Moozic

It's a cow.

I'm finally going to have a pedal for my keyboard!  I no longer will have to play Moonlight Sonata on slow strings mode in order to prevent that dreaded staccato effect!  Major yays all around.

Massacre at dawn

Highlights at the hub.

Christiano Ronaldo being a Class A d-bag about 30' in.
Villa's two beautiful beautiful goals.
Barca 5, Real Madrid 0.  Awwww.
Massive post-thesis champagne celebrations in the fountain outside the Hub.  I take the long way to avoid getting splashed on.

Vertigo shtick

We're back, and we're ready to do some serious damage.

a day in the life

a checklist

* breakfast lunch and dinner with the girls (the rent IS pretty damn high)
* staying out just because that dress makes your legs look FANTASTIC
* walking the dog down to the beach, through Cedros, along the cul de sacs, etc
* starting every day with an ocean view
* driving a bit too fast with music that's a bit too loud
* headlining a rock band
* laughing on the moon

check.

A little night music

OmmWriter.  Oh my goodness gracious.

Once again, thanks to Mathew for introducing me to this.  I may actually look forward to those long term papers!
I'm not sure if I can really explain what OmmWriter is all about, so here's the link that will show you.

Speaking of writing, I think I'm ready to have people look at two of my pieces - the two I feel are most impressive.  If you're interested, you know how to find me.

Notturno

It feels like it gets dark earlier and earlier every night.  This afternoon the entire sky was a brilliant slate-gray blue, like the universe had washed over everything with liquid mercury.

Thanks to Prof. Valenza, I've added a fair amount of classical music to my personal library and I've been getting back into the Debussy/Prokofiev/Mozart/Beethoven/Borodin/Chopin habit.  Even though I haven't built up an association complex with many of these pieces the way I've built them up with certain songs or musical artists (listening to anything on The Dust of Retreat is a straight mindtrip back to junior year), anything in my classical music library brings me immediately to a specific memory or person or place.  This particular week, I'm taking myself back to all the people I've loved and who have loved me, and naturally that kind of trip inspires a lot of introspection.

Anyone who tells you that a relationship, friendly or romantic or otherwise, is over is lying to you.  The people we make room for in our lives leave marks and reminders that don't go away.  We move past feelings, but we never get rid of them.  A small, strange part of me will always be a little heartbroken that my first high school crush never professed his love and another part of me will always desperately miss those beautiful people I met in San Francisco two or three summers ago.  It's easy to forget the past, especially when what you have now seems to fill you to the brim.  Maybe that's why I've returned to classical music.  It's a beautiful, unreal reminder that everything and everyone you invested yourself in is still here.  That those little parts of you aren't dead.  That they are very, very real, and that they are very much alive.

Cooked to crispy perfection

Goodness the fries at the Hub this evening are nummy.

Yay for Wednesday.  Over half the week taken care of, and once I take care of a gov test in approximately 16 hours, the weekend kicks off with a bang OH GOD LOUD NOISES (Where did that light come from?  Who cast Lumos??)

In all serialness, there's a lot to look forward to.  SPOILERS AHEAD DON'T READ IF YOU HAVEN'T WATCHED THE SUNS GAME (Dad)


***************************************************************************
***************************************************************************
***************************************************************************
***************************************************************************
***************************************************************************
***************************************************************************
***************************************************************************
***************************************************************************
***************************************************************************
***************************************************************************


As I was saying before, there's a lot to look forward to and a lot to be happy about, even though the Suns lost to Miami >_<.  However, while we're enjoying our time here, keep in mind those who have had better days.  Feel better, David!  Show that collapsed lung who's boss.

What?  Oh yes, of course Alexis de Tocqueville, I'll be right back, I'm just finishing up a blog po-DO NOT SLAP ME WITH YOUR POCKET SQUARE.


Back to gov.  Adieu adieu.

NERDZ

My ticket to the midnight premiere of the next installment in the Harry Potter series has been successfully acquired, along with a pair of super snazzy HP glasses.

