this morning the snail shell on my window sill had moved 5mm.

Laura, you were over here about an hour ago picking up your widely dispensed clothing and bottles of such and shit. Anyway. I feel like your new man has this secret silent lingo that you just absorb through wherever you may be placing your hands. It kind of weirds me out.
Just because. I thought he would be the usual wiry if enthusiastic boy. Turns out you weren't kidding when you said he hits people for a living. And flies around in helicopters and drinks Jaeger straight from the bottle.

So last night while playing Pictionary with some new friends and old ones too, my brother's friend Michael kept telling me how different I am from my boy-half. And Tyson pipe's up that it's because I'm "badass." Which more or less led to a few minutes today of time wasted searching the definition of "badass" on urban dictionary (too much?)- to make the circle full here Laura, I think this man you keep bringing around fits the definition that the time-wasters of the world came up with more than I ever really could.
Not really sure what the point of this ramble is. Maybe its just that I'm bad at saying what I mean, even when the time is right. Maybe it's that I don't really know any boy who's ass I couldn't kick if it came to it.

Sabo ran into another mutual boy-friend on her way home a few minutes ago. Equally scrawny, same values of passion over success as every other person I know these days. Just got dumped by his significantly younger girlfriend. Sarah gave him some chips. Lucky for the rest of the world, he will probably write a great song about this.

stab in the dark.

 so tired i am so shaking. 

so tired that riding the bus home with Z we cackled at top volume about how she should just write her research paper about the identity of Batman. Since everyone's so concerned with identity. How she would spend the first 3098 words leading up to the final two: BRUCE WAYNE.
At this point in my sanity I cannot even consider something worthwhile if it is not tongue in cheek. Luckily I already think everything is hilarious.

Anyway about last night. Made another friend named Sarah. She was dressed as the Guggenheim museum and yelling about Marx outside the front doors. Somebody said her costume was too obscure and I punched him in the face, verbally. Art parties continue to be ridiculous, in case you were wondering. Saw the Virgin Mary with a glowing heart, saw a man in a suit wearing a zebra head, saw Jesus Christ, saw a Lichtenstein, I think I glimpsed Frida in the beer queue. Saw three people in identical platinum wigs singing out of tune and limply clapping their hands. I knew them, they walked me home at three in the morning. Somehow the walk took a lifetime and we spent half of that life talking about Malevich. Why is it that the only times people really want to talk about art is when they are outrageously intoxicated? Except for you Laura. You know how to push my white-on-white buttons.

Success: Remembering the name of the architect who built the World Trade Center
Failure: forgetting that Islam came after Rome. DUH

cold cold cold

Having cravings for brussel sprouts and beef, previously my two least favourites. I think it has something to do with Maddy coming around with her gung-ho family farm ethics. That woman may just change the world. I've been feeling extra-introverted lately. Or something. Anyway I've been hiding in the furthest corners of the  library, where they have forgotten to put seats.
Still obsessively taking pictures. Still waiting for inspiration to knock be down with regards to this research paper thing. Still wondering where these bruises came from. (subtle)

Broke Trust in Two- Now No-Ones Looking Out For You

Somewhere I got addicted to mashups.  Probably angry enough for how I feel about this material I'm supposed to be writing. I mean, how does he think anyone will care about how the sensibilities of the architectural firm changed after 1965?

I think I'm going to be the Log Lady for Halloni. Nice news, there could potentially be like five separate Halloween celebrations this year if people were to play the cards right (is that an ancient reference to tarot?)
Halloni is the pretentious art-side of Halloween, in which all the visual arts kids show off how much more creative they are than everyone else, the art historian snicker amongst themselves in the corner, the theatre kids get wildly drunk and pontificate and the music kids show up for ten minutes then go home to rest their voices/ bow fingers.
Last night I held the door to the humanities building for a man with multiple boxes and a bag with arrow tails sticking out. Today there were reports of poaching in the neighbourhood, by crossbow. Seems almost too ironic, but the arrows described were not the same as the ones sticking out of this boyos bag.

I think I am obsessed with developing photos. Going to take several day break from the darkroom to collect myself. Since I don't own a camera anyway. This is temporary Ritchie.

bah bah black sheep

I'm here now. After my 4 marimba gig weekend. Started friday with a gig at the Marine Biological Station. Remember going there back in the day for a field trip? Went back friday. Potluck was good and the view from the place at evening and night was down right beautiful. It's nice to see nanaimo from a different point of view. Kind of like seeing a new place in a area you thought you knew. Plus, as it is, I want to take Cyrus there too. There this miniature list of places I want to take him.

Now comes saturday and we played the market in qually. Got there just before 8 and played until 12:30. I had a... overpriced, but tasty none the less celery/ginger/apple something.... juice. Oh, and lime. It was weird tasting, but good tasting. Have you guys been buying things that have been too expensive but you buy them anyways?!?! The two people who were selling the stuff were nice smiling, young looking people. I thought I would support them.

Couple hours later, left for Quadra. Ever been to Quadra? The place is surprisingly breathtaking. Heriot Bay Rebecca spit :

We drove out far as we could and half the band went swimming. The water was cold, and as I am not so much a random, throw-it-to-the-wind swimmer, my entire body did not touch the clear water. Who cares though. The sunset was sooooo crazy nice and everything seemed perfect for the night it was. We billeted that night, and the family I stayed with (along with carm, nat and elizabeth) was Nathan and Amber and their three kids. They had a young baby and another along the way. The man of the house (nathan) was a pastor at the local church (but a young one) and we stayed up until 11 just talking. Talking about how they chose to move to quadra (they came from saskatchwan), how they met ( bible college in saskatchewan), they fed us nachos and ice tea  and we felt like a very special bunch of girls. I had a cold night sleep though and the morning came slower then I wanted it to. We woke up to fresh bread/coffee and a baby mimicking whatever we did.  That being said, all things come to an end, we packed up, and said our goodbyes. We made our way to our 930 show. 

