Here's another idea. Each of us names a song per day in a pre-determined order (alphabetical, whatever...) and each day the others attempt to download the song through iTunes or whatever illegal means you prefer. The only problem is I know some of the group use dail-up. Just an idea.

CD ideas
1) each person makes their own mix
ex. Angie's Slap-yo-mama mix
and mails it to all of us
2) one person is pronounced DJ and we each post 4 songs or so we like and either by iTunes or whatever the CD gets made, and then sent to us all
3) other ideas?

Steph, I remember you saying that you weren't watching Angel this season. Let me say, that I was wrong. After the first three or four episodes this season got really good. In fact, the last few have been GREAT. It's shaping up to be the best season of Angel ever. I'm totally digging it. Tonight's episode featured the return of Andrew from the last seasons of Buffy. Funny!

Steph, I'd love to switch cds with you. And if someone wants to dream up a Lake Effect project, I'd be into that too.

The snow is now ice. Walking is dangerous.

Zach, if you ever feel like doing a mix CD switch, let me know. Angie - you'd be great for that as well. Do I sense a new Lake Effect project? Or maybe we could all suggest 4 songs or something and then everyone gets a copy. What do y'all think?
I met with some folks last night to play Scrabble. (one teacher, one library science major, one ex-english major and me). Needless to say, I lost. But it was a cool game. But it was all over once my friend Lorrie spelled toddlers - using up all her tiles and on a triple word score. There was no coming back.
And one New Years resolution down - I switched my website to a photoblog. (and Zach - would you mind adding it as a link to our blog?) It's still the same site.

Lots of snow on the ground here. Things have slowed to a stop for the last two days. I'm going a little stir crazy. I decided to clear out my CD player (I bought a 100 disc changer in the summer) and replace everything in alphabetical order, only this time I was going to write it all down so I could find things when I went looking for them. I wrote on the notepad of my computer. For that reason, and because I spent like an hour and a half doing this, I present it here.

1. Afghan Whigs - 1965
2. Archers of Loaf vs. the Greatest of All Time
3. All Time Quarterback
4. The Amps - Pacer
5. The Beatles mix vol. 1
6. The Beatles mix vol. 2
7. Beegees - Greatest Hits 1
8. Beegees - Greatest Hits 2
9. Belly - Star
10. Belly - King
11. Bettie Serveert - Log 22
12. Brad - Shame
13. Jeff Buckley - Grace
14. Richard Buckner - Since
15. Built to Spill - Live
16. C Average - Second Coming
17. Chapterhouse - Blood Music
18. The Church - Heyday
19. Cinderella - Greatest Hits
20. The Common Cold - Atciis
21. The Cure - Faith
22. The Cure - Pornography
23. Death Cab for Cutie - Transatlanticism
24. The Decemberists - Castaways and Cutouts
25. Dirty Three - s/t
26. Discount - Singles #2
27. Dokken - The Very Best of Dokken
28. Brian Eno - Ambient 1/Music for Airports
29. Erasure - Pop!
30. the Faint - Collected
31. Guided By Voices - Best of
32. Ida - the Braille Night
33. The Jam - The Sound of the Jam
34. Landing - Seasons
35. Lemonheads - Lick
36. Teo Leo/Pharmacists - The Tyranny of Distance
37. Lighting Bolt - Ride the Skies
38. Lungfish - Talking Songs for Walking
39. Lyle Lovett - The Road to Ensenada
40. Lush - Spooky
41. The Magnetic Fields - Charm of the Highway Strip
42. Cass McCombs - A
43. John Cougar Mellencamp - Scarecrow
44. Mercury Birds - BRWNMTNLGTS
45. Morrissey - Bona Drag
46. Mountain - Climbing!
47. The Mystical Krewe of Clearlight - s/t
48. Ned's Atomic Dustbin - Are You Normal?
49. Nine Inch Nails - Pretty Hate Machine
50. No Doubt - Greatest Hits
51. OutKast - Speakerboxx
52. Outkast - The Love Below
53. Palace Music - Lost Blues and Other Songs
54. Pet Shop Boys - Discography
55. Britta Phillips & Dean Wareham - Sonic Souvenirs
56. The Police - Outlandos d'Amour
57. Pretenders - Singles
58. Polvo - Celebrate the New Dark Age
59. The Port Huron Statement - Tory
60. The Posies - Frosting on the Beater
61. The Proclaimers - Sunshine on Leith
62. Rachel's - Music for Egon Shiele
63. Rancid - And Out Come the Wolves
64. Raymond Brake - III
65. The Reputation - s/t
66. R.E.M. - Eponymous
67. The Replacements - All for Nothing
68. Rolling Stones - Aftermath U.K.
69. Rolling Stones - Their Satanic Majesties Request
70. The Shames - Live (v.) Along
71. Matthew Shipp - DNA
72. Silkworm - Italian Platinum
73. The Smiths - Singles
74. Soft Cell - Greatest Hits
75. Songs: Ohia - Magnolia Electric Co.
76. Jason Molina (Songs: Ohia) - Pyramid Electric Co.
77. Bruce Springsteen - Essential (disc one)
78. Sugar - Copper Blue
79. Sundays - Blind
80. Sunny Day Real Estate - Diary
81. Superchunk - Cup of Sand 1
82. Superchunk - cup of Sand 2
83. Talk Talk - It's My Life
84. Talk Talk - The Colour of Spring
85. Television - Marquee Moon
86. Mary Timony - Mountains
87. Rosie Thomas - Only With Laughter Can You Win
88. The Thorns - s/t
89. Tool - Lateralus
90. Tristeza - Mixed Signals
91. Tristeza - Espuma
92. Tussle - Don't Stop
93. The Twilight Singers - Twilight
94. Uncle Tupelo - Anodyne
95. M.Ward - The Transfiguration of Vincent
96. The Weather - s/t
97. The White Stripes - Elephant
98. Steve Winwood - 20th Century Masters
99. XTC - Skylarking
100. Yaz - The Best of

