Workin'

So I had some local work get pushed around last week, and ended up having to go to Big Bear to make some money. I was pretty bummed, as we had made some plans for the weekend, and it would have been nice to stay in town, but the bills weren't gonna pay themselves. I figured I would try something different on this trip, to distract me and to give me an excuse to try my Windows Movie Maker out when I got home. So it's some pretty shaky video, snakin' drains and puttin' in heaters and maintainin' and the like.



Also, a new Modern Classic.

Saw these two last week

Petty was playing with Mudcrutch at the Ventura Theater, and it was beyond radical. I might even say one of the best shows I've seen, and from pretty close up too.


Sly doesn't look like this anymore. He's old and hunched and pretty nuts. Still amazing to see the father of the funk. He was throwing hundred dollar bills out at one point, and kept taking piss breaks until he eventually just never came back out and the band gave up. Good show though.

We've been well. Stupid busy, but well. I'm falling in love. No it's not another women. My wife rules too hard. No it's not a puppy though I wish it was, or a beer by the name of Rialto, which I'm already pretty twitterpated with (thanks to R.). It's a little piece of software by the name of Auto CAD. We have finally been introduced, and I must say, it's beautiful. We get to hang out some more tonight. Can't wait.

I've finally seen all the "Westerns" I've been needing to see. I'd put them in this order, from best to still awesome: #1. No Country, #2. Jesse James, and tied for #3. There will be Blood and 3:10 to Yuma.

That's it for now.

Music makin' man

I'm at Sage and Sound with my brother. We cut four new tracks that are a lot of fun. One's pretty Wilco meets Petty meets Springsteen meets pop. One's pretty Fleetwood Mac. One's pretty straight forward "GoCountry 105.1" country. One's pretty 90's. I've also been in the barn with Andy cutting Rio Bravo jams. Twelve new tracks that are all good timing down home ditties. My favorite is pretty Beach Boys meets Arcade Fire meets the Summer time meets bikinis. So theres that. There is also this movie, which is pretty genius meets exciting. Am I right?

Indie Music and Baseball

- We went to the Patterson's last week for Guinness Floats. Great friends and great beverages. Whilst there Ryan loaded me up with piles of new tunes, an indie music Christmas if you will. Now, I have avoided a lot of this music over the past year or so. I'm not sure why. Some times I feel like most of the new hipstery stuff is just that, hipstery. It's bands with super clever names, super fuzzed out guitars, super compressed drums, and super out of tune vocals, and most of the time that's about it. But having taken the time to listen to what Ryan so generously bestowed upon me, I must say I have come around, at least 90% of the way. It's good. It's basically a continuation of what I used to listen to. I don't know where I quit listening to indie music. Maybe when I ran out of money, and walked into record stores to just look around. Maybe when I got distracted by life, and therefore put my money elsewhere. Maybe when I started listening to country for free on the radio. Not sure. All that to say... it's good stuff (90% of it). I've been particularly enjoying the following: Animal Collective, Atlas Sound, Beach House, Black Mountain, Bon Iver, F*** Buttons, Health, Jens Lekman, Panda Bear, Stars of the Lid, Times New Viking, Vampire Weekend, Yeasayer, among others.

- The Gloyd family, also very generous, included me on a trip to the L.A. Coliseum to celebrate the Dodgers 50th anniversary in Los Angeles. This was a great time. We were part of the largest baseball audience in history, along with 115,294 other fans. A good time indeed, though the home team lost.



New Modern Classic.

Escuela

I'm in the lab listening to Boris very loud. I'm not really working. I'm looking around at other students. There is a guy with baggy pants and a hat on backwards. The hat still has the sticker on it. He is looking at myspace when suddenly he shakes a little, then his head pops, spraying blood and brains on the wall and on the heavy set girl next to him. She just keeps working. Everyone does. His body slumps forward. His neck stub smears the computer screen. Seconds later a girl across the room jumps up to scream, but before she makes a squeak her head explodes. This time everyone looks up, surprised when, seconds apart like pop corn, everyone's heads blows apart and there body's fall slowly left and right. I sit still for a moment. While pink mist settles around me, on my face and arms, I pick up my bloody ipod and change it to Flower Travlin' Band. The dead bodies quiver, begin to move, then slither. Before long the bodies are on their feet doing the skeleton dance around me while I bounce up and down on the table playing air harmonica. I slip on a piece of skull on the keyboard and fall off the table. The bodies continue dancing. Some step on me. Then more, jumping on me until I die.

Concerts

While taking a break between homework and grocery store, I thought it would be fun to try and remember the shows I've been to in my life. This may be a bad idea, as it could take a long time but it's something I've been wanting to do. Let's see.

Early Days (mostly christian shows)
Joel Weldon (4 times)
Steve Mills (3)
DC Talk
Whiteheart (2)
PFR (Pray for Rain)
Gaurdian
Bryan Duncan
Phil Keaggy
Steve Camp
Newsboys
Audio Adrenaline
I want to say Violet Burning at Knotts Berry Farm (unsure)
Dakota Motor Company
Sixpence None the Richer
The Prayer Chain (2)
Plankeye (3)
Joy Electric (3 unfortunately)
Starflyer 59 (3, opened for 1 time, right Josh?)
MXPX (4)
Danielson Famile (currently on Secretly Canadian)
Project 86 (2)
The Supertones (3)
Dogwood (2, opened for 1)
Value Pac (4, opened for 2)
Five Iron Frenzy
Ninety Pound Wuss
Upside Down Room
Driver Eight
Fanmail
Ghoti Hook
Slick Shoes (3)
Havalina
Pedro the Lion

Middle Days
Bad Religion (2)
NOFX (2)
Rancid (2)
Reverend Horton Heat
Aquabats (2 in Big Bear)
Green Day (1 and 1/2, I tried to sneak into one)
Less Than Jake
Bouncing Souls
Pennywise
Blink 182 (2)
Deftones
Unwritten Law
Lagwagon
Suicidal Tendencies
Anti Flag
The Toasters
Face to Face
The Vandals (2)
Weezer
Jurassic 5 (2)
Eminem
Ice T
CKY
Flogging Molly
Papa Roach

Latter Days
Jimmy Eat World (6)
OneLineDrawing (Far)
The Anniversary
Thursday
Cursive (2)
Dashboard Confessional (unfortunately)
Elliott (2)
Further Seems Forever
Bright Eyes (3)
The Jealous Sound (2)
MeWithoutYou
Owen
Mock Orange (2)
No Knife
Yellowcard (retard-ed)
Pop Unknown (opened)
Hellogoodbye (opened)
The Promise Ring
Death Cab For Cutie (11)
The Postal Service
The Velvet Teen (2)
Dismemberment Plan

Now it's after class and a few beers with Andy.

Minus The Bear
The Walkmen
Siouxsie and the Banshees
Ian McCulloch (Echo and teh Bunnymen)
Ian Brown (The Stone Roses)
Tears For Fears
Billy Idol
Franz Ferdinand
Berlin
The Cure (2)
Eisley
The Flaming Lips (2)
Wilco (2)
Coldplay
Built To Spill (2)
Dinosaur Jr.
Interpol
Muse
Air
The Killers
Bow Wow Wow
Duran Duran
Hot Hot Heat
Violent Femmes (2)
Psychedelic Furs
General Public
Devo
Jason Mraz (Douche)
Liz Phair (A-Hole)
Neko Case
Modest Mouse
Sonic Youth
Foo Fighters
Trent Reznor
Red Hot Chili Peppers
Pearl Jam
Ben Harper
Tony Bennett
Paul McCartney (this...)
Brian Wilson (and this are tied for all time greatest)
Dick Dale
Dave Matthews
Bill Cosby (does that count?)
Gillian Welch
Devendra Banhart
Neil Young (2)
Jon Brion (2)
The Darkness
Boris (2)
Comets on Fire
Jesu
Mammatus
Sunn 0)))
Acid Mothers Temple
No Age (2)
Liars
Belle and Sebastian
The Pixies (over the phone, doesn't count)
Radiohead
The Sword
Six Organs of Admittance
The Decemberists
Andrew Bird
Richard Swift
Band of Horses
Om

I'm forgetting a few, but I'm tired and I hate this idea (3/18).

