BBQ & Temple of Boom

yesterday was the Temple of Boom thanksgiving sunday barbeque at the shop, plus in the backyard garden area. temple of boom is a record shop on melrose, probably my favorite in the city. the bbq started at 2pm, but i wasn't in a rush to get there because i thought it would be people just relaxing. i got there around 7:30 and the place is losing it. about 70 people crammed in a shop the size of yoshitoshi (they share a lot of other similarities, too). mampi swift is playing with mc ic3, who both headlined at bassrush the previous evening. i could hardly believe how much everyone was having it. people brock out here, hard. i left that place real happy, ic3 gave me a teebee live mix cd.

tonight i chilled with eric metro, smoked bud, drank sapporo, and watched the best of snl dana carvey and mike meyers.

i applied for a few more jobs today, one of which was a freelance job designing a local rap artists cover album, hahaha. i hope i get that one.

Bassrush @ Club Utopia

just got back from club Utopia where there was Bassrush, the enormous drum & bass massive.

before going to bassrush i met claire and jane at an art show in a loft just east of the 110, in the industrial area of town. apparently this artist dude lives in this huge loft there where he hosted this art show. the theme of the show was "Peaceful Warriors", and it was essentially an anti-war statement with all of the art being on the canvas of military fatigues. all over the white walls of this loft were camo jackets hung up with the artwork on the back exposed. some of them were pretty nice, one in particular was made with 3 stencils and spray paint. it was a 3-dimensional image of the statue of liberty, which was crying a tear of blood. oh sweet sensational politically-inspired artwork. i had a few minutes to speak with the organizer of the show, he was kind of a heavy, haggard, kevin-smith/che guevara looking guy. i asked him about the show and the theme, and he in so many words said rage against the machine, in true los angeles fashion. well, that's just, like, your opinion, man.

onto bassrush. the place was huge, it reminded me of the dc armory. it was different with it being all drum & bass though, i guess i'm used to having different rooms with their own style of music playing.

at one point i'm chilling by the bar with some friends and in the corner of my eye i see this girl passed out lying on this couch in a corner. some people tried to get her up, but quickly gave up and walked away, and the girl was still passed out. a few minutes passed and people kept looking at her, until i got told a security guard that there was a girl passed out there. one of his security buddies checked her out, then two more came, and then one more. so now there are 5 security guards trying to get her up, meanwhile everyong standing around thinks she's dead or something. she finally gets up after 10 minutes with their help, and the security dude shook my hand and said thank you. i'm glad she didn't die. that probably would've majorly harshed everyones buzz. you're entering a world of pain.

anyway. pendulum was sick. serious dancefloor business. they seem to be good at making pretty melodic tech step. it's tech step, but they incorporate short and catchy melodies that stick in your head. they would probably make for a decent cell phone ring tone. far fucking out, man.

i checked out san andreas from the local blockbuster this afternoon when it was raining. the game is dope, but i haven't adjusted to being able to play video games for more than maybe 90 minutes at a time, yet. i get fatigued, bored, and restless. obviously, you are not a golfer.

everyday i notice how trendy this place and these people are. i get the feeling that styles and trends change here along with the wind direction. practically everyone had one of those 'junglist/hip hop' beanies with the small bill turned sideways and a hoody on. rockstar shit is also really popular here. everyone wants to look like a 70's british rock star, wearing studded belts and converse all stars with emo glasses. you're goddamn right i'm living in the fucking past!

god bless walter sobechak and el duderino.

currently listening to: marley - burnin' and lootin'

Barcade & Venice

just got back from Barcade in koreatown, it's 2:30am pacific time. goddamn this place fuckin rules. tuesday night and its on and crackin' at this hidden old arcade that's an underground club. it's on a completely empty street in the middle of nowhere and they serve drinks out of an old fridge.

i moved into the new spot this evening in venice beach. the guy that i rented from loaned me a beach cruiser, also. i'm here for 17 more days until the 10th of december, and then i either want to go to san diego or back to scottsdale. free place to stay in scottsdale, and that place is great, or i can check out a new scene in san diego. we'll see.

i got the nintendo ds yesterday. it's a huge waste of time. and now i have plenty of time to waste.

life is grand.