Ted's family reunion is in Taos. I plan on hitting hot springs (if nearby) and photographing my fool-ass off. (between family events - which should be lowkey anyway). As long as there are no 6-seater plane trips where you have to wear an oxygen mask (like in Alaska - the last family reunion), I should be fine.
I had a piece of king cake for breakfast - which made me feel better after dropping my just-made lunch on the floor (good thing there's a 5 second rule).
Of those who read Ready-Made magazine - I just got the winter issue - the house they featured with one interior room with window panes rather than walls - I want that. I need to start an idea journal for the house and yard. I planted some climbing roses this weekend, my fingertips are still sore from digging around.

1. What does it say in the signature line of your emails?
i never use signature lines for email. i have a standard one for work which has all my contact numbers, but usually i delete even that one unless i'm sending the email outside the company. i like personalizing them to the specific email and person.

2. Did you have a senior quote in your high school yearbook? What was it?
something from the big book of gleeb about the dandelion farmer pulling all the tulips and complaining about the weeds. i wanted to put a tom robbins quote, but it was too long.

3. If you had vanity plates on your car, what would they read? If you already have them, what do they say?
i'm not likely to have a car, and i'm less likely to have vanity plates.

4. Have you received any gifts with messages engraved upon them? What did the inscription say?
nope

5. What would you like your epitaph to be?
thankfully, someone else will have to decide this.
these kind of questions make my ears bleed.
for work we had to fill out a "getting to know you" profile with questions like:
Name:
Nickname:
Position in the Company:
Title I?d choose if it were just up to me:
Start Date:
Spouse?s/Significant Other?s name:
Spouse?s/Significant Other?s occupation:
Birthday:
Favorite book(s):
Favorite song(s) or type(s) of music:
Favorite movie(s):
Most recent artistic endevour:
Favorite food(s):
Three people (living, dead, fictional, whatever) I?d like to invite to dinner:
Who I?d like to be marooned on desert island with:
What irks me the most:
Favorite thing to do while not at work:
What I wanted to be when I grew up when I was 10:
What I wanted to be when I was 21:
Favorite quote(s):

I deleted almost everything, such that my contribution was:

Name: Shelly

Birthday: same as Allan Pinkerton, Clara Bow, Elvis Costello, Gene Simmons, Leonard Bernstein, New Orleans, Regis, Rob Halford, Tim Burton, and Walt Kelly.


AJ:i also have the problem finding boots cause my calfs are not concave. my mom found a pair that fits me made by the naturalizer and called "wide shaft." heh. heh. wide shaft. sadly they aren't the super stylish kind, just plain black boots.
none of my coworkers are trying to get pregnant. they all just had one or want one "soon but not yet." they are all older than me though and i want to remind them that your fertility starts dropping pretty rapidly after 27 or so. instead i keep my damn fool mouth shut. they already think it is funny to try and make me hold their squalling diaper bundles because i've acquired the reputation that "shelly is afraid of babies." i celebrated my declining fertility with my birthday this year. i do sort of wish i'd sold off some of those eggs a few years back when cash was tight though. (not really) i will learn to hold babies without looking terrified either by age 30 or by the time my sister and cousins start having them (or any of ya'll.) whichever comes first.

steph:i got a king cake in the mail also. it is quite squashed but i'm sure it will still be delicious. what is happeing in taos?


i think i'm starting to get into a routine with getting off work and getting into my studio in pioneer square a few times a week.

i'm going to my first book club meeting. we read the davinci code. i hope the next book selection is not so fluffy.
did any of ya'll read this book?


one thing you are looking forward to:
1. ...today?
seminar about trace metals analysis in the study of the provanance (origins and travels) of archaeological artifacts. this could lead to my company working on studying art objects as well which would be really cool.