Now it's 3/19 and I'm editing.
How about bands that I've been in or been friends with, thus played with and seen.

Been in
Warriors for Christ
Barefeet
Myrrh
Puppet Van
The Wet Willies
The Aardvarks
Norpain
Dal Madar
Songbird
Broken Red Vinyl
The Comfortable Low
Ann Lynn
Rio Bravo
slings

Amigos
UNI
Plan 9
3 Days Out
Overrated
Metaphor is Audio
The Colour
We Barbarians
Cold War Kids
Old War Shirt
Mouse and the Billionaire
Bodies of Water
DMH (Genius. I have yet to see live. Please.)
Jambo Land
The World Record

Who Else?

Yup Yup Yup

I simply can't wait.

New posts on Modern Classic and Good Tile. Check em out! I'm a dork!

Sandwich

I rode twelve miles today. Whilst doing so I conquered my fear of intersections. I became a vehicle, using turning lanes and the like. Whilst doing so I had a female yell from her window that she wanted to eat me, to which I almost crashed trying to flash the ring. Looking back, I was probably just flattering myself. I'll bet I really look like a sandwich today.

(Turn and face camera 2)
"In other news,"

School is mutha f-ing demanding.

(Back to camera 1)

The neighbors/landlords have just moved their daughter and two kids into the upstairs bedroom of their unit. The one thats right on top of us. To cover up the annoying romping around in the afternoons, I've taken to playing loud music. It reminds me of being younger. When did I stop listening to my music loud? It's so much better that way.

I might have a job. Cross them fangers.

And... if you have money, come see some live music. Rio Bravo double feature in Ventura on April 5th. If anything come max out on the beach with some guitars and ice cream. Just do it. I will also be joining some old friends at Spaceland on Thursday night. Seriously, do it.

Out... of..... shape.

I rode Centurion up to the Colorado Street Bridge and back today. About six miles. Which is about nothing, but by entire body almost exploded. This sensation was a bit frustrating and even saddening, however it was also inspiring. I'm 27 years old. I'm supposed to be in the best shape of my life, and it's quite the opposite. I tell you this... not anymore. Not any damn more. I vow to be on that, or any bike three times a week. Next ride will be to the Rose Bowl. Eight and a half miles. Then maybe Art Center. Eleven miles. And I will continue this, until the amount of miles I ride match up with the amount of pounds I weigh. And so on, until I am riding a hundred and eighty miles a day and I weigh six pounds.

An ode to Bath and Body Works

Oh Coconut Lime Verbena.
Oh Eucalyptus Spearmint.
Your scent meets my nostrils,
in a flash of reflection.
Carry me back to that island
of sex and macadamia nut pancakes,
of snorkel masks and rental cars,
of tube tops and flip flops.

Real Draft

Well, the real draft in the not-so-real, not-so-expensive, not-so-keeper league. I think I did ehh. The Little Buttercups, as of now, look something like:

C - Ivan Rodriguez - Det
1B - Travis Hafner - Cle
2B - Ian Kinsler - Tex, Dustin Pedroia - Bos, Tadahito Iguchi - SD
3B - David Wright - NYM, Kevin Kouzmanoff - SD
SS - Edgar Renteria - Det, Khalil Greene - SD
OF - Magglio Ordonez - Det, Hunter Pence - Hou, Brad Hawpe - Col, Gary Matthews Jr. - LAA
P - Jake Peavy - SD, Rich Hill - ChC, John Maine - NYM, Jeremy Bonderman - Det, Curt Schilling - Bos, Mark Buehrle - CWS
RP - Trevor Hoffman - SD, Takashi Saito - LAD

Should be good times.

I just got out of Arch 12A, Visual Communications. It is a cool class. We are currently going over Euclidean geometric constructions, and playing around with our new drafting tools. It's great to finally be a part of the architecture program, rather than the general education program. I made a friend who has a psychologist wife, like I do, a pearl export, like I do, is a christian, like I am, is working and going to school, like I am, and was a humongous Tooth and Nail fan back in the day, like I was. That makes things fun.

On a more serious note, we would like to honor, in whatever way possible (this being a lousy blog), Amber's Grandpa Lee. After a long struggle with parkinson's and alzheimer's, he has gone. I did not know him well, but what I did know I enjoyed completely. He was a very funny, very curious, and very accommodating man. He was always busy, always on his feet working on something, which I respected. He had this perfect "old man voice" that he was always pulling your leg with. He was a good man, so if you think to, say a prayer for the family, and for Grandma Rita.

Mock Draft

I'm doing a mock draft in about fifteen minutes. Why do the other people who do these suck? Their names suck and their comments suck. I will try not to suck.

First night of school was tonight. I'm looking forward to this semester. Assignments that excite me so far are reading Upton Sinclair and going to the Gene Autry museum. Sweet.

Also sweet, is this article, entitled Disney Will Go Back To The Future.

Goodnight.

Presidents Day

It's presidents day, and all I want is one that I can be proud of.
I just hung up with Matty. We miss them. We will travel to New York City this summer and do many things. It will be fantastic.
Pauly and his lovely wife Jen came through the other night. We rode bikes and ate sandwiches and drank wine and drank beer and talked of days gone by. It's so great to see old friends, and to be reminded that they are just as wonderful as they were. Paul temporarily left behind Centurion.

On it I will attempt to hone my fixed gear skills. I might die.
I was wrong, school starts tomorrow. I am thrilled. Seriously.
I will finish playing backgammon with my wife now. I will go apply for jobs. Then I will go record more drums. Then we will go to a birthday party.

Feliz Dia De San Valentin

I got up at five this morning to have pancakes with my wife before she was off to work. It was nice.
My truck got robbed a while back. I lost $300.00 in tools. I hate the people who thought that they could take my stuff. Their brains are small and their faces are probably stupid.
I had my first Geo Cache adventure with Mr. Sycz the other day. As dorky as it may seem, it is loads of fun. Who doesn't want to treasure hunt?
I recorded some drums.
I went to the docter.
I'm still looking for a job.
Feliz Dia De San Valentin.

From Room 505:

On Wednesday we got a phone call from Amber's brother, who told her that their dad had a heart attack, and was in the hospital. He called again to tell us that things were looking ok, and that he would go in for surgery. We were thankful for the news, and were making plans to head out for the weekend to be with him during his recovery. Amber then received another call that he had suffered another heart attack, and that things were not looking good, to which we hit the road, and pulled into a Vegas hospital around mid-night. Today is Friday, and we thank God that we can say everything is ok. Charlie is recovering well, and on his second life, as the nurse tells us. We are sitting next to his bed as I type, chit-chatting and catching up. The nurse just commented on Charlie's mustache, and called it a "handsome cowboy cookie duster". Now I want one.

We want to say THANK YOU to everyone who said a prayer. We have been feeling very blessed by you, our friends, and consider ourselves lucky to be among such thoughtful and considerate people.

In other news:
- We saw Citizen Kane in the theater, and it was great.
- I did another big remodel in Big Bear. While I was there Amber came up and we shredded the slopes for one run, on what was probably the worst day of the season.
- Tom Petty won the Superbowl.
- School starts on Monday.

LOST

matt just left to go to big bear. i am very sad.
he will be gone all week. this is sad to me for many reasons, one of them being that he will not be here to watch the season premiere of LOST. i am really excited to watch it but i need one of you nice friends to please invite me over to watch it with you. i promise not to talk during the whole thing or ask you what is going to happen or to scream or anything along those lines. i will bring a treat of your choosing. i will owe you. ok, enough begging. call me!

we are going to see citizen kane at the beverly cinema. it is showing tonight through saturday. we'll probably go either friday night or saturday afternoon. it's only six bucks! if you want to go then give me a call or let me know in the comments section. see ya!

I Love CA... sometimes.

I'm tired.

