv
vijay calls phil a phony
american analog set lyrics girls all give reports on the hour
vijay singh and phonies
sun kil moon kentucky woman blog
que lastima mas tequila

Sadly, nothing raunchy. Not even anything suggestive. None of the usual "black girls butts" or "girls shaking their asses" or "roman gladiator helmet" or "full frontal crash test". Incidentally, I don't think I've ever written about Vijay Singh or Phil Mickelson, so I don't know how that one came back.

Last night, I had a wicked awesome time at our neighborhood park. A bunch of us gathered there to play whiffle ball. We actually managed to gather enough to where there were five players to a squad. My team got decimated. I think it's gonna be a regular Sunday night thing, but I'd be surprised if we can duplicate the feat of getting 10 players. I hope so, but a few of the people there were marginal characters. I wouldeven go so far as to call two of the players "guest stars".
After the whiffle ball, we partook of the kiddie playground and, of course, the beer we brought with us. Yes, it's illegal to have alcohol in a city park, but we're so bad-assed that we don't give a damn what John Law has to say. That's how we roll.

now playing:

Superchunk Here's to Shutting Up

feel the city air across your body

In the spirit of areseven and hansthecat, I decided to change the way things look around here. I haven't added any cool features, but the template change has been a long time coming. Although it went along with the name of the blog, I though that the blackness of the old template was just a little much. I think the new look is much softer and more pleasant.
Truthfully, I was just jealous of everyone's new digs. When my buddies get new cars or new houses, I'm happy for them, but I can't copy those maneuvers. This one is a cinch though.
I hope you like it.

I am open to suggestions for additions or omissions.

now playing:

Dismemberment Plan Change

they say i got brains, but they ain't doing me no good

Due to the inactivity in the free agent market, I'm able to step away from the mistress for a while. (pats kids on the head) (pets dog) (kisses you on the cheek)

Last time I was here, I mentioned a synchronicitous "Personal Jesus" listening. I'll explain that, but first, let's flash back to March 1 of this year. On that day, I had a moment of synchronicity with "(The Angels Wanna Wear My) Red Shoes". I had a similar think with "Personal Jesus". Since I was closing, I brought some of my CDs with me. One of them, which was in the "sort of Neglected" category was "Violator" by Depeche Mode. I was enjoying that. I had to leave the kitchen to run some food. Playing on my cd at that moment was "Personal Jesus". Out in the bar, the music on the satellite radio was Marilyn Manson's cover of "Personal Jesus". Kinda creepy.

Lately, I cannot stop listening to Pet Sounds. The song "I Just Wasn't Made for These Times" is particularly knocking my socks off. (I am presently, by the way, not wearing socks). Those vocal harmonies are freaking amazing. I dare you to listen to that song and not be thinking about it two hours later. I dare you to NOT attempt to simultaneously sing along with all four (?) parts at once. For the sake of emphasizing those harmonies (especially the second time into the chorus), I've posted an mp3 of the "vocals only" track. I double dog dare you to not be blown away.

I was gonna drag myself out of the house to go watch "Batman Begins", but I remembered the showtime wrong. Maybe the next one.

now playing:


The Beach Boys Pet Sounds (Sessions)

I need someone much more mysterious.... to be my mistress

I'm still alive.

I've just been so busy with the mistress blog that I haven't had time to post here.

I've also had a mixed up schedule at work, and I've gotten out at 2:00am three of the last four days. That kinda wreaks havoc on the sleeping schedule. Oh well.

Did anyone else think it was riotously funny that in the preview for this week's SFU, the voice-over said "Be sure to watch the second-to-last episode of Six Feet Under"? Amanda and I both laughed our asses off when they said that. Often, though, we laugh our asses of at things that nobody else does. Maybe it's just us.

I'll make an effort to be more present around here.

Coming soon will be the re-telling of a really bizarre story of synchronicitous playings of "Personal Jesus", which occurred last night. For now.... it's time to go to work.

now playing:

Modest Mouse Good News for People Who Love Bad News

it could have been off the hook

(yawn) Six feet under last night (yawn)

Actually, I got to see Amanda last night, which was cool because I hadn't seen her in about a month. She came over to watch Six Feet Under. Yawn.

After she left, I watched the Director's Cut of Donnie Darko, which I have from Netflix. I liked the flow of the movie a lot more, but I didn't like the changes to the music.

In the original, the first scene features "The Killing Moon" by Echo and The Bunnymen as Donnie rides his bike home. The music really fits the action on the screen. In the Director's Cut, it was replaced by "Never Tear Us Apart" by INXS. It's a fine song, but I think it's a terrible fit. HOWEVER, it makes a neat juxtaposition against "Love Will Tear Us Apart" by Joy Division. That song, which shows up at the Darko Halloween party isn't in the original. I don't recall it, anyway. This change, I DO like. I don't know if the director intentionally did that "Never Tear Us Apart" / "Love Will Tear Us Apart" thing, but it's a pretty neat coincidence if he didn't.

Another musical change that I don't like is when Gretchen and Donnie come downstairs (during the Halloween party) after having sex. In the original, the song is "Under the Milky Way" by The Church. It was replaced by "The Killing Moon". I love "The Killing Moon", but like I said, I think it's a perfect fit at the beginning and that "Under The Milky Way" is a better fit there. Also, they let the song go way too long in the Director's Cut party scene. It clearly wasn't the song at the party, so it didn't make sense for it to go on so long.

