Monday, July 28, 2003
Back in New York for a day.
Jackie and I just drove back from Massachusetts today. We rented a swift little Ford Taurus and I made short work of the Merritt Parkway. We left Eloise (Jackie's cat) with her parents and sister for a couple weeks so Jackie can come to Michigan and see my family with me.
Our stay in Mass was fantastic. We went to the beach by her house in Manchester and I went swimming in the freezing cold water. Mmm, salty! I mean, it's no Lake Michigan, but I guess the ocean is tolerable enough. We went to Petco and bought some pet supplies, including a new cage for the O'Neill's cockatiel Polly. My goodness, I had forgotten how big those suburban strip mall stores can be. Jackie's dad took us out on his boat for a day. We left the dock space in Gloucester, city of fame from The Perfect Storm. We followed a overcrowded channel, slaloming between the green and red buoys and waiting for draw-bridges, to a muddy beach about a half hour away. I was the only one who went swimming, but I was only in for a few minutes. We also had a lobster dinner one night, which was a treat.
For one day and one night Jackie and I drove up to her family's new house in Maine which is under renovation. The house is going to be spectacular when it is finished, complete with a three story barn that is winterized - with 3 different floors in a U-shape around a central 3-story space. We ate fish for dinner at a Kennebunkport Brewery - apparently the only restaurant in town without a signed picture of the owner with President Bush. Good choice:) We also took an afternoon to flolick at a local water park, which has winding and straight slides, a wave pool, and a gigantic water halfpipe. Jackie and I rented an 8-shaped intertube for two, and we went on most of the rides (we were too big for some rides, so we couldn't go on those). It was a great time.
Jackie's sister Liz is recovering from mono, so unfortunately she wasn't able to join us at the waterpark or on the boat. I'm sure Jackie will take her once she gets better.
Tonight I'm going to Brooklyn to look at a loft (fingers crossed), and then I'm meeting up with Eytan, Milton, and J-Wall! for some midnight frisbee golf. A nice late night before my morning flight tomorrow. Yuck. Luckily Jackie and I decided to keep our rental car until tomorrow morning so we can drive to the airport instead of dealing with a cab or the M-60.
I'll try and post from Michigan. If not, see you all on the 6th when Jackie and I get back to town and the McDuffee's from Detroit come to New York for a visit.
3:42 PM
Wednesday, July 23, 2003
I made a new mix tonight and burned a bunch of copies for friends and family back in Michigan. If you'd like a copy, let me know.
Pirate Singles vol. 03
Radio 4 - Our Town.1
Liam Lynch - United States of Whatever.2
Q and Not U - So Many Animal Cells.3
Ted Leo and the Pharmacists - The Ballad of the Sin Eater.4
Radio 4 - Certain Tragedy.5
White Stripes - Girl You Have No Faith In Medicine.6
Alaska! - Love (To Be Your Main).7
Ben Kweller - Family Tree.8
Electric Six - Danger High Voltage.9
Hot Hot Heat - Bandages.10
Le Tigre - My My Metrocard.11
Mates of State - Proofs.12
New Pornographers - Letter From An Occupant.13
Phantom Planet - Callifornia.14
Spoon - The Way We Get By.15
Supergrass - Seen the Light.16
Ted Leo and the Pharmacists - Timorous Me.17
The Hives - Untutored Youth.18
New Pornographers - The End of Medicine.19
Stephen Maklmus & The Jicks - 1% of One.20
The Rapture - House of Jealous Lovers.21
Hello Nurse - All Choked Up.22
11:26 PM
Jackie and I ate at SEA (South East Asia), a trendy Thai joint on 4th and 2nd ave last night. The food was great, I thought. Jackie had tried Thai food a number of years ago and had a bad experience. When she described to me what she had eaten, it didn't sound anything like Thai food. After ordering some take-out pad thai a few times, she started to change her mind. The other night she went out with some friends for her roommate's birthday. They ate Thai food, and she loved it. So, now she's hooked.
Tomorrow we leave for Massachusetts to visit her family until Monday. Then on Tuesday we get right on a plane and fly to Michigan to visit my family. We're going to be travelling a lot, so I don't anticipate posting to the blog much. I'll try my best though!
Don't let the rain get you down.
9:38 AM
Monday, July 21, 2003
Who will be the 1000th hit?
Bright Aisles currently at 994 right now.