Further North

I'm up in the snow workin for a couple days. I'm building a wet bar in a cabin. It's pretty fun. I had CMT on in the background today and the old movie Pure Country with George Strait was playin. It made me want to go back to Nashville, or anywhere out in "country" country, you know? Someday, again.
Amber and I have spent most of the last few days watching Heroes. That show is gooooood. I have a big crush on my wife. I have a little one on Claire Bennet. Is that weird? Babe is that weird?
My dad and I went to a hockey game at the Honda Center. We had tickets to sit in Bob Iger's suite, and it was sweet. As you probably agree, hockey is no good on tv, but live it's pretty bitchen.
I've been pulling out my old sketch books in search of a little inspiration to start again. It's working a little bit. Now I just need to pull out some time.
We got our Disneyland passes the other day, and I puked a bit in my mouth with excitement. Walt is wearing a ring with Mickey on it at their statue in the hub. Check it next time. It's really fun.
At the moment I'm sonically digging Johnathan Rice, Levon Helm, Mel Tillis, Waylon, and mother flippin Om, who I will see with Ryan very soon.
I am going to drink rice wine with my brother.

2008

A good time was had rolling into the new one. I however regret that I rolled a little too hard into the new one, and as a result missed out on some of the later mentioned highlights. I find this funny as I would like to spend 2008 rolling just a little bit softer. There is still plenty of time. All that to say, it was great seeing the people that we got to see, and hearing from the people who were doing the same thing all around the world.

Some new Christmas times and New Year times on the flickr.

This weekend we do Anaheim, with some Ducks on Friday and some Disneyland on Sunday.

2007

Wow. We should be fired from the blogging community for this kind of behavior. Needless to say we've been busy. But who hasn't?

Highlights:

Being busy.
Our road trip to Portland.
Moving down to the big city.
Going back to school.
Owen discovering the drums.
Being re-introduced to the genius of country music.
Remaining happily hitched.

This coming year we look forward to:

Getting rich.
Getting smart.
Maybe getting pregnant.

"For last year's words belong to last year's language and next year's words await another voice."
- T.S. Eliot

Here's to 2008!

nobody knows me, by lyle lovett, might just be the most beautiful song i've ever heard.

What are you looking at?

"Oh, the silent majesty of a winter's morn, the clean cool chill of the holiday air, and an asshole in his bathrobe, emptying a chemical toilet into my sewer."

I am thankful for Thanksgiving. It was cold in Big Bear, but warm by the fire with the sound of Vince Guaraldi, the heavenly scent of turkey and pumpkin bread pudding, and the company of family with our old yeller dog. We came home a bit early to take part in some vip actions at The Wiltern, where we were fortunate enough to see two good good bands. We made a lovely breakfast at home Saturday morning, took care of some business, then made our way to the Long Beach for some games at said band's abode, chicken pot pies with Davey and Donia, and some stimulating conversation with Tim and Shauna until 5am. I don't think we've been awake that late in a long time, and I now remember why. All in good fun nonetheless. Last night Amber broke out the china, and we did foods and wines with the Smiths, joined by whiskeys with the Gloyds, and here we are at Monday. The house is getting all Christmas'd up, and I am excited for the season, bringing celebrations of the birth of our King, eggnog, and some special visitors from a big city far away.

By the way, I invented a dream recorder that plugs into my head when I sleep. This one is from last night.

Moca

When we went downtown, we saw the work of Takashi Murakami.
It was great. Go look at it. Online or in person.

We are going to the Smith's. Then we will walk to the Metro and ride it into downtown to look at some arts and eat some foods. Why? Because it's the opposite of sucky.

No Age

Tonight I got out of class around 9-ish, drove down to Echo Park, met the Patty, got some beer in, and saw these guys. Good good show. Listen to Everybody's Down. We had a nice chat about living in Los Angeles, how there are plenty of things that suck about this town, as well as plenty of things that are really great when taken advantage of. Good timing.

The Sierra

Yosemite was magnifique! So peaceful and beautiful and therapeutic. We met up with Ryan and Jen at 3am, drove north, and arrived in the park by 8am, in time for breakfast at The Ahwahnee. The wedding was great. The food and the open bar and the music were great. The weather and the hiking were lovely. Thus the drive home was a bit of a bummer. But tel est la vie. This photo, among others, is the work of Bradley. Our battery died for a good portion of the trip. We want to go back in the spring, when the water is running, and hike the Dome. Who's down?

Friends!

I had to start a new flickr account because awhile back flickr merged with yahoo and so when I tried to get in as an "old skool member" it wanted a yahoo password which I gave them to which they said it wouldn't work because it was already tied to another account. Anyway, I started a new one, so if anybody wants to be photo friends, it's here.

11:57

Tonight I stayed after class to study minerals, thus my brain burns, like southern California, with all of their different names. Pyrite. Augite. Biotite Mica. Plagioclase Feldspar. It actually feels like my brain is turning into said minerals and eroding into sediment that will flow down through my head and body and settle in my feet. That will suck.

The other night the wife and I made our way over to Hollywood's Arclight Theater to see The Darjeeling Limited. The Arclight was both great and crappy. It was nice looking inside, and it had great sound. It also cost $14.00 a person, and there was popcorn all over our seats. The Darjeeling Limited, in our collective opinion, was fantastic. Wes Anderson at his second best (only to them Tenenbaums). Beautiful imagery, classic style, and great characters partaking in hilarious dialogue. I would recommend it. I do. There is a sort of supplementary short film called Hotel Chevalier available for free on itunes that would work both before or after seeing The Darjeeling Limited. It was a little shocking, mainly the whole Natalie Portman naked bit.

Yosemite in one week. I am excite!

Goodnight.

This is funny

Run-on sentence

Tonight I got out of class a bit early so I hauled my ass over to The Echo where I didn't have any cash which led the door-man to feel sorry for me and give me a free ticket that allowed me to meet up with the Pattersons inside and enjoy an awesomely loud Boris show. It was great!

Cedar in a wood stove

Some people in Simi Valley got up this morning, got dressed, and then got killed. All before 8am. And I spend some days sitting around, not calling friends or riding bikes with my wife; not hiking in the mountains or going fishing in the ocean. I get upset over a parking ticket and the rest of my day has no chance.
There is still so much I want to do and see and experience. I don't want to die yet. I want to enjoy everyday to it's fullest. Why is it so easy to get distracted? Why is it so easy to forget that this can all go away?
We are going to Big Bear this weekend, where my dad will turn fifty, where the air is cool and clean, where one can see that it's autumn by looking at the trees and the sky, rather than just the calender. I want to soak it all in, so much that when we get back to Los Angeles some of it will evaporate out and turn a few leaves red, or fill the room with the scent of cedar in a wood stove.

Breakfast Club

We would like to have a breakfast club because breakfast is the best! This is our idea:
A different person/people will host said breakfast club at their home on Sunday, some time after church. The host will set the menu and provide the main course, while the guests bring any necessary extras. All are invited, and welcome! If you are unable to participate every Sunday, it's fine - come when you can. Obviously, the more we get together, "the happier we'll be"! However we understand that a lot of us are busy; there is no reason this should feel like another commitment. Matt and I will get it started. So this Sunday, October 7th, Breakfast Club will be at our place around, say, 1-ish. Please spread the word. Give us a comment, a call, or a text so we can know what to prepare, and so we can let you know what to bring. Thanks!

Danzig shreds?

High and Low

Every once in a while, when the day is drawing to a close, Amber and I like to exchange a high of the day and a low of the day. On Sunday we agreed that our high was walking in, and our low was walking out.

What a heartbreaker.

Matt B's last post got me started

Awesome fighters of bad guys. Good looks. Hot babes. Insane machines. I can almost taste the green Otter Pop in my mouth as I sit on the blue shaggy carpet and stare up at one of thirteen available channels.

I don't think I've ever seen this city look as beautiful as it looked today.

