9.29.2005
[Essentially] what I do in a vault underground
Sorry about your face
Don't get it twisted, y'all! Ebony--who I never thought was attractive to begin with--got ousted last night on ANTM. Maybe if she had taken one good picture, she would have beaten plus-sized latina Diane. Best picture last night--Nicole. Runner-up--Nik. My money's still on Lisa for the win.
To get you up to speed, some young Hollywood actor is a homo who has been seen around town being all kissy face w/ boys (or, at least one boy in particular).
9.28.2005
Brought to you by the letter K
Big ups to my girl K for pointin' me to this site. Apparently, Puberty: The Movie will be coming (ahem) out sometime next year. It features Joe Lo Truglio of "The State" and Wet, Hot American Summer, Todd Barry who is wikkid funny, David Wain also of "The State" and "Stella", and Eugene Mirman who is kinda funny.
9.27.2005
I <3 TV
I never really think of myself as a TV person, but here it is, the beginning of the fall season, and I find myself entranced by the glowing light box.
Last night's Arrested Development sealed the deal--this is the funniest show that has ever been on television. The set-ups are funny, the payoffs are funny. Everything goes for the joke and few (if any) miss the mark. Will Arnett as GOB was definitely my favorite last night. Not as much Lucille as I generally like, but Buster's hand in the dishwasher was (another) stroke of genius. I've been waiting with bated breath for Scott Baio's return to the small screen (he was recently in the abhorrent Cursed) and next week, he'll join the cast the Bluth family's new lawyer--Bob Loblaw. And, in case you're bored at work, check out this funny site erected for the shows debut.
You know what is different about my viewing habits this year? There is a communal element that has been missing since college. Matt and I watch Arrested Development on Mondays. Kelley and I watch Gilmore Girls on Tuesdays. Bill, Cam, Derek, and I watch America's Next Top Model on Wednesdays. Its been really great to bond with people over a TV show, rather than just watching at home by myself and talking with people about them the next day.
I think that after So You Think You Can Dance? ends, I'll have to add Veronica Mars to my Wednesday night viewing. My much beloved Joss Whedon is doing a cameo in episode 3. Charisma Carpenter is joining the cast, and Allyson Hannigan is doing a guest spot.
Oh television, I love you so. (Much more than Wm. Steven Humphreys.)
9.26.2005
At the car wash, yeah
Lighter subjects: My weekend in review.
Friday night I hit up the War Room for Andy Caldwell. The usual suspects were there along with a ton of really annoying people. You know, the kind that elbow their way onto to the dancefloor just to stand around and talk. The kind that grind all up on the ladies then act pissed when they get rebuffed. I almost burned a girl's hair with my cigarette--twice. I often contend that the major reason for maintaining my smoking habit is to exact revenge on the dancefloor.
You know the crowd was annoying if Paul was screaming at some girl, "TRASH!! TRASH!!" Well, he said what all of us were thinking. The track selection was actually really good, and like K pointed out, it was like he was throwing away perfectly good music on total retards. Ah well, all nights can't be amazing, right?
Saturday day, did a bunch of nothin'. Tried to go shopping at Fred Meyer's but just got the feeling that all the people there were related to the people who were at the War Room. If you couldn't tell, I get peeved easily. That night K invited me to use an extra pass for the Decibel Festival. HELL YES!! Deadbeat was adorable wearing pants that were too big and a shirt that was too small. He chain smoked behind his laptop and smiled so big when the crowd applauded him. For me, he was a little too dub, and that's just not the kind of music you dance to (smoke to, maybe). Then came Akufen who threw the dirtiest basslines and bassiest kick drums right through me. It was one of those sets where your heartbeat takes on the beat of the music. If the bass had been any heavier, I'm sure people on the dancefloor would have evacuated their bowels. Here comes the lame part: I left early. I couldn't do it. I'm getting too old. I only made it through about forty-five minutes.
Sunday: Went to the car wash. One of the guys working there was scrubbing down the outside of the car before I went through. We made eye contact. I smiled. He smiled. I came out the other side and the towel boy is drying me off. Here comes the guy who was scrubbing me down. He asks me to roll down my window. I do. "I get off at 8:00," he says. "You should stop by around 8:15. My name is Francisco. What's yours?" Made. My. Day.
Did I return, you wonder? Did I go and have some hot car wash sex?
You know me better than that.
