Monday, September 30, 2002

Angie - how'd you like the ACL festival? I didn't have my cell phone with me or I would have called. And tried to find you among 40,000 people. I really liked the music, but was one hot, grubby, sweaty, tired individual by the end. How about you?

I think about the weather way too much. not having a job leaving you with a lot of time to consider these things. For instance, I really notice the slight changes in temperature. Both within the house and outside it. I've become obsessed with the few degrees of temperature when I'm really comfortable. It's around 74, 75, 76. My housemates tend to prefer it closer to 80. My parents like it hotter than that. Dad is still on blood-thinners and is cold all the time. Then, there's the humidity. Which has been high of late because of the hurricane in the gulf. Humidity gets the blame for most people's discomfort in the South, and it deserves it, but this week its been very nice. Soggy smells and so on. Damp breezes.

I'm reading about one hundred pages a day in whatever book I'm on. I don't normally read that fast. I have a hard time concentrating sometimes. For a person that is as lazy by nature as I am, I tend to have a lot of nervous energy. I wiggle around in chairs and my mind wanders. I wish I knew how to translate that energy in to activity.

I sat down last night with my guitar and tried to plan out six songs I could play solo if the opportunity arose. No prospects on the horizon or anything. I just wanted to see if I had six or so songs I could do by myself that would hold together. I made it to song number four and got bored. Bad sign. I also noticed (and don't take this as some subconcious cry of distress or anything) that the six songs I choose all mentioned an accident or a death but none of them were about death. (song one, mysterious dark cloud, song two, death by avalanche, song three, plane crash, song four, car crash, songs five and six, drowning) Spooky.

Song five actually uses the name "Louise," Weez, but not in direct reference to you, of course. More in that Springsteeny need-a-generic-woman's-name kind of way. I sang it once and it stuck.

I can't sleep. I'm sleepy though. Its 2:41 AM here.

I took about an hour's worth of video footage of Grace. I have that cliche desire to make someone watch it. Dave actually volunteered but I wouldn't put him through it. She doesn't do tricks or anything. There is an adorable part where she kisses a baby doll and then falls over. I should go watch that now.

Is it October yet? I want to dress up like Dr. Teeth from the Muppet Show for Halloween, but there's no way I'll ever spend the time of effort to make the costume. My favorite part of the Muppet Movie is where the Electric Mayhem paint Fozzie's car rainbows and stuff to "disguise" it from the Doc Hopper. Fozzie says, "I don't know how to thank you." And Kermit says, "I don't know why to thank you." Makes me laugh everytime I see it.

Its very late and I'm going to let you in to more than I normally would. My defenses are down. Sometimes when I daydream, I imagine being one of the Henson puppeteers. I know that's a corny dream. Most people dream about owning a business or have a rocketpack or dude ranch or something. But, seriously, I am intensely jealous of the classic Henson puppeteers. I've read interviews and articles about the Henson shop and it just sounds wonderful. A bunch of scruffy hippies living in London, telling goofy jokes and making up funny voices. And those guys were artists, man. Look at Miss Piggy in the classic episodes or in the early movies. Frank Oz is brilliant. That guy can do anything with that puppet. He can convey body language with his hand and two little sticks. If you want to really see it. Watch the first movie. Watch Frank Oz perform Piggy or Fozzie (if they're in the same scene, Oz is doing whichever is talking more) and then watch the new Weezer video or the last film, both of which feature Eric Jacobson (or sometimes Peter Linz) performing Piggy. Jacobson is really talented, and he does a great job (he even does the voice in the Weezer video), but if you really watch you can see the difference. Jacobson is a talent performer, but Frank Oz is a fucking genius. Look at the difference between the puppet Yoda and the CG Yoda of the last Star Wars film. The puppet Yoda looks real because Frank Oz brings him to life. The CG Yoda looks like a special effect.

All the classic character are being recast, which is a little weird. Most of the main muppets characters were performed by the same people for years and years. Caroll Spinney did Big Bird until 2000. That's like 30 years. Dave Goelz has been performing Gonzo for almost as long. He's just about the only one of the original team still around. The others are dead or retired for the most part. Jerry Nelson still does his characters, Floyd and Robin and, I think, he does Statler, now.

What the hell am I going on about the Muppets for? Nurse! Nurse! I'm losing it!

Wednesday, September 25, 2002

actually the rats were divas. they sniffed the wheel, they climbed in and out a bit, but they did not run. not really surprising considering that was the first time they saw the thing, with the camera crew clustered around and all the noise and new smells. running on a wheel isn't instinctual for rats the way it is for gerbils and hamsters. rats are actually smart enough to know that they aren't actually going anywhere by running on it. silly prissy little things. i have to call the production company if the rats go crazy on the wheel.
palindromes for your entertainment:
rats star
mike supplied: rats live on no evil star

Halloween costume idea: BLUE MOON
I plan on dressing in all blue and getting a big ass poster of the moon to wear in some form or I'm going as a different cosmic pun - the Milky Way and tying old milk jugs all over. Or maybe Red Dwarf.
Off to the NASA web site for more inspiration...
(there's a big Halloween contest at work - maybe this year, my department will win)

Monday, September 23, 2002

tonight my rats are being filmed for B-roll for an A&E pilot show. they have to run on a wheel.


angie:oh no! go see richard buckner! he was SO good the time i saw him!

upma: seattle details?

kainui: seattle details?

zach: send me moustache hairs and i will make a voodoo good luck charm for you.

jt: hi. i have a new proposal for the residency program. i'll send details when i have 'em.

steph: thank you over & over for bust.

mike: please record the pointy sideburns in some manner.

all: the august candelabra is taking MUCH longer than i expected. i remember why i'm not a graphic designer. but it is coming. i promise.

anyone: have hbo? willing to tape sopranos for me?