The Morning

Some strong coffee, a couple eggs, and a little M. Ward make for a nice rainy morning. I was just checking the news when I looked out the front window and saw what looked like a high school couple breaking up and getting back together a couple times. It reminded me of my high school break-ups and make-ups, of which I'm glad are long since gone.

Off to work.

Still More Fire

Even though we got out of town two days ago, I'm trying to stay updated on this thing so all of us old mountain folk can be in the know. The above photo is of a DC10 that reloads somewhere off the mountain, and can drop 24,000 gallons of retardant, covering an area just shy of a mile. My dad and I watched this the other day from Castle Glen. It's insane. That on top of a few smaller planes and a handfull of helicopters makes it quite a spectacle. There are 2,245 fire fighters in the woods, and the burn area is at about 16,000 acres. They're saying you can see the smoke from Vegas. Is this true?

They canceled school. Now all the BBHS kids can go smoke pot in the Sugarloaf woods and start another fire. Here are two more photos.

Fire

We came up to Big Bear for a wedding and some more stuffs: drums and fishing poles and printers. When we got here, she was on fire. This photo is from yesterday, when it was five acres. Today it's four thousand acres and the number one fire priority in the country. A little scary. We were at a lake house last night, after a hipstered snowboarder wedding, and the sky was bright orange and almost beautiful. Anyway, it needs to go away. I got a haircut. Now my beard looks as big as Gandalf's. I'm going to shave it. And I like The Kinks right now. Alot.

We're getting there

We've been unpacking our belongings for what feels like a month. In reality it's been a week. Sometimes I look around in love with our stuff, and other times I feel like it's a bunch a crap that belongs back at the thrift store. However we did get a new couch and a new bed, both of which are very nice looking and comfortable. We're almost all settled in, but right now I need a break, thus, I blog. Some thoughts: The weather is getting much more tolerable, maybe even nice. I added a unit to my existing four geology units by signing up for some field trips, and I'm looking forward to them. I miss the people that don't live here anymore. I've been paranoid lately that a stray bullet is going to hit and kill me while I'm driving down the freeway. Weird. It's a bummer for Cold War Kids that Meg White went and got sick. I want to go to the mountains. Not Big Bear, though it's beautiful right now, but the real mountains. Maybe the High Sierra. I guess we will be in Yosemite in October. That should suffice. I've got some homework to do, right now.

Move

More details later. For now; change, furniture, paint, stress, heat, work, beer, sleep, gasoline, money, school, beer, money, and school. Ratatouille was great, and Harry Potter is all over. More later.

It's late. Yesterday I finished Order of the Phoenix, and today I got half way through Half Blood Prince, all whilst working. Now it's late, and I'm tired.

Happy Birthday Matty!

It's Matt's birthday today, and as you all know his favorite thing to do is "max out real hard!" Unfortunately, this will have to be postponed for a couple of weeks. Around the 7th or 8th of September we would be delighted if any of you, or all of you, would come out to the Big Foot Lodge with us and enjoy some drinks and pleasantries. I will post again when we have the date and time nailed down. Thanks! Here's to Matt Pool, a fine man!

P.S. We would also like to wish a very Happy Birthday to Matt's birthday friend, Lindsay!

School

Hey!

We've acquired a pad. Move in date is Sep 1st. It's roughly in this area, so once we're settled we'll have to make merry with a bbq or something. Good times await, followed closely by school times. Here's to them.

To Matt and Lisa

We'll see you two soon.

Oh Hello

We are well. We're in L.A. for a bit, trying to find a place to live so's I can start school. If anyone knows of any places, pass it on. Thanks!

Potter Party!

Sunday at the Gloyd home. Info here. Now go get your blumin' movie tickets.

road trip #3

we are driving home from our trip right now. we are on the barren 395, through the mountains. for the last four hours we’ve been listening to harry potter so matt can get caught up. matt is now hooked on harry potter and our marriage, therefore, has grown tremendously.
matt and i are sad to leave the open road behind but also excited to be coming home and getting started on... well we are still sorting that out. for the month of july, at least, we will be in los angeles. while in la we hope to, as matt likes to say, “max out real hard!”
we didn’t do a good job of posting while on the road so here are some more highlights of the trip.

portland:

roller skating at the oaks


playing pool at the backstage


birthday celebrations at the edgefield


harry potter ice cream cake


being with suzanne, joey, and our new portland friends






portland rules! it is beautiful, has great places to eat, lots of cool free things to do, and you can walk everywhere. we agree that we could move there and have little trouble transitioning. the only problem would be a place called st. cupcake where i would spend too much time and subsequently gain 300 pounds.

lake tahoe:
in tahoe we were straight out of a toyota tacoma commercial. we went rafting in the truckee river, kayaked, rafted, and fished in lake tahoe. we gambled, ate great pizza, and enjoyed the company of our lovely hosts the castaneda’s.

Road Trip #2 - Photos

Hi. My Flickr account is being poopy so I grabbed a couple of quick photos to stick here. Hopefully I can get the lot of them up asap.
An update: Portland is cool. The weather is weird, but people say if you don't like it just to wait five minutes. They're right. Sprinkly and dark one minute. Sunny and hot the next. I love it. We went to a theater the other night and had some food and some beer and watched Arrested Development. That was sweet. And last night we went to a Beaver's game(Triple A future Padres). That was sweet too. So for now, here these are:

The tunnel up the 101.


The Bridge Street Inn.


Joseph B. Strauss' Bridge.


Mr. Talbot.


A Redwood, next to Amber.


Portland.


Nickel arcade.


Chris and Sean.


Rocco's pizza.


My bebe.


Me.


The ghosts of S.and S.


Joey.


Joey.


Rose garden.


More later.

Road Trip

I'm writing from a small coffee shop on 39th in Portland. We've been in town for a few days now and are having a great time. Initially my plan was to write every day, or close to it. Instead I've been making a lot of fart noises with my mouth, and not posting. For that I am sorry. So I will do my best to get caught up.
Day 1. We made our way down to Los Angeles to spend some time with friends. Amber and the ladies threw a party for Becca and we doods played golf, and later lit a backyard on fire.
Day 2. Then it was off to San Diego to visit Grandparents who are moving to Texas. We checked into a fancy hotel and had a fancy dinner, compliments of Mom and Dad's Christmas giving’s. We visited G and G Pool the next day, as well as our good ol' boy Trailer, and then crashed at Uncle Tom's house.
Day 4. We were up with the sun, and made our way back up the 5. We had a sweet breakfast in Pasadena with Matt and Lisa, and then it was up the 101 to Cambria, where we checked into the Bridge Street Inn hostel. This place was beautiful. We walked around town, and decided on a little place called Robin's for dinner, where I had a braised lamb shank, and Amber ate lobster enchiladas. We enjoyed a bottle of wine, compliments of the aforementioned M and L, and called it a lovely night.
Day 5. The next day we drove up the 1 through San Simeon, Big Sur, and stopped for lunch at a little pub in downtown Monterey. Then it was through San Francisco, over the Golden Gate Bridge, and on to Santa Rosa to stay with the Talbot's. We spent the night catching up and playing around with the boy.
Day 6. We had a laid back morning. Breakfast at the Omelet Express. A few photos with Charlie Brown and Snoopy. Then up to the redwoods, where we hiked beneath the massive giants. It was beautiful to say the least. We stood in the silent presence of greatness, and we were glad. After that we bbq'd and, being in wine country and all, drank wine. We talked into the night, then slept.
Day 7. We had early coffee, hugged goodbye, and drove to Redding. I drug Amber around town to all the old hangouts. Then we caught up with Peter at an indoor soccer game he was playing. We had pizza and visited a F. L. Wright church that I had never seen, and then went back to the Black's place for cocktails and lot's of Wii Bowling.
Day 8. Coffee at Sue's, a few goodbyes, and the 5 north. Peter hitched a ride with us, which meant Amber, who was peacefully reading her book in the backseat, had to put up with us blasting Dragonforce all the way to Lake Shasta. We had lunch in Ashland at The Black Sheep. Shepherds Pie and Beans on Toast. Then the long haul through the rain to P-town. We got in to Suz's, and caught up for a bit. Drove down to Joey's work for some soup and free beer. Then spent the rest of the evening playing pool at a sweet McMenamins bar called The Backstage.
Day 9. Breakfast at The Cup and Saucer. The Hell's Huevos were completely awesome. After that we headed downtown to snoop around. Powell's books is everything I've heard and some. Time consuming. We made our way back over the river for hot dogs, ping pong, and buck twenty-five Pabst at Zach's Shack. Then we went to The Avalon, which was probably Amber's favorite place so far. Two words. Nickel Ski-ball. Among other amazing five cent arcade games. After that it was darts at The Horse Brass.
Day 10. Coffee and Bagels at Chris's work. Downtown to 23rd Street to shop around and book the wife a haircut. Then back for Joey's acoustic show at 9 Muses, where we ran into a young lady by the name of Annie Bethancourt, also playing. We spent the rest of the night maxin' there, a'sippin.
Day 11. Today. A Monte Cristo at The Cricket. Some photo swapping back at Joey's place, a.k.a. The Purple Barn. And then it was goodbye to Peter, Sean, and Scarlett. And here we are.