Y'know what I think is funny--how he knew I was gay. I mean, for me, I always feel like I have "FAG" tatooed across my forehead--but there was nothing, just a smile. Maybe I just have a gay face.
And, for your edification, a parody of the Paris Hilton car wash video.
9.21.2005
Community and lack thereof
9.20.2005
Developing Arrests
Last night I went over to Matt's for the season premiere of Arrested Development and both of us were pleased with the opener. Lucille, Buster, Michael, GOB, Lindsay, and the gang delighted us with their silly antics. My favorite line had something to do with a "dusty old claptrap." Seaward, indeed.
9.19.2005
Hell-curved-to-the-left
Friday. Went on third worst date ever. Upon returning from the restroom, my suitor asked me if I wanted to "bust a nut all over his face." Guh-ross.
Saturday. Caught up with Netflix movies.
Sunday. Brunch at the Wild Mountain Cafe with Geoff. Hellbent later that evening with Bill, Geoff, Cameron, and Cameron's sister Ashley. Then the Cuff with Bill, and finally Re-Bar.
First I'll give you my review of Hellbent. My expectations were low. Said expectations were met. There were also a couple clever constructs--like a glass eye. All in all, there wasn't enough boy-on-boy action although there was plenty of flesh. The gore was pretty good and the scares were non-existent. This is the longest review that a film of this caliber warrants.
Now, about the date.
9.15.2005
Tomorrow cancelled due to lack of interest
9.14.2005
Seedy does it
That, my friends, would be the Golden City. The first time I went to the Golden City, I was treated to a stabbing. This alone does not make the Golden City the dive-iest. It merely puts it in the company with the pre-hipster days Crescent. One time Maggie and some of her Elliot Bay cohorts had the same request as Bill. Dive-bar. Ballard. Go. As we arrived, an altercation between two drunken men was taking place outside the bar. The gang opted for the second seediest dive bar. Ah well, their loss.
Luckily, the bar lived up to the reputation on Saturday. Neither Bill nor myself were disappointed. The nicotine stained painting of a riverboat, replete with the Negroes playing the banjo, welcomed us. The bartendress was aged beyond her years from hard-living. An old man sat at a stool on one side of the bar. A middle aged woman at the other. His glasses were thick and rimmed with square black plastic. Her discman provided her with tunes (thankfully) inaudible to the rest of the bar. Both were well into their cups.
Bill and I ordered and grabbed a seat. We each chose songs for the jukebox. When Blue Oyster Cult's "Don't Fear the Reaper" came on, the woman at the bar ripped her headphones off and lazily exclaimed, "I love this fuckin' song!"
And she did, too. She gyrated and sang-along--when she remembered what she was doing.
She gyrated all the way to the old man who told her to, "Keep [her] filthy fuckin' harlot hands off of [him]." She was dejected then ejected. She tried to run back in, but the bartendress kept her at bay.
The next colorful character was a man selling steak and cheese from his backpack. Had I known that he had a block of Tillamook, I gladly would have purchased it from him. As it stood, the bartendress got to the booty well before me. Everyone passed on the steak, though. There;s just something a little oogy about purchasing beef out from someone's backpack.
The final person to grace us with his presence was an artist. A real live artist!! He was a poet, too. Well, more of a rapper. He had this Eminem schtick down. He regaled us with not one, not two, but three different poems. Each misogynistic and bigoted in its own unique way. He, apparently, was on drugs. ("My toxicology report would look like a phone book," he said multiple times.)
But that was about all I could take. Dive right in, everyone, the bar is fine.
Kiss kiss, bang bang
| You're a Freaky Kisser |
When you kiss, you want to experience something new A new technique, a new partner, a new piercing... And your own personal kissing style is very unpredictable There's no saying where your tongue or hands will go |
9.08.2005
Evacuee vs. Refugee
I meant to post on this yesterday, but I'm glad I didn't. At the end of NBC's newscast yesterday, Brian Williams mentioned that they would be referring to the people left devastated and homeless after hurricane Katrina as "survivors" or "evacuees" rather than "refugees." Article here. Apparently, some people wrote in bothered by the word refugee.
Fuck Jesse Jackson and his belief that the word refugee has race implications!!
And fuck those right-wing, kumbayah singing, we're-all-gonna-make-it-through-this douche bags!
Oh my god, did I just say that?
Here's what I'm talking about.