2. ...over the next week?
submitting some art to an erotic art show. a visit from a good friend. hanging a new art show. getting a massage. saying goodbye to the owner and chef of my favorite soul food restaurant. (he's retiring to mexico for his health and while i am not exactly looking forward to his departure... it should be a fun party wishing him farewell.)

3. ...this year?
urban travel. making art. possibly relocating. actually- not exactly looking forward to that either, but trying to plan.

4. ...over the next five years?
getting totally out of debt. taking a rural off-grid sabattical in the woods for a while. increasing art and travel in my life. decreasing clerical work. learning better pain management for my neck and back issues.

5. ...for the rest of your life?
hmm. that is awfully far in the future i hope.

My parents sent me a king cake in the mail. Oh, happy day.

Have any of you guys ever been to Taos? I'll be there in July for a few days. Any recommendations?

disjointed thoughts for the day:

if mr. unsolicited advice comes by my cube one more time at work I will be tempted to cover my ears and say "la, la, la, I'm not listening"

I switched how I parted my hair today, why did it take me 27 years to do this?

My book club has had a schism into book reading and scrabble playing factions. Will I bridge the gap or chose a camp. (that was a very nerdy sentence)

The mail room at work today smelled like king cake for no discernable reason except to make me crave king cake. Those must be on sale by now. Time to call the folks for a little care package.

Reason #47 why I love my job
yesterday I got to travel around to about 10 different music stores searching for a triangular-themed instrument for a geometry chapter and playing "guess that band" with the photographer over the shoppers who were there at the store (did you know the balalaika - a russian folk instrument has a triangular bottom?)

(rhetorical question) what will it take to get me to update my website more than once a year

I just got a macro lens (a 2004 present to myself) - I look forward to the world of the super closeup

man, now I really want some king cake, I wonder if Central Market ever carries it

The Friday Five....
What one thing are you most looking forward to . . .

1. ...today?
-getting back to the book I'm reading, getting out in the sunshine for a walk after work, curling up on the couch with Ted to watch DVDs

2. ...over the next week?
-getting together with some friends I haven't seen in a while

3. ...this year?
-all the weddings I get to go to - a chance for a many mini-reunions, and the gardening class I'll be taking so much yardwork to follow, besides that - I can't wait for summer and swimming and staying light until 10pm

4. ...over the next five years?
-more of the same, I'm liking how things are now, but to be ambitious - to do more with photography and my website

5. ...for the rest of your life?
- spending time with the people I care about, trying to learn lots of new things, take more risks

found this, don't really know much about it. thought it was beautiful.

MAKING SENSE OUT OF NONSENSE
The Story of my Friend, Whose Colorless Green Ideas Sleep Furiously
by Y. R. Chao (after Noam Chomsky) (1971)

I have a friend who is always full of ideas, good ideas and bad ideas, fine ideas and crude ideas, old ideas and new ideas. Before putting his new ideas into practice, he usually sleeps over them to let them mature and ripen. However, when he is in a hurry, he sometimes puts his ideas into practice before they are quite ripe, in other words, while they are still green. Some of his green ideas are quite lively and colorful, but not always, some being quite plain and colorless. When he remembers that some of his colorless ideas are still too green to use, he will sleep over them, or let them sleep, as he puts it. But some of those ideas may be mutually conflicting and contradictory, and when they sleep together in the same night they get into furious fights and turn the sleep into a nightmare. Thus my friend often complains that his colorless green ideas sleep furiously.

Texas in 2005, maybe. It's kind of far. We were talking about Pensacola, Fl which is not so far from New Orleans, but I don't think it will happen this spring.

Zach - any Texas tour plans?

Upma, I'm not even the tiniest bit mad at you. And neither was JT. I'm just teasing you a little bit. I 'm surprised brown homey didn't take you away with him. You were looking good Sunday night.

The first Dawn Chorus Interstate Excursion was very fun. We had a great time in both NYC and Arlington.

The NYC show was less satisfying musically. We got off about half way through the set and ended up with a C- night.

In Arlington there was a mini-Lake Effect meeting between JT, Upma and I. At least, I think Upma was there. Someone who looked very much like her seemed to be hitting on some dude all night. JT and I spoke to this Upma-like person for about thirty seconds total. It was awfully nice of both JT and Upma to come to the show (and drag along their friends). They are good people. I got a hug from Upma (or "Upma"), which is worth the drive all by itself.

Next up for the band, local shows in January and Febuary, then another tour (this time of the Southeast) in March.

The joke I used maybe a little too much at 12:05am last night

"I haven't eaten all year"
"I haven't slept all year"
"I haven't gone to the bathroom all year"