DELICIOUS!

This is how I know I'm still a kid.

Ya, mon

Reggaefest at Pitzer last night was most certainly a success.  Hammocks make everything better.  Also, I may or may not be in the market to purchase a longboard.  More on this to come.

I sit up straight with considerable difficulty because every muscle in my back, shoulders, legs, arms, stomach, neck, etc etc etc etc hurts.  I'm learning that Graham work is exhausting due to the sheer muscularity of her choreography.  "If it doesn't burn, you're not doing it right!" was something I heard many times in yesterday's rehearsal.  Even when I'm standing in one spot on stage, I'm not relaxed.  It's not enough just to stand.  I have to live and breathe and exist in space and be completely, acutely aware of that existence.  That, in the context of rehearsals, translates into using every muscle in my body at pretty much all times.  I woke up in a lot of pain this morning, and I LOVE IT.

The countdown to March starts now :)

The small print

Unfortunately for my sick professor and (maybe?) fortunately for his students, today's psychology class has been called off, so I'll be spending a fair amount of time catching up on some much needed writing time.  I'm not quite making the progress I had anticipated regarding my short story collection - damn you, writers block.  I'm extending my personal deadline to the end of second semester, but I'd still like to be halfway done by the time I'm in Peru.

Microsoft Word awaits.

Got to be a joker

I've made the executive decision to purchase a yerba mate gourd and bombilla for the room.  Had yerba tea today in my Spanish conversation class and it's DELICIOUS.  But for now, ginger root tea will have to tide me over.

One of my favorite political punchlines, Alvin Greene, has been making my day since I entered the interwebs.  Not only is he seriously considering a presidential bid (but does he support breakfast, lunch, and dinner?), he has made an invaluable contribution to the previously esteemed world of literature.

Dude's got a graphic novel.  Starring himself.  I am not making this up.  Clearly Alvin Greene is the ultimate warrior that we've been waiting for in American politics for far too long, ready to rescue the pleading populace from being without a job or a home (or unwelcome pornography).

Pundits of the world, eat your heart out.

Era una tarde tonta y caliente

Yes, I live here.

808 this and an 808 that.  (Not really, of course.)  So begins the week.  My brother is taller than me now, after 16 years.  It seems that this sudden change has happened over the course of two weeks.  Goodness, growing up creeps up on you and then smothers you in the middle of the night.

Another day, another week up for grabs.  When it comes to opportunity, finders keepers.  Go enjoy the sun!

Destination unknown

Happy birthday, Dad  :)

And so begins the Claremont weekend.  After making it through a spanish project and the bloodiest midterm election season in history, I'm excited for a night well spent.

I will be returning home this weekend to finally get some beach action see my brother's wonderful performance in The Caucasian Chalk Circle.  Which means getting my ramen on and spilling Slurpee down the front of my shirt when I trip over a dip in the sidewalk because I'm distracted by the ocean view.

Generally, sunny with a slight chance of awesomesauce.

A strange person

I'd like to preface this by saying that the french fries at the Hub this evening are thoroughly underwhelming.

I sit here with the other half of Team Special K, Karun, after a successful rock climbing class.  This week's challenge was slightly different from those of previous sessions.  We were instructed to design our own route (and of course climb it), aiming to make it as interesting as possible for those climbing.  No offense to the opposing other group and their route, but Team Special K did WORK.  Side crosses, dynamic lunges, and a serious rock on.  For two people who didn't know anything, we did an admirable job.  Finishing the route successfully wasn't too bad either.

There's a strange sort of focus and inner sense of right that I got from kicking so much A.  It's the sort of focus that makes you think about who and what you are.  What you need and where you're going.  So far, I like what I'm finding, even though I'm a bit of a strange person.

I like being on my own, perhaps a bit too much.  I like pushing until my veins pump battery acid.  I like scary movies and adrenaline and listening to lots of Jimi Hendrix in the grass.  I like dancing in the dark.

I'm a strange person, but there's no shame in being crazy.  Now let's see how far down this rabbit hole goes.