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First day of class

2008-01-14T18:21:17Z

Had my first class today: Grimm's Fairy Tales in Context. Looks like it should be a good one. Where else can you watch clips of CGI Barbie and Pretty Woman on the first day (Rapunzel and Cinderella respectively). I went to the Espresso Royale in the Union, and got myself a free coffee. My punch card was at least two stamps away, but the barista gave me a freebie anyway. I also picked up an application, so maybe I can stop being a jobless bum! Now I just have to get my parking space, and go to McKinley, and also buy books. So far today has been pretty good :-).

Tomorrow I audition for Oleanna:

"OLEANNA follows the miscommunications of a male college professor and his female student. The space between what they say and what they mean grows into a cavern that both fall into. Along the way, Mamet indicts education, gender relations, and human communication in this catasrophe of the human condition."

Wish me mangled limbs!

loremipsumlorem @ 2008-01-06T20:32:00

2008-01-07T22:25:12Z

Having a High Fidelity moment.
Top 5 (no particular order) Albums I like to listen to:

Garbage - Garbage
Bjork - Debut
The Wallflowers - Bringing Down the Horse
Jump Little Children - Magazine
Korn - Follow the Leader

2008 is pretty great

2008-01-07T00:34:56Z

Happy new year Live Journal! (better late than never)

I promise I'll try updating this year. and in any case I do have something to report. I have an amazing girlfriend now!

    The Friday before New Years, I went to see Jason Webley with my friend Ginny at a place called the Heart of Gold in Chicago. The space was amazing, the show was incredible. Afterwards, Ginny and I were to meet her friend Dave and his friend Marisa.
    Ginny mentioned she was interested in Dave, and I joked with her that I should take Marisa off her hands, so she could have Dave. The four of us went to a diner, where it was mostly Ginny and Dave talking, Marisa and I looking at each other and wondering what the other two were talking about. I just kept marveling at how beautiful she was.

    After the diner we went back to Dave's apartment and watched some random YouTube stuff (including a video mash-up of Toxic and Loveshack). Later on Ginny and Dave ended up sitting on his bed singing They Might Be Giants ( I think) songs while Dave played guitar. Marisa and I sat on the futon and watched Bender's Big Score. Flirty poking turned into hand holding and cuddling. It was nice, perfect even. We also watched most of Season 1 of the Simpsons before I had to go. (it was about 6am by that point)
    Marisa and I ended up talking online and playing scrabble on facebook a bit. Then she invited me to see the Flaming Dames' (a burlesque troupe) holiday show closing night. That was just this past Friday (the 4th). The show was a lot of fun, there was comedy, and sexy girls in their underwear. A better first date I can't think of. After the show we went to iHop and later back to her place. We stayed up most of the night (till probably 6am again), talking and cuddling and kissing and such. We finally got to sleep, and then my parents called (grr). Then we finally got back to sleep, and Dave called.
    They (Dave, Marisa and a bunch of other people) were going to a Dresden Dolls show that night. Dave was trying to get Ginny a ticket, and it seemed they only came in pairs, so he wanted to know if I wanted to come. It was probably suprising to him that Marisa simply rolled over and said "hey, you wanna go see the Dresden Dolls?". The paired tickets were outrageously expensive, but they ended up finding Ginny a ticket. I didn't go.
    Marisa and I talked about relationships and all that and so we decided we'd give it a go. So now Ginny and Dave are together, as well as Marisa and I. Ginny and I will be going back to school soon (3 hours from Chicago where Dave and Marisa are), but there's the potential for convenient weekend trips one way or the other.

    So a little about Marisa: She's 25, and spent the last two years in Japan teaching English. Now she works as the assistant for the president of a company, doing a lot of translation type work. She shares my love for cartoons, and we share a lot of the same taste in music and such. Its almost scary how similar we are in terms of personality. We get along amazingly well. I see good things coming of this. I've already started considering the possibilities of finding a job around Chicago after graduating, so I can be around. I know things are moving really fast, but it feels very right, and I'm have no fear.

Friday I'm going as her guest to a CD Swap party (it sounds like people make mix cds and everyone gets a copy of everyone else's CD. I think I should hold one sometime.). Saturday she'll be coming with me to the Voltaire show on Saturday.