Aside from the musical changes, there were a lot of changes made to the audio mix. The dialog and everything else sounds great. I have no complaints there. Just with the choice to change the music.

Overall, the Director's Cut looks and sounds better, and it makes more sense. Check it out.

now playing:

Echo & The Bunnymen Ocean Rain

The blogger gods are smiling on me, and I'm smiling back

I've been noticed!

My "mistress" blog was recently written up in the Carnival of NHL #4 . This time, the carnival is hosted by two RedWing fans. I don't know how they found me, but I'm glad that they liked me enough to include me in the carnival.

The article mentions my blog and 20 other hockey blogs from across America (and Brazil)that they find to be noteworthy. I'm really flattered because I'm mentioned in the same article as some well-known bloggers, a prize-winning bloggers, and some others who make money from their blog.

I have, apparently, a "unique perspective" on things. That's all they said in the two-sentance paragraph about me, but the article linked to me, which should get me about 3.5 minutes of fame.

Frankly, I'm just happy that somebody's reading it.

the puzzle piece behind the couch that made the sky complete

I owe this blog an apology. And the readers of this blog. All two of you.

I'll admit I haven't been paying much attention to this blog, and I haven't been doing the work that I normally do to keep it going. Last Thursday, for example, I took a Neglected Record to work, but I didn't even go through with the project. I listened to about half of Stephen Malkmus' Pig Lib, but I gave up on it. Monday night, I took a Neglected Record, but I made no attempt to make mental notes in preparation for blogging about it. For the record,though, it was Morphine's Cure For Pain. I liked it.

The other night, I took in one of my Netflix selections, and it was a real winner. I can highly recommend Novocaine, featuring Steve Martin and the super-sexy Helena Bonham Carter. Now, I know what you're thinking. Steve Martin, screwball comedy. No! Not at all, actually. This is sort of a thriller/dark comedy/romance/dentistry flick.
It has a lot of Hitchcockian style to it, which is a big plus for me. There's a scene that mimics Vertigo, and the music is slightly Bernard Herrmann-esque. I kept thinking that it also reminded me of North by Northwest but I wasn't able to put a finger on it. When I listened to the commentary, it turns out that they intentionally made up Steve Martin to look like Cary Grant. If you haven't seen it, you should see Novocaine.

See, the thing is, I've been monumentally busy with the other blog and with the Hurricanes message boards. I'm feverishly trying to keep up to the minute on all the rumors and signings and all that stuff. I won't bore you with all the details (those are available here), but I'll just say that this is an exceptionally busy off-season for the National Hockey League. In a nutshell, more than half of the players are free agents, so there's a lot of action going on. Teams trying to re-sign their own players and pick up superstars out of the free agency market. The first day (Monday) was really slow, but yesterday was very busy. Not a lot has gone down today, but there are a bunch of big names who are rumored to be on the brink of signing new contracts with new teams.

I need to get my hair cut.

now playing:

This Mortal Coil Blood

if i was the heart and you were the head

If your name is Hans Meyer, avert your eyes. Spoilers to follow. Otherwise, read on.

First I'm going to pull my Map-Boy impersonation¹ and pat myself on the back. I made an oblique reference to Arthur in last week's SFU post, and he showed up out of the clear blue sky this week. And to boot, that actor was also on Entourage this week. Did I call it, or did I call it?
Wow. They're not teasing us this time like they did at the beginning of season three. He's really dead this time. I usually try to avoid watching the previews, but I couldn't resist this time.
Here's what I think. David is going to feel in incredible sense of guilt. He was asleep and dreaming of smoking crack when Nate passed. He'll blame himself. He'll say that if he had been awake, he could have alerted the nurses sooner, and everything would be alright. Of course it isn't his fault, but I think he will assign some blame to himself.
Claire. What's going on with her? I know this is an extreme set of circumstances, but she's been acting in a very adult manner. Not just this week, but it's been going on for a couple of weeks now.
I have some misgivings about how they treated the waiting room scenes, but that's not really all that important.
I don't think much, if anything will be established next week. They'll have the funeral, and that's about it. I think Claire will be furious with Ruth, and that'll be a little side story next week. And don't quote me on this, but Claire may develop some interest in getting into the business. Susan may be onto something with this "full circle" business. Remember in episode one how Nate freaked the fuck out at the funeral of Nathan Sr.? I see Claire doing the same at Nathan Jr.'s funeral. I really do think she's going to feel some sort of obligation to the family. Not so much to Ruth, but to David and to the memory of Nate. I wouldn't be surprised to see her start handling the intakes (which is about all Nate was doing) at the home.

Please enlighten me with your thoughts and comments.

now playing:

Cowboy Junkies Black-Eyed Man


¹ Many of you readers attended college with me, so you are aware of who Map-Boy is. My joke here is about how he used to sit in the Bryan lounge watching the Braves on TV. As every batter for the Braves came up to the plate, he would say "C'mon (insert the player's initials), knock a homer". No joke. Every batter. Of course there would be home-runs, and he would proudly say "Did I call it, or did I call it?" every time.