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.