Yay!

loremipsumlorem @ 2007-12-19T02:12:00

2007-12-19T08:13:17Z

My impending graduation scares the hell out of me sometimes. I have no real work experience beyond retail, so when I look at job sites and see they want resumes, or even try to create a resume, I realize how fucked I am. I also have no idea what I want to be when I grow up. Something creative, but I don't have any specific skills, much less a portfolio. My writer friend in Oregon tells me to just dive in to post-grad life, and while that sounds like a good enough idea, I don't want to drown.

loremipsumlorem @ 2007-12-10T00:10:00

2007-12-10T06:25:29Z

Suddenly I want to write a book of poetry based on the weird spam messages I get (some of which are nearly poems in their own right). I'll call it 'Spam Slam':

#1
Original:"You Dont like your male device size.
Women laugh at you.
You have wonderful possibility to solve this problem.
Try our male device enlargemen:t and Girls will adore you sure enough.
I changed my sexual life. Right now it is your turn."

My version:

Don't like your male device size
A growth plan I'll devise
Women laugh at you
You know what to do
Try enlargement, girls will open their thighs

#2 This just is pure dada poetry:

noncereal hill anisocarpous
blastema ovarian preinhabitation overpreach adumbration
ambrosial biangulate swapper textual pennywinkle
calmness doubletone crewels butterweed
terrene greatheartedness gibbsites
phoenigm akelas untenacious monosomy

music

2007-12-09T03:45:10Z

I have music spanning from the 50s to now, but almost exactly half of it is from 1990 to 1999 1092/2201 songs.

loremipsumlorem @ 2007-11-27T09:04:00

2007-11-27T15:06:10Z

I got fired this morning.

It was my fault, I was late a bunch (I'm a college student and they have me working at 9am 4 days a week). but stil...

shit

loremipsumlorem @ 2007-11-09T14:53:00

2007-11-09T20:59:43Z

Today is a day of good things so far:

I got $20 and coffee from the guy whose cell phone I returned.
The director gifts we were expecting to push $55 only cost $22.50. Yay T.I.S. discount!
I found an ad in the Buzz looking for someone to do classified ad layouts
I figured myself out a bit:

As for the last one, I've decided that what I want to try to do after college for a while is just freelance stuff, things like the classified layouts (I've always wanted to do graphic design), I'm also going to apply for a writer position, maybe I'll call one of the bartender help wanted ads, I'll be writing for Innocent Words, a music magazine, sometime in the spring. If I could keep doing this for a while, I'd be happy.
I guess I sort of thrive on chaos. I love surprises, and I get a little bored with the expected; its more fun to react and adapt to whatever life throws me.

Also: Richard II opening night tonight! Wish me broken limbs!

loremipsumlorem @ 2007-11-08T18:51:00

2007-11-09T00:56:11Z

This morning I found a cell phone at the union.

This evening I realized I should hunt down the owner.

Ultimately I dialed 611 and talked to AT&T. the operator had never heard of someone calling to report a lost phone before (it was an option on the menu, but stupidly it asked for a billing zip code before you could report it lost). AT&T called the guy and he called me. He offered to meet me at Espresso Royale tomorrow morning. But I suggested he meet me at work at T.I.S. and he offered to buy me coffee. So karma is buying me coffee in the morning :-)

loremipsumlorem @ 2007-10-21T20:16:00

2007-10-22T01:16:46Z

my hamster died

loremipsumlorem @ 2007-10-20T02:17:00

2007-10-20T07:19:20Z

all my photos and music disappeared from my computer... what. the. fuck?

loremipsumlorem @ 2007-10-19T15:11:00

2007-10-19T20:23:11Z

I stole this from someone on IJ.