Going Away Party Photos

photos from going away party:

http://share.shutterfly.com/action/share/welcome?i=EeAtG7di5aNWE1&x=1&sm=1&sl=1

http://sideshowbob.darkravers.net/five110604/index.html

Santa Monica

been a while since i've updated this thing. well, here i am in santa monica. i'm on 3rd st promenade, which is the most happening area on the west side that i know about. lots of street performers, big crowds, free wi-fi everywhere. several districts of LA have state-provided free internet which rules.

the drive across the country was more fun than i thought it'd be. billy and i left VA at the same time but we had some disagreements in florida so we split up. i made it here to LA last night just in time for candyce's birthday party which was a lot of fun. more people than last year, the place was absolutely packed. ran into some people that i haven't seen for a year or so, which was a good time.

i wrote in my moleskine everyday that i was on the road, about all the little things that happened. i don't want to reiterate everything here, but i stopped in a few cities and spent a day or two hanging out. most notably atlanta, new orleans, austin texas, and phoenix and tucson arizona. got completely drunk on bourbon street in new orleans, got stung by a bee while driving 100mph in el paso texas, and rode dirtbikes and 4-wheelers on desert tracks in phoenix. the landscape and scenery of the countryside really exceeded my expectations. almost every stretch of the country was absolutely beautiful, and really varied. from the swamps and bayous of louisiana on the gulf to the tumbleweed and cacti in arizona. sedona was really beautiful, i plan to go back there and back to phoenix around the beginning of december. i hung out with my friend corey there who's apparently doing really well. i don't know if i have any friends who have as many toys as he does. wrx sti, dirtbike, 4-wheeler, townhouse with a garage. smooth living. scottdale arizona has more money than any place i've ever seen, except for beverly hills. on one block near his place there are ferrari, bentley, rolls royce, and porsche dealerships.

i'm thinking about getting a ds today. i know that it's basically a stupid waste of money. my thinking is that if i get one and don't like it i can sell it to matthew in china because i know he wants one and can't get it over there.

i'm going to go now.

Foiled by Panera Bread Co.

this panera free wi-fi is pretty cool. although it blocks SA.

URL: http://www.somethingawful.com/
Reason for restriction: Forbidden Category "Adult/Mature Content"

Last day in Turks

9:01am Thursday, the last full day here in the turks. i'm lying in bed typing on my laptop, i can't really say that i have a lot of energy. lots of drinking last night, there was a foam party here. probably the most fun i've had in the evening at this place, the psuedo nightlife scene here sucks pretty badly. for a while i actually held the idea that i should look into getting a job at a club med like my sister did. i think that idea has been squashed now, just witnessing the shit that employees have to do here. like dress up in funny hats and dance around on stage and do all manner of ridiculous shit for the entertainment of guests. they had a dj last night, i popped in the booth and made a few requests. i think he was french. he didn't know what deep house was, didn't know what funky house was, or naked music or miguel migs, but he knew what house music was, so i asked if he could play that. he said sure and then played hip hop. which brings me to my next point: everyone here is french. it's like french is the official language at club med, and not english. some of the women are super fine, and most of the ones i've spoken to are french or canadian and hardly speak any english. i think there's only one absolute ten on the island and she's with some dude 15 years older than her.

tomorrow when we leave we fly to miami where we have a 5-hour layover. during that time david, my sister, and myself are going to hang out in south beach. evidently they're thinking about buying a small condo there in south beach. the place is $200k which is pretty reasonable but i hear that it's also quite small. of course i'm doing everything within my power as brotherly advisor to recommend that they make a purchase. not only so i have a free place to stay at wmc, but that would also be nice. talking about south beach reminds me how pleasant and nice that place is. i don't know what it would be like to spend an extended amount of time there, but it's certainly among the best vacation destinations i've been to in the contiguous united states.

the laptop shipped two days ago and should be delivered today. looking forward to picking it up when i get home and delivering and configuring this one for their use. i'll probably just uninstall most of the programs which they won't have a need for or won't know how to use, and copy my files onto the usb key. i've taken a bunch of sequenced photos here which i'm looking forward to stitching together, if only i had photoshop cs here. technically i don't need cs to stitch them, but using the wizard that cs provides makes everything easier and cleaner than doing them by hand.

Awful Quote

today i came across a quote about love on something awful. i'm not sure where it's from, but it was posted to console a goon whos girlfriend of 2.5 years cheated on him:

Realize that falling in love with someone is just the results of a series of generic events that can occur between you and basically anyone who meets your standards of attractiveness. It's just an emotional manifestation of a handfull of chemicals bouncing back and forth. It's not the holy grail of living, it's not your reason to exist and it's definitely not something reserved for "that one person". It's just chocolate. Find a new bar.

last day at work.

currently listening to: server white noise. for the last time!