Let's Wake the Baby With a Baseball Bat

That's part of one of my lines as of lately. I've been having this discussion lately, I finally feel like I woke up. Like my brain snapped back on after coasting through the last three or so years. I've rediscovered my want for education and my want for change. It's hard to explain, but I feel like I'm a part of something again. I want to cause something.


The full line is "Let's wake the baby with a baseball bat/At least the screaming has a meaning, cat, consider that." It's from a song called "Hunger Pains Three" by Minneapolis rappers P.O.S. and Crescent Moon off of P.O.S.'s album Ipecac Neat. I'm not promoting making our infants cry, but just the idea of waking ourselves up so that our screaming is just a dream anymore. I dig it.

I've been head bobbing to the new Say Anything album, In Defense of the Genre, over the past couple days as well. It's great stuff. Usually when a group releases a two-disc album, I hate it. I've found that most of these (Stadium Arcadium for example) end up sounding like an album full of b-sides because, well, that's what they have to be. Few bands can record, in one setting, two discs full of quality material, but this is one. Sure, there are a couple songs I don't really get including, "Died a Jew" for example (a song in which the vocalist "brags" about the strife his people have gone through, but comes across sounding forced and poorly constructed), but overall, a very solid album. Check it out.

I'm writing again, creatively that is. I may post some of it on here, let me know if you want that.

Snap

I took these pictures last Thanksgiving. I figure, we're nearing that time again, right?

Desolation Row

Do you ever have one of those moments where you feel like you're tapped into something without even knowing it? I was walking around campus a few days ago and at one point I flipped on my hood for no apparent reason. About twenty seconds later it started pouring out of nowhere. It didn't strike me as odd until I got inside.

I've heard a terrifying number of people talking about Stephen Colbert running for president. I think the thing I respect the most about Jon Stewart is that, when people asked him about running for president, he always said how ridiculous of an idea that is. This this with Colbert scares me, just because people seem to like the idea. Don't get me wrong, I don't think he could screw up this country anymore than Bush has been doing, but he's a comedian. He's always been a comedian. You hear people say that they're worried about Obama's lack of experience, but he's got heaps more than Colbert. I just have this horrible vision of everyone writing in Colbert's name and getting him elected. What does that say about how our country views the idea of democracy at this point? Has Bush really lowered our standards that much? I mean, when democrats were saying "Anyone but Bush in 2004," I don't think they meant this. Our country's government has become a complete joke.

I wrote a short story a few weeks back now that, admittingly, sucked. However, there was a part where I talked about how the president really has no power over anything. I then compared him to the Queen of England, just another figurehead. I liked that part.

I'll post pictures later.

Click

I went to the Chicago-land area this last weekend with my friend, Chris. It was pretty sweet, I love that area. We stayed at his place, about forty-five minutes outside of the city. I'd like being closer, but who's going to argue free housing? We went and saw Too Much Light Makes the Baby Go Blind. It's the third time I've seen the Neo-Futurist show and I am amazed every single time. I'm fairly sure that I'll be doing my student teaching in Chicago in a few years and I've tentatively decided that, if I can fit it in with student teaching, I'm going to try to join the Neo-Futurists. For those who don't know, they're a theatre troupe that do, among other things, Too Much Light. It's 30 plays in 60 minutes, all of which they write, rehearse, and perform every weekend. They write 2-12 new shows every week, so the show is always different. It would satisy so much of what I love in life, meaning writing and performing. They have this insane ability to drift between absolute hilarity and incredible meaning in mere moments. I love it, absolutely love it, and would love to make it a part of me.

The weekend was strange. As I said, I went with a friend of mine and his girlfriend. I hate watching a new relationship in bloom. Maybe that came out more cynical than I had intended, but I feel it's honest. Maybe it's because I think I see the difference between young love and actual, lifelong love now. Or, maybe it's because I'm a bit lonely and watching two people in constant contact with eachother does nothing but pull the bitterness out of me. I don't like being like that, and I don't want to be, but I am lately. I don't like dwelling on this, let's move on.