This is the funny part. We played on this stage that author Ken Kesey built (one flies over the cuckoo's nest) and that the Grateful dead played on. The guys on Quadra, brought over the stage from Oregon or something. It was mighty windy though. So windy that you saw the clouds of dirt fly over everything else.

We left the island with hitchhiker from israel named Noah. She was hilarious and 25. She also forgot her water bottle full of tea in the van we later discovered. I'm maybe going to mail it down to her if I ever know where she is. She's was on her way to Victoria.

We played one more show in parksville, by the resorts. I had a weird tasting green tea latte and by the end of the day I'm feeling just out of it. Just closing my eyes from how heavy my eyelids were while playing and surprising myself with playing without mistakes. I'm going to be teaching senior and after school classes at the art center in parksville and I'm trying to nudge one of the other members to help me out. I don't want to do it alooooone. 

That's it. I'm here now at home, eating a bowl of cereal and wanting to record my weekend, so I thought I'd do it here.

Someones in the forest and the other is someplace else.

It's night time here in my little corner. I was just experimenting with this thing I heard that a chocolate cake mix and a can of pumpkin puree make some alright muffins. The test subjects are in the oven as I speak, the batter doesn't taste anything different though and I've been craving chocolate all night.

This last weekend we had an intense band day, so intense that my hands ended with blisters that pained me in the aftermath- shower (soap burns). Market in the morning and then straight to nanaimo to play on Newcastle Island for a wedding. We had to put all the instruments on a boat with this guy who seemed a bit broken hearted that he wasn't invited to the wedding, but boasted that he was neighbors with the family of the bride. He's one of those characters that you respect, because of his stance of an all around good guy. Retired firefighter, good smile and that will to just help out. I hope his life is a a good one. I really do. I meet people and I can just see that how they live their lives, that they just deserve a good one. Mind you, we're all blessed to be living in the life we all have, but I guess that's all by chance.

I wish I could do backflips off of shit

I hate guys who wear white pants, but love people who make french fries with seasoning salt.

Girls. It's been exciting in a weird way. The other night I got home from 6 nights of travelling around with the band. We busked in Richmond.. Kelowna and did three days at this festival in Penticton. We played in the VIP beer garden (because I don't think the organizers realized who we were and what we did) and it was satisfying knowing that there was people coming up to telling us that we should have been on the main stage. The same stage Sam Roberts, Jesse Cook and WAR played on. Felt good.

Both cars had problems during the trip. I ate the most baby tomatos I've ever had in my life. We met this young guy (young guy being our age) who played Flamenco Style guitar and I wanted to ask if he knew of Gareth. I'm convince that all young men who play guitar like that should know each other. Maybe they can become best friends.

 Didn't though. I might one day though. There's a chance that we're going back to Penticton next weekend to play another show( to play after/before 54/40?)  and work the market. Man, the farmers market there is huge. Do you know how rich I'll be after that?

 ALSO.Theses guys that sound pretty impressive and consider themselves "island rock" wants to collaborate with us.  That's the first the band ever encountered that question. We feel pretty fancy too, because they're putting Kumbana on the guestlist for their show in nanaimo? or victoria. Who knows.

What else... We played Kulth the weekend before last. The boom booms were good. I don't know if I'm in love with the voice of the lead singer man, but the stage presence is great. I wish I had that spirit.

"So we took apart a rat and rebuilt it as a jellyfish"

That is literally how the radio interview I was listening to just began. A bioengineering prof at Harvard has created a jellyfish that is, by all genetic accounts and purposes, a rat. It's called 'reverse engineering', and they have plans to try to attempt the same thing on stingrays, octopii, ect. Can you imagine how confused this  animal-thing would be, and how odd and surreal you would feel creating it in a lab setting? You would feel like Dr. Frankenstein, albeit with access to shinier, more sterile operating tools.

I'm at home right now, waiting for the shoulder to mend. I walked up a mountain two days ago and shared my lunch with a curious Grey Jay and my dog. Today I went to the local graveyard and walked around the tombstones and recognized all the local names and felt appropriately discombobulated for the setting. A week ago, I went to the National Energy Board hearing on Enbridge and listened to several moving speeches. Many Aboriginal elders, on shaky legs and wearing headdresses beaded in bright colours for them by their daughters and granddaughters, unfurled large genealogical charts and watershed maps. The room smelled like moosehide, and more than one person was in tears.

The photo above is of realgar, an arsenic compound. I didn't take the picture myself; it's available online. Realgar is jet-pink, with orange streaks; when exposed to light and air, it dissolves slowly into a dust called orpiment. This will streak your hands and boots and clothing with crayon-bright colour; it becomes an easy thing, to forget the more poisonous properties of realgar.

Hopefully, my shoulder assessment will be positive on Thursday, and I can do various horrible, destructive things to my shoulder brace and return to work.

I don't want to head back to school, man, and return to grey skies. It's been preying on my mind.

A man in Utah was spotted gamboling around on a cliff, dressed in a goat costume, surrounded by a herd of the real thing. It was assumed that he was eccentric and crazy, but he turned out to just be a hunter making sure that his outfit didn't scare off the animals during hunting season.
    



 

wanna get married?