4:33 PM
Today Jeremy and I went skateboarding down in Riverside Park. We made a quarter pipe out of a board, some bricks, a plastic crate, and the side of a guard rail. It was fun, and neither of us got hurt.
Tonight is the last night Jeremy, David, and I will be together because Jeremy is leaving for a week, and by the time he gets back to start moving I'll be in Michigan. So, we're going to Brother Jimmy's for some all you can eat debauchery. Dave is shooting a Japanese made-for-network-tv movie today. Funny, it's being shot in English, and the people shooting the movie have no idea Dave can speak Japanese. I'm sure he can't resist, so he's probably conversing all the time with the crew by now. He was weary of showing off his Japanese, because they wanted an "All-American" boy for his character.
Check out the craigslist listing I just replied to. I didn't catch this one for 5 days because it doesn't have 'loft' in the post. Basically everything I search for has the word 'loft.' I hope it's still available, because it looks perfect!
$675 - ROOM IN OLD THEATER, ALL BILLS INCLUDED
A room has just opened up in our apartment in Long Island City. We've got 2 floors + a roof...it's all part of the old theater design that makes this place one of the most unique living spaces in the city.
House includes:
-Fooseball table
-Grill on roof
-Internet
-Tons of video games & movies
-Mounted deer head
You will be sharing this place with 4 easy-going guys. We are very communal, so if you are the kind of person who has to label their milk, you're not for us. Although there are 4 guys, we have lived with a girl in the house before -- no requirement either way.
We will look at your personality because we need a specific type of person:
-Has a job (can pay rent)
-An artist, musician, dot-commer, or some non-Wall Street type.
-Between the ages of 21 and 30
-Can deal with music, movies, and friends at all hours.
-Enjoys throwing large parties
If you're interested, and think you fit the bill, please drop a line.
4:31 PM
Sunday, July 20, 2003
I got a hit from someone searching for:
wishing+pig+happy+birthday+mp3
11:41 PM
Great great day yesterday.
Jackie, Matt Davis and I took the W train to Coney Island for the Siren Festival. We saw Hot Hot Heat, the Datsons, Vic Thrill, and Radio 4. Radio 4 is what The Clash would be today. They were on fire. The Hot Hot Heat were pretty, um, hot, as well. We dipped our toes in the ocean, Matt and I rode the Cyclone, we ate Nathan's hot dogs and drank lots of cheap beer in paper cups. At the end of our trip we smashed each other in the bumper cars, and then took a long cab ride back to the city. For dinner we ate at the Acme restaurant, go figure. Excellent cajun food.
Today Drew and I led a walking tour of Washington Heights. From Hamilton Palace to Buricua College, up the sketchy stairwell and even to 181st street, we showed those bright-eyed CLUELESS TFA rookies the neighborhood.
Jackie and I met up with Joe Bracken and Kate at Rose of India, a gem of a restaurant on E. 6th. The food was great, and inexpensive, but I would have gladly paid more just because of the decor. The place had out of control christmas light action. Stuff was strung up all over, with mirrors on every wall, of course. Why do Indian restaurants always have mirrored walls? Anyway, the gimmick was everytime they brought out a birthday cake for someone, the lights would go out, and spinning club light would start pulsing, and some breakbeat hindi tabla/sitar music would come on. Everyone would start clapping, and then right in the middle of a measure the music would abruptly stop, the club light would turn off, and the house lights would come right on. It's as if there were a start/stop button for this wild change of atmosphere. Definitely a wacky place to go on a birthday. OR, better yet, a great way to freak out a friend who's visiting the city from out of town. Because if you don't notice the tiny inconspicuous cake being brought out, you wouldn't have a damn clue what in the hell was going on. Great way to freak out some friends, in a good way.
Jeremy, David and I will be in the same town together for the last time tomorrow night (monday). So, we need to think of something awesome to do. It can't be too late though, because Jeremy has a 8am flight Tuesday morning. Any suggestions?
11:38 PM
Saturday, July 19, 2003
Thanks so much to everyone who came out to the show last night. Drew was rockin' the first ever homemade Hello Nurse t-shirt. You rock, Drew! Matt, Matt, Ariel, Miriam, Sharon, Andy, Alex, Jeremy, Jon, Kyle, Joe, Kate and anyone else I might be forgetting - thanks so much for your support. We had a great time on stage seeing you all in the room, and we played our best show yet.