I read on Mike Doughty's blog (www.mikedoughty.com/blog) that Dan Wilson (former frontman of Semisonic) released his solo album yesterday. Being as easily led, and as much of a Dan Wilson fan as I am, I immediately bought it off of iTunes. It's gorgeous stuff. He's got such an honest, pure sound to everything he touches, I can't put it away.

I miss photography. I've decided that I'm going to carry my camera with me pretty much everywhere I go from now on, because, well, photography is fulfilling. I think I just miss art in general. I want to date an artist. If you're an artist, and you're interested, drop me a line.

I took these pictures almost a year ago now, but I've been looking at them a lot lately.

Off

I'm just sitting around, watching a little MTVU (swear, I'm addicted) and what should come on? A new Brother Ali video for "Take Me Home." That's one of my favorite tracks off of his last release, The Undisputed Truth, so I was pleased. The whole video centers around this voyage through a downtown area and every time the character that Ali is playing walks off screen, a new character comes on, also played by Ali. I was happy to see Ali's DJ, BK-One, making an appearance in the video. Good stuff.

Right after it came Aesop Rock's video for "None Shall Pass" off his new album of the same name. I'm digging the new record. He continues to do really interesting stuff with hip-hop (like having John Darnielle from The Mountain Goats guest on the closing track). "None Shall Pass" has one of the best beats I've heard Blockhead produce in awhile.



A friend of mine showed me a preview for the movie Across the Universe today. It's a new movie/musical made up of all Beatles songs. The trailer looks absolutely amazing. It's about a kid who goes to New York in what seems to be the middle of the Vietnam protests. He's an artist and is being criticized for not acting out in the same manner as those around him. I'm excited, I think we're going to go see it this weekend.



We may go see We Own the Night too. That's the new Joaquin Phoenix, Mark Wahlberg flick. This looks like a great action/suspense movie. I'm excited.

Also, I'd been reading about this short film by Wes Anderson (of Rushmore/Royal Tenenbaums/Life Aquatic fame) called Hotel Chevalier. Granted, most of the things I read just talked about Natalie Portman's nude scene, but I found on site that talked about the short itself. I downloaded it off of iTunes (it's on their for free) and it's great stuff. Wes Anderson knows what he's doing. Apparently, this is a sort of opening scene that was included in the movie it was filmed for. That movie's called The Darjeeling Limited. It stars Jason Schwartzman, Owen Wilson, and Adrian Brody. I really want to check this film out, but being an artsy independent, I don't know if it'll make it Iowa. Fingers crossed though.


There's this song in Hotel Chevalier by Peter Sarstedt called "Where Do You Go To My Lovely?" I'd never heard this track before, so I immediately went out and downloaded it. It's really beautiful. I've got to find myself some more of this guy's stuff.

Fall break is this weekend. Chicago, here I come.

Sleepy

I'm in one of those times where I have plenty of things that need to get done, but nothing I want to do. One of my classes is taking up so much of my time that I'm beginning to fall behind in all of my others. It's frustrating, especially since I really don't even "need" this class. I'm seriously considering dropping it, but I think I would feel bad only taking 3.5 credits this semester. It's nothing to be ashamed of, I know, it's just how my mind works.

I drove up to Northfield, MN on Thursday to see my buddy, Tim's, show. He designed the lights for there production of Twelfth Night. It was great stuff, comical without being overly slapstick. I drove back here yesterday, then had to emcee our variety show, then went to Perkins. By the time 2 am rolled around, I was done.

I'm still kind of in that mood. I know that I'm not getting as much sleep as I should, I am in college, but I feel like I can't catch up to myself. Everytime I close my eyes it's harder to open them up again.

It's been way too long since I've been to a good club show. I saw Andrew Bird a couple weeks back, but that was in a theater. Don't get me wrong, he was absolutely incredible, it's just not the same vibe. I have tickets to go see Atmosphere at a small little club in Iowa City at the beginning of November, but it's still early October. I think this is my version of homesickness. I miss the smelly, overpacked venues with people crammed into eachother, everyone rocking there heads to the same beat. That gross feeling afterwards, when you walk out with everyone else's sweat coating your arms. I love that. It's communal for me.