So far this town has been a lot of fun. My opinion as of now is: Lots and lots of good food and sweet hangouts, amazing houses, and piles of liberal hippies. Now our goal is to get down to business. Visit schools, and really figure things out. We'll let you know how it goes. And I'll get some photos up asap.

So today I uh, pet a wolf. You know, nothing crazy. That's what I do sometimes. I pet wolves.

Let's burn some dust here. Eat my rubber!

Our departure date is set at June 4th. And we should be back on or around the 28th, to, i guess pack up and go where ever it is we will go. Fun drivey times draw nigh. Friends long since seen. School visits. Future plannings. Lot's of expensive gas. Eventually documenting our exodus into the wild unknown. But before then, work. And more work. Then a camping jaunt to the nuclear tits as I believe rp put it. Sweet.

Does anyone have a thule rack we could borrow?

Breaking the seal

It's been a bit since I've roamed these parts.
We've been making plans, and working alot. Trying to save some dinero for the road. Packing. I built a sandbox for the kids, and there's a good chance I'll be in it more than they will. Lately I've been bbq-ing dinner to baseball on the am radio, brews, and beautiful sunsets, and quite enjoying it. I've also just closed some three or four books that I'm not currently feeling, and, at the request of d, begun reading The Fountainhead. It's a thick'n, but great so far.

That's it for now.

The working day has ended,

and I'm at home drinking cold Coors light. I spent it picking up Water Will Serve letter's, picking up trash, and schmoozing a client. "Ya man, we'll have your carpet in and your door knobs on and your wine fridge in by the weekend man. No worries. Totally."
Will we? I think so.
I've been doing alot of electrical plans lately, and I've come to a conclusion that no shower should ever go without a can light directly above it. That's how we did ours and I will say it's a beautiful thing. Bright shining nudity in the morning.
Dinosaur Jr. will play on Friday, and I will be there.
We're packing up the house, and it's weird, and I filmed it so we will always remember it.
And yes, I youtubed it.

So

Fantasy baseballin', coffee drinkin', Dinosaur Jr. concert figure outin', and about to be a' fence buildin'.

Y'all?

M and L B, and the MLB

We had a fun weekend. Friday night at the with-child Newlove's for ice cream. Later at M and L B's where, after midnight, we partook in some beer, martini's, Patron, absinthe, more tequila, some sherry wine, and The Office. Chilaquiles and a Bloody Mary for breakfast. Later it was off to Ventura where 32's of High life were had in a parking lot, followed by a Rio Bravo church benefit. Then a late night trek down the 5 to San Diego for some work, family times, and an insane but ultimatly depressing game at Petco, where the Dodgers ended up taking a 5-4 win after 17 innings. Bummer. Other than that... tired.

Strange indeed

I shaved, and it made my cheeks look chubby and my mouth look like a little beak.
We went to Vegas for a few days where we saw the in-laws, hung with Rose, drank Keith Richards' at Nate's bar, won money at the roulette wheel, and played pool in some heshin ass corner of the city.
The Bethancourt's ascended the mountain for one of the most layed back weekends we've had in a while. We offroaded to Butler Peak, now a.k.a. Butthole Peak. Nottingham's with Josh and Andrea. Cards with Kahlúa and milk until 5 a.m. In fact yesterday we left the house only to puff a pipe and buy some Rolling Rock.
It's strange to think that we are only going to be on the homestead for another month. Strange indeed.

I want to play rock music soon.
I want to test myself all the day long.

It's blowin up a gale

There was random snow today and wind that blew my beanie off. Basically sucky stupid weather.
I was going to have to go the San Diego for work today, but I didn't. Instead I had my hair cut. And tonight I think I'll shave my beard. On Sunday Shane said to my brother, "For not being able to grow a beard, Matt can grow a pretty mean beard." But it's buggin. It's prickly and thick and food gets in it. So I'm going to shave it.
Been in the mood lately for old music. Old Shins and American Analog Set. Yo La Tengo and American Football and Badly Drawn Boy. Some old Death Cab and Elliott Smith. Nostalgic stuff.
Speaking of nostalgia, I was youtubing old cartoons like Talespin and Darkwing Duck. But this one really took me back:


P.S. Grey's Anatomy, I'm afraid I'm hooked.

Not soon enough

road
Originally uploaded by mattamberpool.

Come the end of May the wife and I will finally hit the road. For a few weeks we will be held down by nothing, and I cannot stand to wait. Destinations may include but are not limited to: The PCH, San Simeon, San Fran, Santa Rosa, Redding, Grants Pass, Eugene, Portland, Truckee/Tahoe, Yosemite, Vegas, Phoenix, and whatever else. I'm looking forward to it. Good stops? Anybody?

¡Felíz Pascua!

Zany Week

-We spent the better part of it under the impression that Amber was with child. Sparks flew. Emotions ran high. As we were discussing when and how to brake the news we found that she was indeed not pregnant, but a bit behind. This moment was met with both relief and sorrow, and has since had us thinking, maybe sooner? We shall see. There are just too many beautiful babies being birthed these days. The niece and nephew, the Chapman baby, and the fresh Hamilton baby. Ah the chapters of life.

-Less significant but still exciting, the ol' humble abode is currently in escrow, and is scheduled to close at the end of May. Finally our plan to lift anchor is in view. But before that, we want to have a last hoorah, if you will. Maybe early May. We'll make some solid plans, and spread the word. A farewell post, maybe some photos, can be expected from the wife.

-Snow Bladed my guts out on Monday with Mr. Patterson.

-Got a sweet phone call from D, in Florida at the time.

-Amber got employee of the month. She rules.

Shit's going down

Lots.
All good.
More soon.

High of 24° Mañana.

That's dumb.

Doing a tile job for Mom and Dad.
Getting paid by way of a new notebook with fancy video for games and crap.
Excited to be online from home like the rest of the world.
Excited for this sweet action to come out.
Excited for baseball to begin.
Not happy about the return of the cold.
Excited for the return of the heat, which includes bicycles, flip flops, hair cuts and beard cuts, beer over bbq'd fish, and offroad's to Butler Peak.

Books! Check Em' Out!

i love subbing at elementary schools because i always come across the best books. the last two days i was in a 3rd grade class and i borrowed and read a book called the tale of despereaux. give it a read! it will fill you with light and make you crave soup!-a

...

Saint Pat's this year was all kinds of radical. Sweet friends. Good food. Oceans of beer. Nintendo Wii. A haphazard fantasy ball team. And a new default conversation topic which is, as Matt B. observed about nine times, "Come to Big Bear! Man totally come hang in Big Bear!"

I am lame. But honestly... come to Big Bear
I'm thinking a weekend after the lake opens to boats. I'll get a cabin, or we can camp. I'll get a pontoon to bbq on and swim from. Doods and doodettes. Doods can fish and drink beer, and doodettes can like, make candles out of pinecones and shit. When's good?

Spring is in the air

Who wants to go fishing?