One of the best parts of the night was playing Rock You Like A Hurricane as an encore. Matt Davis was wearing a Scorpions t-shirt, so he hopped on stage, tore a mic away from my floor tom and started singing along. When Matt arrived at Acme earlier with that Scorpions shirt I almost lost it. What kind of boredom would we be subject to if it weren't for such rocktastic coincidences?
Most people didn't notice, but I was wearing Brian House tribute pants. In honor of our bass player's last show and upcoming departure to Sweden for a year, I painted BYE on my right leg and BRIAN on my left leg in silver spray paint. Of course, there was also a big hole on the right leg, which I feared might become a gigantic hole during the course of the night. So, I duct taped the hole and ironed the duct tape to melt the glue real nice. So, I looked like a total bum with duct tape and spray paint on my pants. Well, the oh-so-hipster light blue Panama shirt and dark blue wrist band helped complete the rock-star ensemble.
Today it's off to the Siren Festival to see Hot Hot Heat, Ted Leo, Radio 4, and so many other bands I love. Sahara Hotnights, the Pattern, Modest Mouse - it's going to be a great show. Crowded as hell probably, but a great show.
Oh, and I read a review on Pitchfork about a white girl hip-hop group from Long Island called Northern State. Pitchfork rated then at 0.8 out of 10. According to the Pitchfork rating system: "0.0-0.9: Breaks new ground for terrible." Just like watching a train wreck, I had to download it. Northern State is, without a doubt, the worst hip-hop ever made. And guess what?? They're playing at Siren today!! I can't wait!! hahahaha, I think we might show up late for that one. But I would love to watch the crowd's reaction.
10:53 AM
Thursday, July 17, 2003
Punk Rock Teacher, the glorious anthem written by Drew and myself after a TFA corps meeting, has been recorded for your pleasure! I went by the Shack today to help ARoss with a drum track. So kindly, he let me record Punk Rock Teacher - and play every instrument on the track. I put down a drum track first. Then I slopped down a dirty guitar track. Then the bass (oh yes, we put distortion on the bass, too). I screamed out a gritty vocal cut. Then ARoss and I double tracked some background gang shouting. ARoss mixed that beotch for about 20 minutes, and booyah! I'm trying to get it converted to MP3, but my computer isn't being helpful. When it's available, I'll write it here on the blog. If you would like a copy of the mp3, whether you are also a teacher, friend, or you just want to check it out, then let me know. It sounds like a cross between the Ramones and Rancid, and the lyrics are inspired by such classics as the alphabet and the numbers one through ten. It really does rock. Jess, this is how the song is supposed to sound.
Oh, and ARoss let me take a peek at his personal recordings. Some of you had your complaints about the first ARoss Experience album, and some of you absolutely loved it. Let me say this: the new ARoss Experience album, whenever it finally comes out, will blow your mind. ARoss has become a brilliant song writer, and his layering, instrumentalism, and harmonies will sock your knocks off. I can't stop telling him how impressed I am with his new stuff, so now I'll tell you. It's fantastic fantastic power pop. And all recorded at the Shack. Professional Recording Studio... La La La
Do I need to remind you all to be at Acme tomorrow night at midnight? Hope not.
11:11 PM
Disc golf last night was a treat. So much fun, as usual. I shot a 58 for the second game in a row, so I guess that's the unofficial record for the new course until Blinn or Duke actually decide to keep score some night and produce a lower score. But until someone better does better, I proclaim myself champion!!
Small World:
A girl named Kim played the course last night for her first time. I think she plays summer league with Brian White, and that's how she was invited to golf. Jeremy's sister is in town, and she had stayed with a friend the other night. Apparently, this friend was Kim! Jeremy overheard her talking about teaching (turns out she is a New York Teaching Fellow) and suspected that it may have been his sister's friend. All he knew was that this Kim girl was a teacher and played frisbee. So, Jeremy and I go down to the 110th station after a quick stop in West Side Market, and Kim was there in the station. We begin chatting about the round of golf. Jeremy realizes that this girl is his sister's friend, and the "Wow, what a small world!!" conversation begins. We had invited Jeremy's sister to play golf with us, but she had to sleep. I'm sure she was disappointed when Jeremy told her this morning that we ran into Kim at golf. I'll get the story from them when they return.
Just got back from the dentist. Clean bill of health, no cavities. Rock on.
Now I'm off to the Shack in Long Island City to lay down some drum tracks for the maestro himself Mr. ARoss. Should be a good time, although that little soundproof room is probably going to be 1,000 degrees. Maybe I'll bring along the Gold Bond.