From Dicitonary.com
refugee - One who flees in search of refuge, as in times of war, political oppression, or religious persecution.
Now let's look at the verbs on which these nouns are based.
refuge -
Protection or shelter, as from danger or hardship.
A place providing protection or shelter.
A source of help, relief, or comfort in times of trouble.
evacuate -
To withdraw from or vacate a place or area, especially as a protective measure.
To excrete waste matter from the body.
Sorry for that second definition of evacuate, but I can't resist referencing poop.
Anyway, I know that those people are thinking, We don't have refugees in our country! Refugees are those poor people we don't care about in Africa.
Well, guess what? We do have refugees. Perhaps if there had been more preventitive measures taken, and these people weren't surrounded by death and disease for over five days, we would merely have evacuees. The government fucked up. Across the board--fucked up. And, unlike Harry S. Truman, Bush's buck starts at the President's desk and gets passed to just about everyone. I see the change in words as a way in which these blind people are continuing to pass the buck and lessen the severity of the disaster. And the fact that the "liberal media" kowtows to these cross-huggin', bigoted fuck-ups only exacerbates the matter (and validates their screwed up beliefs).
We have refugees. We are not above having refugees. We need to focus on providing refuge.
In other news, Arnold has decided to veto the CA gay marriage bill. Woohoo! One small step (backwards) for mankind! I could go on about the principles of equality and our founding fathers' belief in a secualr government, but I'm sure other people have already done a better job than me. So I just want to say "Fuck you" to people like BoiFromTroy (Sept. 7th entry) and other self-hating queers that actually believe they can have a voice in a party whose constituents wish they didn't exist.
So, "Fuck you!"
And, you, gentle reader, thanks for listening to me bitch.
9.06.2005
Sunday is church
I've been itching to shake my ass for a few weeks now, and although I have attended two noteworthy shows (GusGus, Richie Hawtin), neither compares to the joy that is Flammable.
I didn't get off work until midnight on Sunday (Monday morning), but as a I drove up, the kick drum summoned me through the door. Matty, Dominique, David, and Jared were outside each sweaty from dancing and genrous with hugs.
The selections weren't the tightest, and Wesley was so blotto that Papa spun a few. For some reason, it didn't matter. The place was packed and after downing a couple of drinks, I was out on the floor. Moments later, I found Bill and the two of us tore up that old dancefloor.
Its really hard to describe how house music can change your mood. How it is much more than the kick drum and hi-hat. How dancing brings you closer to people and to community. Its hard to describe those things to someone who doesn't know it. So, I hope you come out sometime and experience it. I don't don't go to church as often as I should, but when I do, I gotta thank God for the music.
8.31.2005
8.29.2005
Trailer? I don't even know 'er
Just thought I'd do a post of the films to which I am looking forward that will be coming out sometime soon.
Jesus is Magic (11/11/05)- See previous post.
Brokeback Mountain (12/09/05)- You knew this was going to be on the list, right?
The Lion, the Witch, and the Wardrobe (12/09/05)- I loved these books as a child, and even the animated versions weren't so bad. I think this version looks great, even if scary ol' Disney is behind it. (Plus, Tilda Swinton as the White Witch.)
The Corpse Bride (9/16/05)- I'm not a really big Nightmare Before Christmas fan, but stop-animation is wikkid, hella cool.
Thumbsucker (9/16/05)- The book sucks. It sucks more than thumbs. I met Walter Kirn and he and his type drive me bonkers with their rugged Montana snobbery and married-to-Lois-Lane's-daughter haughtines. Mike Mills directs and it stars Tilda Swinton whom I adore. [Check out the Mike Mills link for some nifty videos.]
Serenity (9/30/05) - Uh. Yeah. You know I'm gonna see it. For everything that Kirn lacks in character development and plot, Whedon busts out in spades. I just had to poop on Kirn again--especially since he's been Andrew Sullivan's guest writer. Walter Kirn sucks (thumbs).
Rent (11/11/05)- I was all reluctant for this to be translated to film--especially when the rumor mill placed Beyonce and Justin Timberlake on the cast list. Thankfully, neither are in the film and nearly all the original cast reprise their roles (Daphne Rubin-Vega replaced by Rosario Dawson). Unfortunately, Chris Columbus directs--ouch!
