constancy

I have so much to do. I like what I'm doing.

using lolcats for my feelings

The Puritan Dilemma

"As the sea-weary company of men and women looked ashore at the straggling collection of huts and hovels and canvas booths that went by the name of Salem, they must have been staggered by the crudity of the life that lay ahead of them. The land was lovely but savage. Only a few hundred acres were cleared: beyond lay the forest, and they had seen for themselves how the huge trees came down to the shore along the coast to the north and east."

working on

Working On A Dream came out today, and you know, I like it. You can listen to it, for free (!) on Bruce's myspace.

I'm currently at my first day of work, and it's okay for me to be on the internet just doing my business, how cool.

I'm about to get started researching for my graphic design project, I have to research Thievery Corporation and make a couple roughs for possible concert posters for when they play at Ram's Head Live. It's cool to have a real world assignment with a real client.


oh, the heat broke in the apartment today, so hopefully that will get taken care of soon.


BEST OF ALL BRUCE IS TOURING! AHHH!
Fingers Crossed, I will FINALLY get to go.

satuday sundaze

Yesterday Andrew took me to the Book Thing in Greenmount. It was cool to finally be able to go, after having heard so much about it. I was really impressed with the selection of available books, all for free and by the ingenuity of the entire operation. It's volunteer operated and all the books are donated. I like that there is this circulation of available knowledge. It's not a library but more a means of starting your own.

Anyway, I got some awesome finds. National Geographics from the first half of 1962, with all of the wonderful saturated colors and funny imagery. A ton of american history books and national geographic books from the 1970s about cowboys, american backwoods and the south. My favorite acquisitions though were definitely the smaller bound books from the 40s and 50s.
I love when there's writing sporadically throughout used books, it's like sharing something with whoever was reading it half a century ago.







Today I have to read this for my American Intellectual History Class.

apple scruffs

can't get this song out of my head

also, i really dig the album cover, it reminds me of zhivago a little bit, and of when my parents were in college

what is this lady gaga?

I am baffled. I'm surprised they didn't have this on the rotation when I worked in the mall.

obama sick day, obama snow day, obama okay

I was on the commuter train to DC that was scheduled right before Obama's train, so when we stopped in Philadelphia, we pulled up on the platform adjacent to the inaugural caboose! Which was so cool, decorated just like every historical photograph I'd ever seen. It was so refreshing to see the outpouring of hope and general well wishing along the rest of the ride to Baltimore. Every town we rode through, and even emptier spots along the track, there were men and woman and families all lined up waving American flags and just flat out excited to see Barack Obama on the way to the White House. I couldn't help but feel overwhelmed thinking that I was witnessing history, and that I was a part of history. When I arrived at Baltimore Penn Station, there was a ton of Obama and Biden supporters and commemorative memorabilia at the news stand. On a frigid Saturday morning, there were absolutely no cabs, but what seemed to be a bunch of secret service vehicles.

Since then, it's been good to be back. Really good to be with everyone. Extra good. However, It's been so incredibly cold, snowy, and I've caught a pretty gnarly cold, which since yesterday has been doing a number on my immune system. First classes of this semester tomorrow, can't wait.

I am excited for the changes to come.

two days to go

I just want to listen to E-40 and Van Halen today. There is this really good Nirvana documentry on VH1 classic. I have a lot to do before heading back to Baltimore, will I get any of it done?

mundane

I really enjoy getting things done. Running errands in the middle of the day with the rest of the world makes me feel accomplished in a strange sort of way. Like today, I went to the tailor and got a pair of jeans tapered and shortened and felt really good afterwords. I also love going to the drug store. Specifically mom n' pop five n' dimes in small town. There's one in Lavallette that still has the same stock from the 80s, ie- awesome finds.

I was in CVS for an extended period of time the other day, and found the weird kind of five and dime section of the beauty area. Some of the best packaging and random assortment of supplements and potions I'd seen in a while were there. I was particularly interested in this bottle of Shark Cartilage (?) and this really antiquated looking product that was "For the Hair".

fighting the proverbial man

I thought this video was really beautiful. Everyone looks so cool.
The lighting and the angles are really nice, everyone and everything looks crisp and sharp, but still remain soft and distant.
YouTube surprises rule.

Today was rough. Tomorrow will be better.

this is going to be such a monday

I can't sleep.

I would really like to read

Today, I'm just busy doing nothing.

recently and regularly

I've been looking at and thinking about a lot of Edward Hopper paintings.
Most specifically Rooms by the Sea and Second Story Sunlight .
I have more to say about them, and my affection for Hopper, but I am too drained at the moment to be remotely eloquent, about anything.

perfect

wings for wheels

I know it sounds really corny when people start talking about albums changing their lives, but in all honesty, Born To Run changed mine.

Growing up in a small city in New Jersey, you always heard about Bruce Springsteen. I always kind of dismissed it. Don't get me wrong, it wasn't because it was what my uncles were listening to. I've always respected their tastes and have had a fondness for classic rock. I just couldn't tell you why. Maybe it's because the one Springsteen record in my possession at the time was Born In The U.S.A. I don't know. But anyway,

Last year when I went away to school in Baltimore, I had this funny homesickness. I bought Born to Run, with the idea of this album being what I wanted to think about when I thought of New Jersey. I just sat there in my dorm room and listened, for hours, on repeat. It was more than what I could have ever expected. Songs about leaving, songs about something more, songs about friendship. I guess I am being kind of a cheeseball now. But all this presented with a beautifully touching grittiness that just got to the core of things for me. It's like with every song I could smell the ocean air, feel that desperation and not feel alone at the same time. And thus began my love affair with Bruce Springsteen. My brother likes to joke and call me a "Bruceologist" from time to time.

For Christmas this year with my Italian half of the family (we do two Christmas celebrations), we had a Secret Santa. Uncle Bob, who as I get to know better just becomes more interesting, got me the Born To Run 30th Anniversary Edition box set. With the Album, a DVD of the Hammersmith Live, and Wings For Wheels: The Making Of Born To Run. I've been watching Wings For Wheels a lot since I got it. It's really interesting to me to see the preciseness of the construction and production of the album, sonically and lyrically. When Bruce and the E Street band talk about what they were trying to convey, it was like this affirmation that I got it. When I listened, I got what they were trying to say, you know? I don't know, it was just really wonderful to have that kind of feeling.

The box set rules, I definitely recommend it to any Springsteen fan.


This is a screenprint I made two semesters ago, edition of eleven, one of my favorite pieces