Joe Bracken is coming to New York this weekend. He's gonna check out the Nurse show tomorrow night. SWEET. All you other Detroiters, if any of you actually read this, you're always welcome to crash with me if you can get your self to the big city. Joe's good about visiting... maybe this will guilt the rest of you into making the trip. See you soon, Joe!
11:57 AM
Wednesday, July 16, 2003
Thanks to the teacher crowd for another crazy night at Carmine's and Jake's. And welcome back Jeremy! Jeremy is back in town for a week, with his little sister in tow.
Band practice tonight, followed by some disc golf at Columbia. You hear that Columbia blog readers?? GOLF TONIGHT!
2:52 PM
Tuesday, July 15, 2003
Nathaniel is going to a concert the evening of the midnight Hello Nurse show at Acme Underground on Friday. He's going to see The Mars Volta, and then cab across town to take the stage and do the lovely things he does with the mic (and hopefully maybe a little less crotch grabbing). Hopefully he'll make it on time, or maybe he should start acting like a rockstar...
I just downloaded some Mars Volta stuff, and it is GOOD. I guess they are some members from At The Drive-In, who broke up after standing on the edge of the cliff of ClearChannel-MTV superstardom. A few of them formed Sparta, the others went to The Mars Volta. Both bands are excellent, imo. Sparta hopped on the emo bandwagon, although still rough and tough sounding like ATDI. The Mars Volta has gone a more experimental route, with some psychedelics and jazzy interludes - but the music still has the angst and screaming that made ATDI so frenetic and exciting. I really like this stuff, so far. Apparently Jeremy Ward, the sound manipulator of The Mars Volta died recently from a drug overdose. Riding the popularity wave of At The Drive-In, and with a recent death in the band, I'm sure the show on Friday is going to be ridiculous. I wish I could go with Nathaniel, but I'm a drummer so I have to load in tons of equipment and set up cymbal stands and shit - so I can't be late. Nathaniel can show up 20 minutes late, drunk, wearing a pink feather boa and it's to be expected.
...According to Ed, this is what actually happened when they played together in their Vassar metal cover band - Kiss My Axe.
12:29 PM
Monday, July 14, 2003
End of the movie shoot yesterday was crazy. Up at 3:45am. Picked up truck on westside at 4:30am. In Crown Heights by 5am. Unload trucks. Drive van to Union Square to pick up crew. Drive back to Union Square to pick up extras. Move equipment and set up lights all day. Drive people back and forth to the subway all day. Take a quick swim in the pool for splashing sound effects. Drive crew members all the way to the upper eastside at the end of the shoot. Return rental van to westside at 9:30pm. Home by 10:30. Ugh.
I wish Alex the best of luck with editing the film and sending it off to festivals. After 4 days of nonstop volunteer work on his film, I think I know who I can call in the future if I ever need bail money.
Today Jackie and I relaxed!
Pancakes and eggs, a walk along the East River, hanging out at the small-dog park (no dogs over 25lbs allowed), ice cream at Ben & Jerry's, pinball at an arcade, empty theatre for Finding Nemo.
Finding Nemo is a fantastic movie. If you have the chance to see it in the theatre, rush out and see it immediately. The graphics are amazing, and your tiny home TV won't cut it on video. It is the best movie I've seen in a long time. Hilarious, touching, witty, and just plain entertaining. Check it out. Oh, and we saw the late show on a monday - perfect since kids are usually in bed by then, so the theatre was close to empty.
Rock on.
10:52 PM
Saturday, July 12, 2003
Day 3 on Alex's Film Crew
I had to meet Alex at 168th & Broadway at 6:30am. I took his car while he and a small crew filmed in the subway. I drove his car to the set at 8:30am. Set location today was at 135th & St. Nickolas at Thurgood Marshall High School, not too far from my haunts. Went to the set, and luckily today there were some experienced grips there who were work horses. I basically just had to watch the truck all day, and carry equipment inbetween scenes to different rooms. Lots of space today, so we just unloaded everything from the truck into the parkinglot. I proceeded to play basketball with the neighborhood kids for most of the afternoon.
Tomorrow - picking up a cube truck at 4:30am at Houston & West st. 3:30am wake up time, woo fucking hoo.
Tomorrow's shoot is going to be the longest of all 3, so it's going to be rough. Someone get the spatula to scrape me from my bed monday morning/afternoon.