It is Nice Day! I LIKE!

Waxing the neighbors hacked world wide web waves.

It really is wonderful outside. I think when Amber gets home we will break out the cruisers and hit the bike path, and maybe a hot dog. For some reason I'm in the mood for a hot dog. At a ball game. Soon enough.
Last night we went out with some of Amber's Bear Mt. work buddies. We ate and drank Mexican. Then drank bowling. It was alot of fun getting to know some new people with different interests who live in the same town. And now I've got a fishin' friend for fartin' and fiddle faddle.

An Update:
300 cut my turds yesterday.
Thermopylae reading is adding a wrinkle to my brain.
Wilco does a beautiful thing with "Sky Blue Sky".
Modest Mouse does an almost annoying thing with "We Were Dead Before The Ship Even Sank". Though parts are good.
Kings of Leon do an almost cheesy thing with "Because of the Times". However I'm enjoying it. It's like they've given up being something fashioned and are just sticking with the first sounds that come along. It grooves.
This guy did a nice thing by giving me the above three.
The Sword will ignite my hair and burn my head into a scabby ball on Monday.

F-ing F-ancy.

This past weekend's Magic Kingdom trip was certainly a pleasure, thanks to the above two. We were given free admission with our comp. Club 33 park hopper's. Our dinner reservations were for 5:45pm, which gave us loads of time, so we grabbed breakfast in Downtown Disney at The La Brea Bakery. Panini's topped with fried eggs. Then we hit Tower of Terror right off the bat. After that we pretty much just cruised, sharing our Disney facts and enjoying the environs. We fit in a rickety Matterhorn trip, a turkey leg (new to me), some Shooting Gallery, pineapple softserve in The Tiki Room, mint juleps with fritters, the wildest ride in the wilderness, some goat petting, parade crossing, and a not that rad new Space Mountain jaunt. By now it was about 5:30pm, making it time for real awesomeness!
We then made our way back to New Orleans Square while I threw on a sweater. We snapped a few in front of the door, rang the bell, and were let in. We checked our bags and chit-chatted with the hostess about some of the history. Then we piled into the French lift to the second floor, where a second hostess was waiting. Leisurely we were guided through Walt's final creation. It was bigger and more picturesque than I had expected, with exquisite attention to every last detail. We walked through a lounge alley, past a great bar and wine locker, into the main dining room. On every wall was hung original concept art pieces for The Haunted Mansion and The Pirates of the Caribbean. Our table was just next to a patio french door, and set with fine china. Our server Curt was textbook, answering any question, and describing each plate with flawless definition. Everything was right in the world. I put a couple photos here and a poorly lit video here. Dinner for me went as follows, less the flawless definition:
A Grey Goose Martini.
A gourmet cheese dish with a sage and a brie who's names fail me.
A Pinot Noir bottle who's name also slips my mind.
A crab tart of some kind.
A Filet Chateaubriand with sauce Bearnaise and Perigourdine, potatoes and assorted veggies.
A mousse dish with an awesome topping sauce and sorbet pastry.
A glass of Tawny Port.
Coffee.

So there you have it, hence the title.

Honorable mentions:
Had a fun fun rock show with Rio Bravo.
Amber met Buster Bluth.

Recapitated!

Not sure where to go over this chicken soup. Last weekend The Pattersons and soon to be Harbaughs ascended the mountain for some major max outage, where many a great time was had. Except for Murray's. That place is really slacking with the good dive vibe lately. Nonetheless we made the best of it. Highlights? The term Spread Savage was birthed and used extensively. We broke our "Stay Up Super Late Playing Celebrity And Drinking Super Amounts Of Beer" record. Matt and Lisa, we need a rematch. Seriously. We displayed awesome ski skills on the slopes, followed by awesome bloody mary swollowing skills at the lodge. All in all a sweet weekend. Who else wants to come? We love company. Really. Or who wants to camp soon? Spring time?
So today was nice. It's been awhile since I've had a break in work with nothing to do. I awoke around nine, went in to work and finished a 10 acre plot plan in 1/30 scale. Then I had lunch with my Dad. Then I went and had a soy latte and worked on my book. It was great to be on my own and utilize this little town for more than just sleeping and working.
We finished Arrested Development last night. That made us sad. What a great show.
I think I'll shred on Saturday. Club 33 on Sunday! Rio Bravo show Monday. Be there! Then next week someone will love our house and make a sweet offer. Then we'll sell it and hit the road for a bit. Then we'll win 10,000 bucks on a scratcher and fly to Acapulco where we'll eat fish and smoke hand rolled cigarettes and wear straw hats and short shorts.
Good. I'm glad we've got that figured out.

Snowed today.

33

In less than a week the ever closed doors, that to me once represented something only dreamt about, will be opened.
In less than a week the curtains of exclusivity will be pulled away, and we will be VIP, even if just for a moment.
In less than a week, we dine at Walt's finest.

The anticipation bubbles deep within my entrails.

Still the fave

Mock Orange do it again. Have a listen.

Pour la France!

Everytime I see a Sofia Coppola film I feel like, "Auh... whatever. It was cool and all but, uuhh." Then sure enough it creeps up and haunts me. My thoughts and dreams and the way I talk. Then I watch it again and feel as though I'm watching the greatest movie I will ever put into my eyes and ears, feeling like I have a connection with it that only I can understand. It's wierd that it can go from making a fart noise with my mouth about it, to rewinding a part over and over. But it can, and such was the case with Marie Antoinette lastnight. Very well done, and one I'd like to own. I thought the music was bueno, particularly in this scene where she uses The Cure, followed by the party scene to New Order. Good stuff. And a good picture. Recommended. I've since been burning my eyes up on the French Revolution, and all of it's little linked what have you's. That's it.

Lost tonight. With dessert.

Let me eat cake, oui oui.

So I went ahead and picked me up a viral upper respiratory tract infection.

The amount of crap that has flowed from my nose today could fill nine pickle jars. Maybe next time I'm battling the ravages of the common cold, I'll avoid drinking colossal amounts of beer from sun up to sun down.

This would cheer up anybody

It did the job for me.
"Why the bitching?" you might ask. Well Arch. school is looking like more of an '08 thing than an '07 thing right now. In other words, I'll be receiving my degree in a wheelchair.
I don't know what the problem is. The lack of significance that I or my parents placed on my education maybe? I barely graduated high school because I ditched more than I attended. I would rather sit in my car eating donuts and listening to Screeching Weasel. I applied to bible college about two weeks before classes started, just because I saw everyone else going to college. That lasted one semester, of writing half assed papers on justification by faith and sneaking up to the back 40 to smoke cloves. Then I dicked around a couple of bro'd out community colleges and dropped out to deliver pizza. And here I sit, eight years a high school graduate, no where near what I envisioned as a boy. I'm not unhappy with who I am. I've learned a lot, married my soul mate, and have gained some valuable work experience. Yet I regret some of the choices I've made.
So what did I do? I came home last night, got drunk on Beefeater, and cried to my wife about it. And she's so good. She cuddled her husband's bitchy little head in her lap, played with his stupid hair, and proceeded to lift up the shades on the situation.
So there you have it. And it's a new day. And I'm ditching church to sit at home in my underwear and play on the internet. But it's nice, rain outside, tea inside. No sense dwelling on the past. It's time to sludge through the glop that is my educational near future.

And to my wife, that road trip is looking better and better by the second.

Sometimes I hate myself

And trying to go back to school makes me want to puke.