The dating scene on a college campus is rediculous, especially for a school as small as this one. Granted, it's been a long time since I've been on the look out for someone to spend time with, but this seems strange. I've asked a couple girls out, both of which I think assumed that me asking them out was my way of saying that I had some sort of deep feelings for them. I guess that's how some people date, but not me. I just want to go out and spend time around some people that I find interesting. Then they "let me down easily." This part almost makes me laugh. I've known you for a few weeks, it's not like I have a lot at stake emotionally if you say yes or no (or if you say yes, then just stop talking to me).

As funny as it seems sometimes, I'm beginning to feel undateable. Not in a "Woe is me" kind of way, more in a "People don't know the whole me" sort of way. I have a big, slightly obnoxious pressence, I'm aware of this, but I do turn it down when it needs to be. But steering away from this topic...

I just watched a trailer for the new Sweeney Todd movie directed by Tim Burton and starring Johnny Depp, Helena Bonham Carter, Sasha Baron Cohen, and Alan Rickman. I'm really excited for this one, we haven't had a good movie/musical since Chicago came out years back now. Click here to see the trailer: http://www.filmschoolrejects.com/trailers/sweeney-todd-the-demon-barber-of-fleet-street-trailer.php

The Kingdom, the new Jamie Foxx/Jennifer Garner flick, is absolutely phenomonal. Honestly, one of the best films I've seen in years, although horribly violent. I loved it, but I don't know if I'll be able to see it again for awhile. It's one of those types.

Strange

I've found that there's a strange voyeuristic, yet romantic feel to blogs. Something about digging into the lives of people I either know better than I feel is safe, or people who I've only met through their music and poetry, it makes me feel communal. I've been an avid reader of Mike Doughty's blog for almost a year now, and I still read my musician friend Tommy's blog as often as I can. I can't tell if I like their blogs because I find what they're saying interesting, or just because I like what I know about these people, but it's addicting regardless of reason.

I browsed through my college's musical theatre songbook collection today looking for audition peices. I forgot how much I enjoy musical theatre. I found myself going back in my head to all the times I've sat in a theater and watched a musical, shows I haven't really even thought about since. I saw showboat when it came to the Twin Cities when I was like seven years old and I still remember "Ol' Man River." That stuff's just quality. I picked out "All Good Gifts" from Godspell and "Heaven on Their Minds" from Jesus Christ Superstar. I sang "All Good Gifts" for my high school's production of Godspell and I've been a huge JC Superstar fan since I was young. The one role I've always wanted to play in any theatre is Judas. That role is so interesting and complex, not to mention the showcase of vocal talent it allows.

A friend turned me onto this guy who plays under the name Bon Iver. It's pronounced Frenchly, as it's French. I've never heard anything like it. He recorded it in the wilderness of Wisconsin in a log cabin. Picture a mix between Iron & Wine and TV on the Radio. It's absolutely beautiful stuff. "Skinny Love" shakes me everytime I hear. I immediatly ordered the album and it showed up in my mailbox a couple days ago. It's irresistable.

I've been equally addicted to Saul Williams as of late. He's a beat poet with a degree in drama. He's entrancing. I read his book, ", said the shotgun to the head," and I'm in the process of reading "The Dead Emcee Scrolls." His other two, "She" and "The Seventh Octave," are waiting for me on my shelves. This guy's amazing. His word choices are so incredibly spot on, and his flow is haunting.

The new Iron & Wine is phenomnal as well. Sam Beam has grown so much since his first album that it's hard to even compare them.

I'll be in Northfield with my brother (from another family) tomorrow, which will be nice. I have seen him in over a month.

I accidentally put a pen in with my laundry a couple day ago. Now, I'm the first to wear interestingly decorated clothing, but even I have to turn down ink spots. My pants are okay, it doesn't look that weird, but it really trashed a couple shirts and a sweater. I love my clothes, so this has been really bugging me.

English Literature had it's advantages.