5:38 PM
Friday, July 11, 2003
15 hours working on Alex's movie. Back at it again at 6:30 in the morning.
ugh.
me want sleep.
9:21 PM
Thursday, July 10, 2003
So, I'm working as a Swing for my friend Alex Chung's short film. Apparently a swing is someone who helps with the lighting equipment. My bosses are the Gaffer and the Key Grip. One of those titles deals with all the lighting. The other deals with shaping or cutting out the light with shields, gels, screens, etc.
Today, I met Alex at 10:30 on the westside to rent a cube truck. While I was waiting for Alex, some of the employees of the rental company were in the lot putting dry ice in plastic bottles of water and screwing the tops on tight - creating pressure bombs. They would close up a bottle and toss it. Moments later !!!BOOOM!!! the bottle would explode. I was laughing pretty hard, especially when they tossed one at another employee who was talking on his phone and not paying any attention. One of the bottle exploded right between his legs and he almost pissed himself. I couldn't contain myself, and neither could any of them. Well, I guess this kind of tells you what kind of establishment these guys ran. Alex rented the box truck and I drove it out of there no questions asked.
We drove to Long Island City, Queens to Paris studio rentals, which is basically a gigantic warehouse full of lighting and film equipment. The place was awesome. I wandered around for a while: huge spotlights (we're talking mutiple thousands of watts in one light), ballasts, cables, scaffolding, screens, gels... I honestly didn't know what half the stuff was, but I want to learn.
So, I helped Marcus, the gaffer - a young athletic german guy, and Marshall, the key grip - a bear-like presence with non-stop lingo and banter, load up the truck full of gear. At first I thought there was no way we were going to fit everything. Marshall built some shelves into the box truck near the ceiling to hold ladders, poles for scaffolding, and plywood. Judging by the condition of the truck beforehand, this modification is an improvement that CC Rental Trucks probably won't even notice. We loaded the truck to the ceiling, putting the hydraulic lift gate to the test. The tires on the truck were showing the weight of the cargo at the end. Even the passenger seat is full of lighting cables. I had no idea Alex's movie was going to be so serious. I mean, I expected some lighting, but this is enough lighting to put on a theatre production!
After Alex came back and paid for the $2,994 worth of lighting rentals, he led me across the Queensboro bridge and all throughout Manhattan in rush hour. The truck handled much differently with 5 tons of gear in the back. He drove his sprightly Subaru and I tried to keep up in this slug of a truck. On the Manhattan side of the bridge, the cops directed me to pull over so they could inspect the truck. No big deal. Then we stopped 'n' goed all the way down 2nd ave to Houston. I could hear things rattling all over the place in the back. We strapped everything in pretty well, so I'm hoping it was just scaffolding poles clanging against each other. (We'll find out tomorrow when we unload:).) Parked that bad boy over near the westside highway in a lot, and on the ride back home I slept on the train.
I'm in charge of this truck, and I have to get it to somewhere in Brooklyn tomorrow. Hello Mapquest.
Anyway, if today's 8 hours of unexpected work are any indication, I have a feeling this is going to be an exhausting weekend. I'll try my best to keep you posted.
OH, before I forget, thanks so much to everyone who came out to the Hello Nurse show last night at the Lion's Den. Jackie, Drew, Jon, Jordan, Dan, Amy, Matt D., Erin, Lightshow, Eytan, Gil, Matt M., Ariel and anyone else I may have regretably forgotten - thanks so much! Next show is Friday, July 18th at midnight at Acme Underground.
4:39 PM
 Cruising down 57th street in a cube truck.
8:20 AM
Wednesday, July 09, 2003
[Bus Etiquette]
I was sitting on the back bench of the bus, which usually gets hot because the engine is right below/behind the bench. Being that this was a M96 bus, there were a bunch of old foo foo ladies getting on around Park Ave. One lady came walking to the back, and there was only one seat open - middle of the back bench. This young eastern european guy with his shirt unbuttoned (revealing a kickass mustang horse tattoo) got up to give the woman his seat along one of the side benches.
Did she say thank you? Did she nod? Did she even acknowledge the guy?
Nope. As she was seating herself she looked to some ladies sitting across from the seat and said, "Good. I thought I was going to have to sit in that hot seat."
Reason #429 why old rich people really stink sometimes.