Angie - I'll be at the ACL festival on Sat. Send me your number - oh, I just ran into John Rees downstairs. It turns out his wife works here - small world.

Sunday, September 22, 2002

Moustache coming along fine. Just in time for our wedding and relocation to Europe.

Fought a bear. Won.

Fought a shark. Won.

Fought a donkey. Lost.

So, yeah, nothing's happening in my life. I get up, I sit around, I eat and go back to bed.

What about you guys?

Friday, September 20, 2002

So have I mentioned that I'm taking power yoga at my gym? I really enjoy it, though we have it in the aerobics room (freezing) and my teacher is from Scotland (thick accent), but I wish I could go more often (I go only once a week). I went running for the first time in a looooong time on Monday. Walking down stairs was then very painful on Tuesday.
My photo bug continues. I also found a focus for my next body of work: Pairs (pears). So I want to get printing on Sunday to produce some more work, besides shooting on Sat. and Sun. I think I'll look at sequences in sets of two. Or have a pair of objects in the frame or just the fruit, pears (they are majorly photogenic). We have space at work to hang pictures, so that's what I'm aiming for. After that, maybe I'll invest the mint to get stuff framed and look for another space.
I've noticed in my speech pattern, I've begun droppin' ending "g's" at an alarmin' rate. Fixin', meetin', these are the words coming out of my mouth. That and I've started saying "lunch" in a weird hybrid Cajun accent: luuunschh.
What in the world is going on.

Tuesday, September 17, 2002

Upma - thanks for the MFA advice. Yeah, I need to think about those things. For now, I'm just trying to shoot more and see how I like being back in the photo world.

Monday, September 16, 2002

ps. Mike and Angie - I went and met this guy on Sunday (to take his photo for our textbook). He spent the summer of '96 traveling to all the major league ballparks in 60 days. Pretty cool story.

I went and took more photos this weekend at a Vintage Hoop-La (a joint garage sale held by several vintage stores). It turns out one of my good friends from college now does that for a living. Anyway, one photo I'm looking forward to is a grouping of religious icons - I played around with selective focus - sometimes this pope doll was in focus with jesus and mary out of focus - in others, the pope was out of focus but the bleeding heart - oh, wait, maybe it was a saint and not jesus - anyway - it was fun playing around with icons. I was hoping to get focused (hee, hee) on what I want to start shooting, but it's so hard. First I thought "masks" - it might be cool to go with that idea. Then I got sidetracked by that religious stuff and then spoons. I really like silverware. So who knows how that last roll of film will end up. I'm supposed to go photograph horses this weekend. I guess I just like to dabble - it's hard to commit to one body of work - though it seems people want to see unifying themes. I may have to go more abstract.
Besides that, I have six birthdays of close friends to plan for. And shop/make something for. Sheez.

Thursday, September 12, 2002

You guys remember me talking about our subletters over the summer? Well, they're back from LA for a few days and we're being treated to all the LA scenster news. Get this, Jennifer (one of the subletters) is now Alicia Silverstone's personal assistant. And they've been hanging out with Juliette Lewis and the girl from A Knight's Tale. And that kid who played Telly in Kids is going to be their new roommate.

I'm not jealous of these two for getting to hang out with these celebrities, because, really, they sound like total shitheads (for example, Alicia Silverstone has a mineral water hot tub and Juliette Lewis is a Scientologist), but I am jealous of the stories, which are kind of surreal. I mean, who gets stoned with Batgirl in mineral water hottub?

Zach - good luck.

Wednesday, September 11, 2002

I've got a job interview tomorrow. Its looks good. Wish me luck.

upma, i must ask you to please offer me sisterly advice as well.

I just got a cavity filled so my mouth is numb with novocaine. Not a pleasant sensation.
We had a bagpiper play at a ceremony this morning at work.
I was thinking "what if I went back to grad school and tried for an MFA in photography" thoughts yesterday.

Monday, September 09, 2002

My plan is to not turn the TV or radio on at all on 9/11. The overanalysis and, frankly, nostalgia of the whole event is sickening. ABC is airing 15 hours of 9/11 programming. Fifteen hours! Jesus, let these people rest without a parade of dancing corpses to remind us.

And we you guys are watching this stuff (or avoiding it), remember that our "president" is now beating the drum for us to invade a foreign country and drop bombs on them in a preemptive strike. Preemptive. Iraq hasn't attacked the US or its neighbors. There are no legitimate signs that they are going to, either. What a fucked up world we live in.

Thursday, September 05, 2002

Hey, the damn record sales on rockstargame finally got updated! We're rocking again!

Dad is home now. He's even going back to work tomorrow. The human body is an amazing thing. He says he feels better now than before the heartattack, which, I guess, makes sense considering that his bloodflow was less before.

Wednesday, September 04, 2002

zach - what a horrible way to start your week. I'm glad to hear that it's a best of a bad scenario thing. Take care.

Tuesday, September 03, 2002


I just wanted to drop a note to all of you that my dad had a heartattack on Sunday. It was a light heartattack--serious, but not as serious as some. He was extremely lucky in that none of his heart was damaged, meaning the heart itself should recover 100%.

They did a heart catheterization on him this morning, in which they ran a line up through his arteries and got a look at the extent of the blockage that caused the heartattack in the first place. Again, dad was super lucky. They were able to fix it all with stints (little expanding tubes that open the blockage), so he won't have to have any surgery.

He should be home sometime tomorrow, but nothing is for certain yet.

The rest of us are fine, if a little frazzled.

Grape stomping is like scented seaweed. The trip was a lot of fun. Staying in the old train car, having wine and cheese and crackers for a couple of meals. Shooting five rolls of film. Visiting a farmer's market and bringing home fresh peaches, tomatoes, onions, zucchini and squash.