A Scanner Darkly (March '06)- I loves me some Philip K. Dick. First off, check out his last name--hot! Secondly, he began to lose his mind--cool! And finally, he wrote some kick ass cyberpunk shit--nerds of the world unite! Add to that the amazing animation utilized in Waking Life, Keanu and Winona, and I think we've got a winner!!
Everything is Illuminated (9/16/05) - Um. I sort of have a thing for Elijah Wood. I know, its gross, but I can't help it. I think maybe it happened when his lifeless body slid down an icy street after being electrocuted in The Ice Storm. Liev Schrieber directs (!?!?). The book was pretty good--and you can read that as "way better than anything Walter Kirn ever put on paper."
Hellbent (9/16/05)- Gay horror movie. 'Nuff said.
Did I miss anything? What movies are you guys looking forward to? And what's up w/ all the movies coming out on Sept. 16?
8.24.2005
Like a throat culture, only lower
8.22.2005
Big Three-Oh-Oh--Oh Yeah!
I know you think that I've just been bullshitting. I know that you think that I'll just be here in stoopid ol' Seattle for my thirtieth birthday, but you're wrong!! I will be in Machu Picchu, and I want you to come with me.
So if you're one of my eight friends who read this blog (see results of polling), and you might be interested in a trip to the Incan ruins of Machu Picchu, fire me an e-mail. I'm gonna try and get this whole thing going.
Here's the tentative plan:
Saturday July 1, 2006 depart for Lima.
Sunday July 9, 2006 return to Seattle.
I've been pricing flights on-line and roundtrip to Peru is around $750.
I'm thinking take the train up. Stay in Aguas Calientes for 2 nights. Be in Machu Picchu for 3 days--one of which will be my birthday, and spend the rest of the time in either Cuzco or Miraflores.
So, if you're interested, e-mail me. M'kay?
And Risa--I was being serious, I don't have your phone number. I know you were thinking, he doesn't have my phone number, but he left me a message--he must have been drunk again, but I wasn't. My phone's display broke and I couldn't transfer over any of my numbers--so I just typed in your name and pressed send, but I have no idea what your phone number is!!!
R.I.P. Robert Moog
Robert Moog died in his home yesterday of a brain tumor. Read the NYT article here (reg. req'd).
While I can't say that I'm familiar with any of the music he himself created with his instrument, I am very familiar with the likes of Kraftwerk, Bronski Beat, Stereolab, and Boards of Canada to name a few. While he may no longer be with us physically, his gift and legend will long live on.
8.18.2005
Stop being vegetarian
I think this is really cool. K thinks its creepy. Just think though, no more "Meat is murder!!" Meat can now be science!! Meat is progress!! I just hope that whoever thought up this idea can somehow figure out how to make cigarettes fight cancer.
8.17.2005
Boy Bus, pt. 2
As you may recall, I have a tendency to hit on guys on the bus. Today was no exception. I saw this hot piece of man-meat walking down the aisle and I willed him into the seat next to me. He noticed I was reading The Amazing Adventures of Kavalier and Clay and told me it was one of his favorite books. I smiled coyly and asked him what he did for a living. An engineer. H. O. T. His scruffy look and amiable demeanor reminded me of my college roommate, Nathan. We laughed and joked and, in my percieval, bonded. I boldly asked for his phone number and was brutally rebuffed with a, "I don't think my girlfriend Risa would like that."
[Ed. note: The author of the piece assures me that he knows "percieval" is not a word. Also, this story is based on actual events. In certain cases incidents, characters and timelines have been changed for dramatic purposes. Certain characters may be composites, or entirely fictitious.]
What else has been going on, you ask? Well, in case you weren't aware, I have an affinity for video games. Lately, I've been poking around Prince of Persia: The Warrior Within. It is a really great game and I need to review it for Copacetic because all my other game reviews are luke-warm or ice cold. For that matter, I should review the superior Ninja Gaiden. Anyway, if you haven't read my review for Fable, then you don't know that some games put the "gay" back in "gamer." Thanks to Andy Towle over at Towleroad, I was directed to this article on the gayest video game characters. First of all, I would like to point out that the character I created in Fable is easily, the gayest mofo ever to shake his pixelated ass on a TV screen. My man has a dude in every port and nary a scrap of clothing. He's just a glowstick away from the White Party. But that's me projecting my own crazy fetishes onto something that programmers created. How about a game in which the programmers projected all of their crazy fetishes? For your edification, I present Cho Aniki: Great Brother.