Sunday, February 28, 2010

Like gods of the sun

When we were young we burned with a fire
Like gods of the sun



Our fires go supernova
Or fade into a white dwarf

Friday, February 26, 2010

Monday, February 22, 2010

Ain't no grave

Wake up early tomorrow morning. Go to the store. Buy the new Johnny Cash album. Rip it onto my computer and load onto the godmachine. Digest it at work.



There ain't no grave can hold my body down - the final testament of Johnny Cash comes out tomorrow.

Tuesday, February 16, 2010

Just what your brain needs: a vacation

Things seem a little too "real" lately. I think I know what my brain needs. My brain needs a vacation. My brain needs some Wesley Willis. I first discovered Wesley Willis in high school. I don't remember when, but my buddy Russ had some of his CDs. Days like today I could really use some of Wesley's harmony joyride music.



Watch out for a vampire bird also known as a vampire bat. They killed Wesley Willis you know.

During the doldrums of winter, you need to be vigilant against Chicken Cows



Artist's rendition of a chicken cow



Thinking about Chickencows always puts my life in perspective. Hey, at least I didn't get stabbed in the ass by that thing. I guess it is a good day after all.

Do you ever hear voices in your head? You are not alone, my friend.



I know exactly what he's talking about. Why can't my brain just shut up?

The best review of Wesley Willis' music from Amazon:

wesley willis is a true american poet whose writings are a painful summation of the harshness and banality of modern American Life. In undeniable kafka-esque fashion, wesley strips away the artifice through writings which reflect the bureaucratic nature of our destroyed emotions. His songs are brilliant parodies, not only of life, but also of the pop song structure itself. "Rush Hour" is a shining moment for Wes, featuring some his best songs ever, in my opinion. "King of Fire" "Creep Show" "Electric Eel" and "Electra 225" are some of the highlights here. I've had an admiration for this artist for quite awhile. Wes' combination of banality, harsh observation, and completely open honesty is refreshing in the extreme. Escape from over-produced pop fluff, buy Willis, and discover that some artists can rattle off nonsense with sheer brillance, thus making them genius. This also seems to be Willis' most spiritual album..

+1 for using the term Kafka-esque!

I once saw the late Wesley Willis in concert. I will tell you about that another time. But for anyone reading this who is discovering Wesley Willis for the first time his music comes in 4 categories:
1. Profanity. This is either what the demons in his head are saying, or what he says back.
2. Music. This is about music that he likes or concerts he attended.
3. Flights of fancy. This is pure imaginative genius. Imagining chicken cows, beating up superheros, or watching Santa steal a car.
4. Autobiography. These are songs about his life. Dealing with schizophrenia, flying in planes, etc.

My favorite are the last 2 categories.

Saturday, February 13, 2010

They must be twins?

Sometimes you have to wonder about two people that are supposed to be different, but look alike and never appear at the same place at the same time. Are they twins? Separated at birth? Or are they really the same person? Case in point:

Marty Friedman



Kenny G



Notice how they are both musicians? I'll bet you Marty goes under the nom de plume "Kenny G" to make some side money. I mean have you ever listened to Marty's solo albums?



I rest my case

But there's more. Check out the label on a bottle of Old Grand-dad



Does this man look familiar to you? He should.



Mind = blown!

Now just for shits and giggles, Marty (or is it Kenny?) doing weird stuff in Japan


Monday, February 8, 2010

Searching for rock bottom

Last weekend was a big weekend for me. I had plans, man. The first part of the plan was buy a bottle of whiskey. I was in the whiskey desert, trying to stay warm with brandy. But it was time for celebration and I was going to do it the whiskey way. The plan was to buy a bottle of Old Grand-Dad. I've never had it, but it got good reviews everywhere I looked. Why not?

And there it was. About a month ahead of schedule.

Paddy

Paddy's Irish whiskey. Said to be the most mellow of all Irish whiskey. Surely this was a good sign.

The next travail was to break a world record for a hockey game attendance. The last record was set at Spartan Stadium in 2001. Camp Randall has about 10,000 persons more capacity and a sell out would break the record. Would they do it?

IMG_9708

Things filled out by the end of the first period, but the upper decks were not opened. No. We did not break any records.

IMG_9739

Both teams wore the away jerseys? Well, the away sweaters look cooler anyways.

IMG_9783

For the first period Red Berenson didn't wear a coat or a hat. Just his usual dark blue suit. Hardcore, man. But eventually even he broke down and by the third period he had a hat and coat on.

IMG_9815

It was 19 degrees out. While that may not sound cold to you, after the first hour it was pretty brutal. It is a lot different when you are sitting down rather than walking. After the game by the time I had walked to downtown my feet were warm/had feeling again. But that 3rd period was brutal. The game took about 20 minutes longer than it should have because they were trying to fix the crease at the far end. They stopped the game 3 times and spent over five minutes each time working on the ice.

It was a brutal game. Michigan was up 2-1 in the 3rd period with 8 minutes to go. But then they pissed their lead away, getting 3 penalties in the last 5 minutes of the game and letting Wisconsin score twice to go home losers, 3-2.

Yeah, it was a bad loss. I spent the rest of the night in that bottle of Paddy's trying to find rock bottom. I think I found it somewhere on the lake. I slipped and fell on the ice and wasn't sure if I broke anything. My hip is still sore.



It was not to be.

So there you have it. If you appreciate a smooth, mellow whiskey Paddy is your man. It is priced about the same as Jameson and has a really pretty label. If you are trying to reach rock bottom, Paddy will help you get there.

Tuesday, February 2, 2010

The Odyssey

In life we have many quests to complete. They are not the same for everyone. But we all make goals and then work toward achieving them. Sometimes distractions arise. Odysseus was distracted on his way home by many things. My favorite vignettes were Circe and the lotus eaters because they remind me of my own stumblings.

Like Odysseus I find myself distracted from achieving my goals. My quests are sidetracked. I waste my days at the office trying to focus on the job and increase productivity. I languish at home under the dream inducing spell of the Internet. Like the lotus eaters, the Internet has proved a seductive place for dreamers.

Like Odysseus, I must harden myself for the voyage and drive away from these lands. Oh, it has been a fun time, and I learned a great deal. But now I need to focus on my work. My real work.

Don't worry fellow boozehounds I am not done drinking. Nor have I quit blogging. But I hope to disconnect enough to finish some work and I probably will post infrequently.