An update, and other truths

I'm ass tired. Today I worked way out in the countryside, driving a three geared dump truck, pulling up fence posts, and petting horses.
Arrested Development has been really making us laugh lately. I think Buster Bluth is collectively the favored character, with Gob close behind.
I've also been flixing The Sopranos, and watching them without the company of the wife. For some reason she's just not into them. I'm not sure if it's the drug abuse, or the nudity, or the language and relentless violence. Just not sure.
And while on the subject of televised entertainment, Lost is again ruling my life. Last night's episode was very satisfactory indeed.
M and L Bethancourt ascended the mountain for some hang time that went by far too quickly. Pesto Premavera pizza, Pabst Blue Ribbon, and a gem of a card game by the name of Hand and Foot were enjoyed into the wee hours. Good times were had.
I've been spinning a great Kinks album called Muswell Hillbillies, thanks months back to one D Heule and one N Warkentin. "Here Come The People In Grey, To Take Me Away!"
I was let off work early the other day, when I drove right home, put on my boots, grabbed up the ol' M3, and hit the slopes with the wife for the first time this year. It's was beautiful. So much so in fact, that I was filled with awe, which I believe allows me to say it was Awesome!

Rosie you said it.

Uninspired. And I don't think a song can help me here. I need something more. Something robust and warm, like Spring.
Or Budweiser.

That's it.
Lots and lots of warm Budweiser.

Droning day in and day out. Work. Then work. Then come home too tired to do anything but go to bed at nine. We make ourselves nervous sometimes doing this. What are we becoming? We need action. We need to shake it off. And we will. This weekend friends will come up, and max. And this year we will drive to Portland, and see about living there.

Sage Clips

A trip to a fancy studio
+ A few poorly lit video segments
+ A new but limited Windows Movie Maker
+ Two lunch breaks

= This, the first of many probably not great movies.

And tonight at Detroit Bar

I'd do some guest list action but... it's free.
So come haaaaaannngggg!!!

Doods and Doodettes

We Ann Lynn boys will be playing at Spaceland tomorrow evening with The Colour boys, so come hang. If indeed you do want to come le' may know, and I'll see about doin' some guest list action. Sweet? Sweet.

I like the new Shins.

Other things get crazy.

Weekend - Rose, Suz, Jen and Shant in town, smokin' Church Warden's, and puttin' cocktails away.
Yesterday - Rio Bravo rehersal in Pasadena.
J11 - Rio Bravo show at Spaceland.
J14 - Ann Lynn rehersal in Riverside.
J15 - Ann Lynn recording at Sage and Sound.
J16 - Ann Lynn recording at Sage and Sound.
J17 - Ann Lynn recording at Sage and Sound.
J18 - Ann Lynn show at Spaceland.
J22 - Ann Lynn show at Detroit Bar.
J26 - Ann Lynn show at Morongo.
J27 - Wife and I to Vegas, maybe? By the looks of things, maybe not.
F11 - Possible Ann Lynn show at The Knitting Factory.
F24 - Possible Ann Lynn show somewhere else.
In Between - Work and Date Wife as much as possible.

Work gets crazy.

When I first began working at DED&C, I was put out in the field, on the jobs, picking up trash and driving the rickety old trash truck to the dump and back. Work was easy above all, in fact the most difficult issue to cross my mind at the time probably went something like, "Do I, or do I not have enough time to finish a cigarette right now."
That was a few years back, and things have changed a bit. For example, yesterday I had to draw a picture half the size of a windshield, perfectly based on the following:

EXHIBIT "A" LEGAL DESCRIPTION

ALL THAT PORTION ON THE SOUTHEAST QUARTER OF THE SOUTHEAST QUARTER OF SECTION 11, TOWNSHIP 2 NORTH, RANGE 1 WEST, SAN BERNARDINO MERIDIAN, IN THE COUNTY OF SAN BERNARDINO, STATE OF CALIFORNIA, ACCORDING TO THE OFFICIAL PLAT OF SAID LAND, DESCRIBED AS FOLLOWS:

BEGINNING AT A POINT ON THE WEST LINE OF SAID SOUTHEAST QUARTER OF THE SOUTHEAST QUARTER OF SECTION 11 WHICH BEARS SOUTH 16'38" WEST 277.92 FEET FROM THE SOUTHWEST CORNER OF LOT 339 OF TRACT NO. 1876, AS PER MAP RECORDED IN BOOK 27 OF MAPS; PAGES 49 TO 53 INCLUSIVE, RECORDS OF SAID COUNTY; THENCE SOUTH 89° 43'22" EAST 79.30 FEET TO A POINT ON THE WESTERLY LINE OF STATE HIGHWAY; THENCE ALONG THE WESTERLY LINE OF SAID STATE HIGHWAY SOUTH 7° 19'30" EAST 348.72 FEET TO THE POINT OF BEGINNING THENCE NORTH 39° 43'22" WEST 125.762 FEET TO THE WEST LINE OF THE SAID SOUTHEAST QUARTER OF THE SOUTHEAST QUARTER OF SECTION 11; THENCE ALONG THE SAID WEST LINE OF THE SOUTHEAST QUARTER OF THE SOUTHEAST QUARTER OF SECTION 11, NORTH 0° 16'38" EAST 126.08 TO THE SOUTHWEST CORNER OF THE PROPERTY CONVEYED TO ROBERT M. LEONARD, ET UX IN THE DEED RECORDED DECEMBER 8, 1961 IN BOOK 5606, PAGE 413, OFFICIAL RECORDS; THENCE EAST ALONG THE SOUTH LINE OF SAID LEONARD PROPERTY TO THE SOUTHEAST CORNER THEREOF, SAID CORNER BEING A POINT IN THE WEST LINE OF THE STATE HIGHWAY; THENCE SOUTH TO THE POINT OF BEGINNING.

It was gnarles.

Happy '07

Merry Christmas

I'm stuck at work for a couple hours, thus I blog.
This morning I was thinking about the days when Derek and I, being about ten or eleven years old, would call each other on Christmas morning to tell each other what we had recieved. Things like Rock'em Sock'em Robots or F-Zero for Super Nintendo. Those were the golden days of being a kid.
We went to church last night for the Christmas Eve service where it was mentioned briefly that amongst the gifts that came with unending life through Christ on the night He was born, was our celestial body awaiting us in paradise. This reminder stuck with me pretty hard while I sat there with my head ache, my stye, my ever worsening eyesight, my sore back, and my heart burn. I can't tell if I sound like a big baby or a seventy five year old man, but oh how I look forward to better days sometimes.
Back to the aforementioned topic of gifts, I'm going to re-live a moment from those golden days and make my "phone call", which will only work if you reply in the same way.
A painters easel.
The complete Calvin and Hobbes hardcover boxset.
An Atari with built in games.
A new Wilco shirt and Tweedy tour DVD.
Muswell Hillbillies on vinyl.
An electric fireplace heater.
Reservations for dinner and a hotel in San Diego.
Bulfinch's Mythology
1000 places to see before you die.
And a book about the art of the Disney imagineers.

Now it's your turn. If you want.

So Pine Summit, or Nazi Germany, as our little circle of ex-employees like to call it, has given my parents the ol' boot due to their need for more prisoner hou-, I mean staff housing. The date that Der Führer gave mom and dad was Feb. 1st. However my old man is going to sit tight until at least the first of March, so that they can look for a house to buy or build.
In the twenty years that I've spent growing up in that house, I've racked up a few memories, and I would think most of my friends have as well being that we spent the better part of our high school days there bbq-ing and watching movies and playing games. So we were thinking of having a little get together before they leave. One last hurrah, and then we'll burn it down. Or if you happen to be in town between now and then, we'll max out there until they leave, and then we'll fill the house up with styrofoam popcorn. Or something. Let us know.

Awesome

The word, to me, can have several meanings.
1. To be more than just cool. "Man, that's awesome."
2. Being or getting inebriated. "Let's get awesome!"
3. To be super super dumb, and evoke feelings of, "Man I hate this" and "Why am I here" and "I just want to die".

With respect to reason #3, work today was, well, awesome.

Gladden Christmas party...

...after many a Pennsylvania Dutch Egg Nog.

Please pardon the lack of light.

I'm looking for a Clark W. Griswmmnnn.

It's that time of year, again.


I stole the following from Lindsay. I had to. I'm a sucker for these things. And Lindsay, yours ruled. Particularly your birthday.