1. Take five books off your bookshelf.
2. Book #1 -- first sentence
3. Book #2 -- last sentence on page fifty
4. Book #3 -- second sentence on page one hundred
5. Book #4 -- next to the last sentence on page one hundred fifty
6. Book #5 -- final sentence of the book
7. Make the five sentences into a paragraph:

Book #1 Death and Fame - Allen Ginsberg
Book #2 - The Norse Myths - Kevin Crossley-Holland
Book #3 - Invisible Monsters - Chuck Palahniuk
Book #4 - Paradise Lost and Paradise Regained - John Milton
Book #5 - Polymorph - Scott Westerfeld

1. "Progress" ended in XX century.
2.The dwarf was blinded with blood.
3. We're in this glass and brass go-go cage dance party to the stars.
4. And God made two great lights, great for their use, / To Man, the greater to have rule by day, / the less by night, altern; and made the stars, / And set them in the firmament of Heaven / To illuminate the Earth and rule the day / In their vicissitude, and rule the night, / And light from darkness to divide.
5. "We'll be hunting soon."

We're in this glass and brass go-go cage dance party to the stars. The dwarf was blinded with blood. And God made two great lights, great for their use, / To Man, the greater to have rule by day, / the less by night, altern; and made the stars, / And set them in the firmament of Heaven / To illuminate the Earth and rule the day / In their vicissitude, and rule the night, / And light from darkness to divide. "Progress" ended in XX century. "We'll be hunting soon."

loremipsumlorem @ 2007-10-02T20:46:00

2007-10-03T01:48:00Z

soda / caffeine free day #1. I'm sitting in the English building now, waiting for my last rehearsal of the night. I tried to do some creative writing, but it just doesn't seem to flow. a page is better than nothin I suppose though.

loremipsumlorem @ 2007-09-25T22:35:00

2007-09-26T03:39:25Z

Some of the best movies take place largely in record stores:

Pretty in Pink, High Fidelity, Empire Records...

I want to open a record store some day.

loremipsumlorem @ 2007-09-16T23:58:00

2007-09-17T05:06:20Z

I've sold my soul three times over to the What You Will Shakespeare Company!

I'm already in Lope de Vega's Dog in the Manger as Ludovico (Old guy)/ Leonido (sidekick)/ Octavio (old butler)

and I've just been cast in

Shakespeare's Richard II as Bushy/ Duke of York

and

The Changeling as Alonzo (who I think is a slightly evil servant)

I'm going to be a busy boy. Dog runs in late october, Richard is November 9 and 10, and Changeling is Nov 30-Dec 1.

This is the story of Eric's supposed date

2007-09-10T05:03:37Z

Thursday night I was at a party thing with my shakespeare people.
I witnessed the girl I've had a crush on forever (Eryka) getting a carpe diem speech, so that night I asked her out via facebook. The next morning I got a text that said "sunday is good" from an unknown number. I assume its her.
so we make all the arrangements for a date at Olive Garden tonight. We were to meet at 6:30 or so. I mentioned to a mutual friend (Anni) that we were going out. Anni pointed out to me that there was a problem because Eryka had a boyfriend. Eep. I texted her back asking about this fact. the response: "Chris is a friend, but because we like sex so much, we turn eachother on with erotic mail." So I think, wtf? I made sure there was no problems, and the date's still on.
I got to the restaurant at 6:30, text back that I'm there. Only to get the reply, "I thought when we spoke u knew of our cruise meetings" No idea what the fuck that meant, so I waited till 7 before I called my roommate to pick me up, deciding I'd been stood up. So I facebook messaged Eryka again, "what happened tonight? what was that about cruise meetings?" it turns out she'd been home all weekend, and only got my invitation a little while ago now. She had no idea what I was talking about. The person I texted was not Eryka

loremipsumlorem @ 2007-08-18T02:10:00

2007-08-18T07:11:38Z

Eric drank his first 40 tonight.

loremipsumlorem @ 2007-07-27T02:01:00

2007-07-27T07:02:40Z

This is hilarious

Ministry of Truth (MiniTru)

2007-07-26T08:15:14Z

A brief rant.

I'm sick of people editing history. OK, its mostly cartoons I'm thinking of, but it still infuriates me. I just read on a Swedish newspaper (Dagens Nyheter) That disney movies, when they come out on dvd, that "portray characters who [smoke] will contain anti-smoking messages". This was promised by Robert A Iger in a letter to congressman Edward Markey. Markey was also quoted as sayng "Now is the time for other media companies to take after and follow Disney's example" in an interview with the BBC. Here's the article if you can read Swedish.