(Oh, I'm removing the word 'suck' from my lexicon and replacing it with 'stink.' Sometimes 'suck' is just too much. It has a time and a place, but not when refering to rich old ladies.)
Lion's Den tonight, 9pm! Be there!
12:15 PM
Tuesday, July 08, 2003
Enter DMV 9am.
Wait.
Wait some more. Wait in big, long line.
End of line! Wait, get a ticket.
Wait on a bench.
Keep waiting.
Almost 2 hours now.
My number is next... next... next... are they gonna call my number?
My number!
Proceed to counter. 3 minutes. Done.
Paper NY State license with no picture. No picture?? Don't we possess the technology yet to print out digital picture temporaries at the DMV?
Next: Yankees vs. Red Sox
Bx19 takes FOREVER - miss first 2 innings, where all the action happened. Drink beers and cheer for Red Sox. Bottom 9, 1-1. Yankees win. People scream 1918, a lot.
Now to Thriftland! Great finds every time. Two more orange Trash Hunt hats! I've got a collection going now. "Senior Girls" - I'm all over that shirt/jersey.
Band practice - we're set. Wednesday, June 9th at 9pm we will explode on stage.
Carry home DJ coffin from Williamsburg - ugh.
Sleep now? No, might as well fuck around for another 4 hours!
suMmEr!
12:38 AM
Enter DMV 9am.
Wait.
Wait some more. Wait in big, long line.
End of line! Wait, get a ticket.
Wait on a bench.
Keep waiting.
Almost 2 hours now.
My number is next... next... next... are they gonna call my number?
My number!
Proceed to counter. 3 minutes. Done.
Paper NY State license with no picture. No picture?? Don't we possess the technology yet to print out digital picture temporaries at the DMV?
Next: Yankees vs. Red Sox
Bx19 takes FOREVER - miss first 2 innings, where all the action happened. Drink beers and cheer for Red Sox. Bottom 9, 1-1. Yankees win. People scream 1918, a lot.
Now to Thriftland! Great finds every time. Two more orange Trash Hunt hats! I've got a collection going now. "Senior Girls" - I'm all over that shirt/jersey.
Band practice - we're set. Wednesday, June 9th at 9pm we will explode on stage.
Carry home DJ coffin from Williamsburg - ugh.
Sleep now? No, might as well fuck around for another 4 hours!
suMmEr!
12:36 AM
Sunday, July 06, 2003
I just added comments to my blog. So, add something if you wish.
Also, ctown.blogspot.com has been taken over by what appears to be some kind of scandinavian blog. What the hell is going on?
10:44 AM
Saturday, July 05, 2003
It's so hot I'm breaking a sweat just trying to read email. The 4th shower of the day helped a little bit... thank goodness for goldbond.
11:00 PM
Well, last year on the fourth we turned a disappointing roof evacuation into a sidewalk bbq and nightlong game of cower.
This year, the sidewalk bbq was planned - and FULL of delicious food. No one left hungry or thirsty...
Although, some people left a bit too early and missed the STREET LUGE!
Drew and I were challenged to a street luge race, so he put on his orange motorcycle helmet and we hiked to the intersection of Riverside and 160. We sat on our skateboards, and some kind girls yelled, "On your mark, get set, go!" And we were off, street luging on our skateboards down riverside drive. The first few times we raced down one hill and stopped in front of our main audience.
Then we got adventurous. The kids at the bottom of the hill, at 158 and Riverside were totally into us. So, one time we came down and flew past gypsy cabs. The kids had totally blocked off traffic at the intersection for us, so we turned and cruised down 158th toward the Henry Hudson Parkway. The hill to the entrance ramp is seriously steep - and we bombed the whole thing. Drew and I street luge raced about 3 or 4 times down the entire course - from 160th & Riverside to the intersection of 158th and the HHPkwy. Each time, the kids blocked off traffic for us, screaming and cheering as we rounded the corner. It was epic.
Thanks to everyone who showed up. Special thanks to our new friend Caesar (resident of 820 Riverside for 20 years, just got back from Coney Island today and a brief stop in the Bronx to have some oral relations with a lady friend [sorry to mention, but that's ALL he talked about]) and the Super from 820 who let us run power from his basement for our stereo. These guys were the only ones left standing after the street luge. I guess all the rest of the guests had to much food and alcohol supplied for them, so they left without helping clean up. That's cool though, Drew and I had so much street luge energy left over that we cleaned up all that filth!
