White Ninja and his Watermelon Minions

check it

"The men were here to get your Belgian things...

...they'll store them for you in an airplane hanger. There's guys in biohazard suits, mud caking on their rubber boots, they've come to keep your pretty things from danger..."

Fiber paper has to rinse for half an hour before you let it dry. The system here involves an intricate plastic tank with small, clear plastic vertical holds, like a mapchest on its back. The effect is, after hours in the dark room, printing, testing, breathing deep chemicals that ought not be breathed, singing alone along to Oingo Boingo, glorious. Sitting, reading Gould's Book of Fish (thanks Pete) with Andrew, Jesse, Jess, Glen, and the snows of Brno staring out of plastic and water at me... It's a good nostalgia.

There will be pictures on Flickr pretty swiftly. Carla got printed, and I find that I only print the good times. It's not even purposeful... as a kinda-photographer, it would be a waste of time to make prints of pictures that aren't that good, and the ones that are good enough are days in parks and nights out and that first snow fall and my days in Prague with Traci. The wave of mutilation and the self-portaits of depressed me in the dark bathroom at five a.m.

just aren't worth printing, purely aesthetically.

Weird how that works out.

MUSIC: the mountain goats: your Belgian things

"I've got a fever...

...and the only perscription is Agnes."

Cats and Kittens, welcome aboard your latest member. Also, note the presence of Kelsey, Jameykay, Pete, Malcolm, and another Jess. This place is getting crowded.

MUSIC: the unband: geez Louise

"rational self interest"

Today in microeconomics I started planning a mix cd. Now I've completed it. A lot of this is a joke, but it totally rocks.

1. Elvis Costello - Welcome to the Working Week
2. Pedro the Lion - Moving Units
3. Bloc Party - Price of Gas
4. Bush - Come Down (acoustic)
5. BT - Never Gonna Come Back Down
6. Liz Phair - Money (that's what I want)
7. Beulah - Sunken Treasure
8. Elliott Smith - A Distorted Reality is now Necessary to be Free
9. Deathcab for Cutie - Champagne from a Paper Cup
10. Mates of State - Halves and have-nots
11. Eels - World of Shit
12. Cap'n Jazz - Hey Ma, I hafta Choke on These?
13. Guided by Voices - I am Produced
14. Radiohead - Fitter, Happier...
15. Desaparecidos - $$$$$
16. Fugazi - Cashout
17. Regina Spektor - Poor Little Rich Boy
18. Cursive - Art is Hard
19. Jane's Addiction - Been Caught Stealin'
20. Pedro the Lion - Simple Economics
21. Crooked Fingers - New Drink for the Old Drunk
22. Les Savy Fav - Yawn, Yawn, Yawn
23. Ben Folds Five - The Battle of Who Could Care Less
24. John Altman - Suicide is Painless

So enjoy.

PS. Do not follow the link from Andrew's Comment on my last post.

"...well it's sticks and stones and broken homes...

...that taught us how to smile..."

Today marks the first anniversary of my arrival in Brno. I came in on a bus with a year's worth of luggage and no idea where I was going or what I was doing. The indian summer of the Czech Republic laughed at me as I hauled my sweaty ass all over town, dragging bulging duffle bags over cobblestones, aimlessly. When I found someone who spoke english I would ask where Masaryk was and they would either get confused or laugh.

But I got through that, and now it's been a year since I was that kid. I'm goutier.

People ask me if I had a good time in europe and I have to pause and give them a long, level look. I might glance down at the scar on my hand or look at my feet or just close my eyes for a second. "Good time?" I had a time. And I think it's safe to say I'm in a better place now than I was then. Not literally, Brno kicks the shit out of Cullowhee.

But when I arrived I'm not sure I felt confident in naming a friend I had in the world. Certainly if I defined friend pretty loosely, I could have come up with a few... but I'm past that now. I'm hardened from the battle that was Europe (for some reason, but it was a battle) and I feel almost frustratingly capable. And almost overwhelmingly loved.

Everyone, you know who you are. Thanks.

It's been a year.

"This is an adventure." -Steve Zissou

MUSIC: the bens: just pretend

Smoke up, Johnny!

Smoke up, Johnny!
Originally uploaded by Vocal Shrapnel.

Posting this has nothing to do with today... Well, maybe a little.

There are a lot of things I'd rather be doing right now, and this picture represents several of them.

No, not Malcolm, you sick freak. Though hanging out with Malcolm would be one of those things.

Mostly, though, I just couldn't take looking at my sunken-eyes self anymore.

so now I can look at something else when I swing by to check for comments.

MUSIC: yo la tengo: cherry chapstick

let me make it abundantly clear...

"we're going to san Francisco...
Originally uploaded by Vocal Shrapnel.

...that I chose to display this picture entirely for the sake of the American Gods reference.

"We're going to San Francisco... the flowers in your hair are optional."

Look at my weekend at Flickr. I dare you.

MUSIC: ram jam: black betty

"I live in a wheel...

...where everyone steals, but when we rise it's like strawberry fields..."

God love bush, but those lyrics are, to put it gently, ludicrous.

And I did some sneaking and found some MySpace for some more asheville cats, so they're linked now whether they like it or not.

Pictures from the weekend are brewing.

MUSIC: casiotone for the painfully alone: tonight was a disaster

"...I know I won't be leaving here...

hat, originally uploaded by Vocal Shrapnel.

...with you..."

So here's the poor documentation of the A-ville party on Saturday night.