The same thing has been happening alot lately. I know that since 9-11, no one airs the Simpsons episode "City of new York vs Homer Simpson" because of the fact that the World Trade Center plays a pretty big role (Homer's car gets parked outside and he has to use the bathroom in them and climbs both towers). I believe I've heard of other shows (Friends maybe?) digitally removing the towers from the opening sequence wherein the NYC skyline is showed.

First of all, just because something is taboo now, doesn't make it wrong in the context of the time of when it was made. Its kind of like people getting up in arms about the word "Nigger" in Huck Finn. Second of all, how is respect being shown for things like the twin towers by removing it from history? I'd say thats hardly a proper memorial.

It all reminds me of the Ministry of Truth in 1984, whose job it was to edit historical records such that they reflect the Party-approved version of history (certain people never existed, certain events never happened, etc etc). Is this the kind of world we want to be living in?

Also, the original smoking thing bugs me just because of the anti-smoking nazis, but I'll save that for another rant

x-posted to my journal and randomthought

My life as of 2:35am today

2007-07-26T07:37:05Z

I'm going to Rocky Horror on Saturday, going to a Jason Webley concert on the 3rd, going to South Carolina on the 4th. Been playing alot of Oblivion lately, watching TV. Every once in a while I'm hit with a little artistic inspiration I don't have much outlet for. I drew a sketch of my cat on my bed today, I think I'll buy some clay tomorrow. I'm registering a big zero on the girls scale. I don't really have any prospects. I don't particularly have any interest in anyone. Theres one girl at school I kinda have a crush on, but I'm afraid for now I have her way up on a pedestal. All I've got are the few internet friends I like to flirt with.

loremipsumlorem @ 2007-07-26T02:28:00

2007-07-26T07:29:21Z

I love the Bjork

loremipsumlorem @ 2007-07-25T16:27:00

2007-07-25T21:35:39Z

I've decided to start doing stuff with all my free time. Step one, I'm gonna try drawing a still life every day, no matter how much I may think it sucks. Also need to go buy some clay to play with. And to finish typing up my hard copies of stuff I wrote in high school and maybe even improve on them.

I've been invited to go to Rocky Horror this weekend in Chicago. Only problem is I've loaned Tuesday all of my gear, so I'll have to hit up the thrift store for a cheap riff raff costume or somesuch.

Also I've been watching a lot of MST3k lately, and I forgot how amazing it was.

I can't wait for the Simpsons movie on Friday, and even better than that I'm going to see Jason Webley in Chicago with Ginny on the 3rd!

I'm sorry I've neglected you little livejournal. I'll try to write more in the future.

http://www.pkblogs.com/abstractfactory/2005/10/only-debate-on-intelligent-design-that.html

2007-07-22T06:38:08Z

Tuesday, October 18, 2005
The only debate on Intelligent Design that is worthy of its subject

Moderator: We're here today to debate the hot new topic, evolution versus Intelligent Des---

(Scientist pulls out baseball bat.)

Moderator: Hey, what are you doing?

(Scientist breaks Intelligent Design advocate's kneecap.)

Intelligent Design advocate: YEAAARRRRGGGHHHH! YOU BROKE MY KNEECAP!

Scientist: Perhaps it only appears that I broke your kneecap. Certainly, all the evidence points to the hypothesis I broke your kneecap. For example, your kneecap is broken; it appears to be a fresh wound; and I am holding a baseball bat, which is spattered with your blood. However, a mere preponderance of evidence doesn't mean anything. Perhaps your kneecap was designed that way. Certainly, there are some features of the current situation that are inexplicable according to the "naturalistic" explanation you have just advanced, such as the exact contours of the excruciating pain that you are experiencing right now.

Intelligent Design advocate: AAAAH! THE PAIN!

Scientist: Frankly, I personally find it completely implausible that the random actions of a scientist such as myself could cause pain of this particular kind. I have no precise explanation for why I find this hypothesis implausible --- it just is. Your knee must have been designed that way!