Oh, Amy Christie and myself both held a snake for the first time. Caesar brought down his pet boa constrictor (still small, only 1 1/2 feet long) and we each held it. I think my snake phobia is gone - it was a beautiful creature.
Anyway, drunk and tired now. The street luging was legendary. I hope I'm not talking this up too much, but everyone who left early and missed it - you missed some X Games quality entertainment.
[c-town knocks on wood because he probably should have gotten scraped up at some point.]
ok, enough rambling. cooooooold shower time. it's gettin' hot in here. {soundtrack}
1:41 AM
Friday, July 04, 2003
Last night's rooftop bbq rocked. I think at last count we could see 6 different fireworks displays. Two of them were very close - one was actually above the Hudson right across the river from us, so we had a perfect view. Well, what am I going to do with all the leftover sausages, hamburgers, cheese slices, buns, condiments, soda, and malt liquor?
Drew's Infamous 4th of July Stoop'beque
158th & Riverside
Bring a dish to share!
And bring your discs, skateboards, whatever. It will be a neighborhood affair.
Hope to see some people there!
11:23 AM
Thursday, July 03, 2003
For those of you coming up for the 3rd of July festivities tonight:
9pm
3647 Broadway @ 150th
apt. 4C (for christian)
Just come up to our apartment, the door will be open. Enter, and be sure to close the door tightly behind you. Proceed to the kitchen, go to the fire stairwell, and walk up to the roof. It's a hike, so feel free to use our bathroom beforehand.
What to bring: Grillables, drinkables, a chair if you wish. I'll have some beer, some sausages, and some grills for everyone to share.
I might be a little late to the event myself due to band practice, but try to show up as close to 9 as possible to see the fireworks in Jersey. David, Drew, and the usual suspects should be around, so make yourself at home.
Questions?
646 319 7192
10:22 AM
Wednesday, July 02, 2003
Links!
Salon Art
Home Run Derby
Somebody's rant
Ok, time to go skating.
9:44 AM
Tuesday, July 01, 2003
How to inline skate clear across Harlem 4 times in one day:
1. Skate to the Social Security Office on 125th street at 9am, take your ticket, and have a seat in the waiting room for an hour. Proceed to the window when you are called for the 30 seconds of paperwork to replace your lost card. In another 5 minutes they could have verified the identitiy and printed a card. Instead, please wait 2 weeks for the card to arrive by mail. Proceed to the Department of Motor Vehicles, farther east on 125th. Surprise! No Line!! However, since you do NOT have a valid Social Security Card, no dice. Please wait for Social Security Card to arrive in mail. Then, please skate clear across Harlem again once it arrives.
2. Skate from Department of Motor Vehicles back to your home in Hamilton Heights. Be sure to wave to Debbi Morningstar (TFA person) because I didn't... I didn't recognize it was her until I had already cruised 2 blocks past.
3. After waking up from a sweaty mid-summer nap, realize that you have 25 minutes to get to the Metro North train station to catch a train to White Plains for Westchester Summer League ultimate. Strap on your skates and book through rush hour traffic. Remember, St. Nickolas Ave has a bike lane to make your skate fast or die motto not worth dying for. Change from skates to flip flops outside the train station. Run to self-serve ticket machine, find a bill that the machine will actually take (since the ATM reader is broken). Skip steps up to train platform. Isn't that your train coming in on the other platform? Run like B.O.O.H. to opposite platform. You're too cool... 20 seconds to spare! Take Metro North Train to White Plains. Take Beeline 12 bus to SUNY Purchase. School team purple on the Great Lawn because team Gold has the Midas Touch.
4. At end of ultimate frisbee game, scream, "Is anyone driving back to Manhattan?" Meet your new best friend Dan, who has graciously offered you and 3 other moochers a ride. Of course, Dan is going to the east side, so the closest drop off point for your poor uptown-self is 116th and the FDR. Proceed to skate through Harlem at 10pm. Be sure to change into your yellow t-shirt and orange cap so cars can see you. Also, if you're going to be inline skating, at least you can look as white as possible.
Harlem is a great place - I really don't go there enough. All the liveliness of the Heights, except I can understand the domestic disputes better due to all the English being spoken there.
For those of you in a real hurry, might I suggest skating under the Metro North tracks for as long as possible: you can see cars well in advance and there's plenty of asphault fo' yo' ass to fall on.
Time to rotate wheels.
12:56 PM
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