11 LAYERS OF YOU

LAYER ONE: ON THE OUTSIDE
Name: Matthew D. Pool.
Birth date: August 16.
Current Location: Big Bear.
Eye Color: Kind of brown on the outside, green inside.
Hair Color: Dark brown.
Righty or Lefty: Righty.
Zodiac Sign: Leo.

LAYER TWO: ON THE INSIDE
Your heritage: Irish, Italian, Danish and Welsh. My dad swears there's some African American too. I'll have to check on that one.
Your fears: Getting stuck in a long Taco Bell drive through, while having to pee.
Your weakness: Cream Cheese.
Your perfect pizza: The Vato from Maggios (shrimp, ham, roni, jalapeno, onion, cilantro).
Goal you'd like to achieve: Make a living.

LAYER THREE: YESTERDAY, TODAY, TOMORROW:
Your thoughts first waking up: First, I'm going to slit those dog's vocal cords, then I'm going to burn them alive. And watch. Over a beer.
Your best physical feature: My double chin.
Your bedtime: In bed about 10:30, sudoku or book until 11:15ish.
Your most missed memory: Right now, Christmas as a kid.

LAYER FOUR: YOUR PICK:
Pepsi or Coke: Diet A&W.
McDonald's or Burger King: Taco Bell.
Single or group dates: Group dates? Like me with my wife and Rosie? Sure.
Adidas or Nike: Vans.
Lipton Tea or Nestea: Tetley.
Chocolate or vanilla: Dark chocolate
Cappuccino or coffee: Double vanilla soy latte.

LAYER FIVE: DO YOU?
Take a shower: Usually every month.
Have a crush? YES!
Think you've been in love: It's known.
Want to get married? Too late.
Believe in yourself: Often enough.
Think you're a health freak: Every month, for about a day and a half.

LAYER SIX: IN THE PAST MONTH
Gone to the mall: Does the Big Bear mall couNT HAHAHA?! no.
Been on stage: Once. We're slacking.
Been dumped: Nope
Gone skating: Skateboarding, for about 45 seconds.
Dyed your hair: With wet concrete? Yup.

LAYER SEVEN: HAVE YOU EVER
Played a stripping game: Like making candy canes? Sure.
Gotten beaten up: A homie punched me real hard once. Ask me sometime, I'd love to tell the story.
Changed who you were to fit in: I had alot to drink one time, and told some dudes that I liked them and their music, which I don't, very much.

LAYER EIGHT: GETTING OLD
Age your hoping to be married: Why is this under "Getting Old"? C'mon.
Age you wanna have kids: Between now and 31.

LAYER NINE: IN A GIRL/GUY
Best eye color: Brown
Best hair color: Dark.
Short or long hair: Long. I've come around.

LAYER TEN: WHAT WERE YOU DOING
1 MINUTE AGO: Thinking about when I want to have kids.
1 HOUR AGO: Doing some online Christmas shopping for the wife.
1 YEAR AGO: At this very moment? Not sure. Maybe pooping.

LAYER 11:FINISH THE SENTENCE
I LOVE: The ol' lady.
I FEEL: Like having a coctail, a Colorado Bulldog, real soon.
I HATE: Stupid, not smart, dumb ass little dogs.
I HIDE: A hammer under my bed, until I buy a gun.
I MISS: The Talbots, the Chapmans, Ty Watts, Rosie, Suz, the Blacks (all of them), Zack, beer, the shaggin wagon, Disneyland, Screeching Weasel, paintball, the tooth fairy, jr. high, King's Quest 5, Buck (the dog), Buck (the Matt), Chicago, concerts, crossing the line, 94.7 the wave, Norpain, and Nintendo. And probably a few more things.
I NEED: To do my fafsa.

Thanks.

"It would be easy to write a couple of fraudulent pages out of contrast between this shining spring day, the ripening fruit, the chicks filling plumply out in the barnyard, the rising wheat-and death at our elbow. I shall not write that couple of pages because I see no reason why the peace of a spring day should constitute a contradiction of the idea of death. Why should the sweetness of life be a matter for irony?" Antoine De Saint-Exupery, Flight to Arras
-a

I am depleted

And that doesn't even begin to describe it. But I'm stuck here at work for two more hours, thus, I blog. There are some days when music just sounds better. Today was, and is one of those beautiful days. Why is that? Could it be that these just happen to be the days when we slow down and listen? I mean really listen. There is always music. Always. Consuming the silence. And seldom do I hear it. Today I do. In particular a track called Feb. 14 from Drive by Truckers, and Don't Come Around Here No More from Mr. Petty, and what is fast becoming my new favorite record, a little piece called Muswell Hillbillies from The Kinks. They're good to me.
Back to being depleted, and that not even beginning to describe it, we did Disneyland yesterday with Nick and Laura, and got it done. We did Space Mountain, Splash Mountain, Pirates*, Jungle Cruise, Thunder Mountain, and picked up fast passes for Indiana Jones. That was all before lunch, which was at the Pizza Port. We then did Indiana Jones, went over to California Adventure, did Tower of Terror**, ate ice cream, met Jen and Shant, did California Screamin', Maliboomer, went back to Disneyland, did The Haunted Mansion***, The Tiki Room, followed by dinner in Downtown Disney, followed by the long ass drive back to Big Bear. So with that as well as work at 8am today, work being digging and installing a fence, I am depleted.

* I thought the changes were quite subtle, and this made me happy.

** Apparently there are 50 some possible variations of this attraction that one might experience. The one I got ruled!

*** This was my first Nightmare Before Christmas Haunted Mansion experience, and I was very impressed.

A big day for the donkey.

Due to the election results there have been a few things bouncing around the ol’ cabeza. A little change could be exciting. We shall see. Will the media, by and large leaning left, put some sort of halt to the doom and gloom economic predictions and the consistently negative reporting of the war in Iraq? And why is it that when an elephant wins, it’s due to corruption and cheating, and demanding a re-count? Just thoughts. Trust me, there’s no side taking. Actually, I’ve been leaning lately toward a sort of independent/libertarian fusion type of thing. Sometimes. Local results? I’m 50/50. Jessica’s law passed. That’s nice. Eminent domain, not so much, and that’s not nice. And what’s the deal with Parental notification? 80% support in the polls a week ago, and now nothing. Weird. Anyway, the first female Speaker of the House is elected. That’s cool. I’ve always thought that she looks like an aged Kate Beckinsale. And I like the College Access For All part of her Six for ’06, among other parts. So that’s that.

I’m trying that fruit detox fast for a couple days. Today is day one, and while I was out in the field spotting tree’s and shooting grades for a plot plan, I got the shakes. I heard you get weak but then it’s supposed to turn into energy. We’ll see. There is a tray of bread with this sauce that you put on top sitting next to me right now and I’m about to lose my mind. I will power through this. I will prevail.

Lost tonight.

"Ever’thing in Winston Salem is aginst th’ law

I’ma low pay daddy singin’ th’ high price blues."

More true than you know. Know what else is?

"I don't even care to shake these zipper blues, And we don't know,
Just where our bones will rest, To dust I guess."

Sorry. iTunes on shuffle. I'll stop.

Just an update. Nothing focused.

It get's dark early, and for the first time in my life, I don't mind it. What's the deal?

Remember this guy?



I carved him into my pumpkin, because he makes me laugh.

So Halloween is the night when 5th, 6th, and 7th grade girls dress up like harlots and hookers and walk around freezing their uncovered asses off all night. I forgot. I remember now. I can't wait to be a dad. Sweat pants and sweat shirts will be worn, covered with towels, and then a tarp, until the age of 18... I joke, but seriously.

We saw "The Prestige" last night. It's quite good. And Christian Bale is a great actor, and hot to Amber. And to me. Amber's hot to me too. They both are.

John Kerry is kind of a boob. Kind of a booby.

KBHR 93.3 The Bear acually had a good streak this afternoon. Short-lived, but good. It was Fleetwood Mac, followed by Ryan Adams, followed by Aimee Mann, followed by the song "mushaboom" by Feast. Yes, she said Feast, and that was the end of it.

Lost tonight.

Get informed.

I think that's it for now.

How was everyone's November first?