Intelligent Design advocate: YOU BASTARD! YOU KNOW YOU DID IT!

Scientist: I surely do not. How can we know anything for certain? Frankly, I think we should expose people to all points of view. Furthermore, you should really re-examine whether your hypothesis is scientific at all: the breaking of your kneecap happened in the past, so we can't rewind and run it over again, like a laboratory experiment. Even if we could, it wouldn't prove that I broke your kneecap the previous time. Plus, let's not even get into the fact that the entire universe might have just popped into existence right before I said this sentence, with all the evidence of my alleged kneecap-breaking already pre-formed.

Intelligent Design advocate: That's a load of bullshit sophistry! Get me a doctor and a lawyer, not necessarily in that order, and we'll see how that plays in court!

Scientist (turning to audience): And so we see, ladies and gentlemen, when push comes to shove, advocates of Intelligent Design do not actually believe any of the arguments that they profess to believe. When it comes to matters that hit home, they prefer evidence, the scientific method, testable hypotheses, and naturalistic explanations. In fact, they strongly privilege naturalistic explanations over supernatural hocus-pocus or metaphysical wankery. It is only within the reality-distortion field of their ideological crusade that they give credence to the flimsy, ridiculous arguments which we so commonly see on display. I must confess, it kind of felt good, for once, to be the one spouting free-form bullshit; it's so terribly easy and relaxing, compared to marshaling rigorous arguments backed up by empirical evidence. But I fear that if I were to continue, then it would be habit-forming, and bad for my soul. Therefore, I bid you adieu.

Milwaukee

2007-07-12T23:56:32Z

i drove up to Milwaukee to pick up my grandma at the airport today. oh what an adventure!

My parents told me that I should leave the house by 11:00 to get up in time to pick her up at 2:45. So leave at 11:00 I did. I was in sight of Milwaukee by 12:30. So not wanting to sit in an airport for three hours, I decided to go into downtown Milwaukee for a little while. I found my way in, despite the fact that my dad's gps (tom tom) doesn't work well with all the construction there. I parked in a garage, and wandered into a mall, Grand Avenue, on Milwaukee Ave. It was rather neat. I got some decent food court Japanese food for lunch :-). But i still had time to kill, so I wandered down to Water Street. I think Milwaukee is one of the coolest cities I've been in. I need to go back there one day when I have all day to kill. A couple reasons its awesome:

So I killed my time well, and had to wend my way out of Milwaukee and back to the airport. While trying to navigate out, I was flipping through the radio and found a fun JEBUS! Conservative talk show thing. Apparently the end of the world is coming at least in part because a Hindu Chaplain gave the opening prayer this morning in the House of Representatives. And it was really funny to hear these guys whining about not being allowed freedom of speech to pray to Jebus in the house, but then out of the other side of their mouths talking about how the Hindu guy shouldn't be allowed to do so.

They also made another point about a bill that attached some kind of ridiculous make-everything-a-hate-crime bill to a troop funding thing. While I'm fairly confident they're blowing things out of proportion, they were talking about people at a high school somewhere getting expelled for handing out anti-homosexual propaganda or some-such.

While I don't agree with these people, they make a fairly good point about free speech and such. Why are we so afraid of conflicting opinions. Left or Right, both sides want to use the 1st amendment to their advantage, while trying to squelch that right in the other side.

but back to the main point: I picked my grandmother up at the airport, but then we spent an hour plus looking for my car. I thought I knew exactly where it was, but it turned out I was twisted around. I have a good sense of direction outside, but in buildings (especially in Milwaukee it seems) i get lost. Eventually I got to my car, and am now home safe and sound, obviously.

But I also made a revelation today. I love being in cities, and just getting lost and wandering. I'm an explorer. I love finding strange new things like the above pictures. Yay!

So the whole of my Mom's family is in town now (or at least en route). This should be fairly fun.

Country Blue Grass Blues & Other Music Found Under God

2007-07-07T03:50:11Z

Whenever I think about CBGBs it makes me sad. I'm just glad I got to go before it closed. Whats even more sad is that its closed and in its stead is a CBGB retail shop. I just learned this from CBGB.com...

RIP CBGB & OMFUG