Tre Till Death

For To See My Depth Of Sorrow, You Are Not Allowed To Follow Me, Into This Town Square And Then Run Away...

2010-02-11T17:31:00.002-05:00

I've linked the post from George's blog below. I love Blacklisted. I love what they are doing as a band. I am honored to work with them. I am excited for what might happen next. I hope there are many more songs to come.

For To See My Depth Of Sorrow, You Are Not Allowed To Follow Me, Into This Town Square And Then Run Away...: "....I can assure you that in my 27 years on this planet I have thought about my life more than you have. Every detail has been studied to a degree I am fairly embarrassed to actually admit. Borderline narcissism one could even say. I can also wholeheartedly assure you that In the 6 or so years I have performed in this band called Blacklisted I have thought about Blacklisted more then you have, recorded on more albums, played more shows, dealt with more people, cried more tears and so on and so forth. You get the drift. I can also assure you that all members of the band past and present have done the same as has every person we have worked with at Deathwish Inc through the years.

We recently released a 12' LP on Deathwish Inc. That album is called 'No One Deserves To Be Here More Than Me'. Those are FACTS. We released this album because we felt the need to record it and Deathwish Inc blindly yet confidently backed us in doing so. Whatever time we had free in the summer months of 2009 we spent in Conshohocken, Pa with wonder kid engineer Will Yip at Studio 4 trying to create whatever it was we felt we needed to create.

Deathwish Inc handled the release of this album exactly how we envisioned it being handled, especially knowing all that we know regarding future Blacklisted releases. The handling of the release of this album was in no way a 'marketing ploy' (though it has in its own way become very viral in its existence), it is not meant to be exclusive to certain people and it was in no way meant to combat the last half plus decade of albums leaking due to, fraudulent music journalists, piss poor mastering places and wizards of the world wide web. Though, the album has successfully been released with out it 'leaking' so maybe something is to be said about the way it was handled. Like I said I can assure you we think about this band more then you do and know EXACTLY what we are doing. Thinking otherwise is a shot to our character as a band and the years we have put into it. It is a shot to the 20+ years Jake and Tre have put into this community both as musicians and behind the scenesters, and it is a shot at the 10+ years they have put into the label they run and we are fortunate enough to be a part of.

Pre orders, songs streaming online, magazine write ups, interviews, reviews, etc etc. At one time they were something we as a band felt necessary to do in order to keep our band afloat and 'safe' on tour. You put out a record and do a 12-18 month cycle of the same things over and over until its time to start from square one and start all over again. It became to professional, with very little gain anyway. We do not feel that is necessary anymore so we decided to simply withdraw from it. No one 'owns' us and we do not owe anyone anything. My apologies if that sounds snotty or narcissistic(told you), but its the truth. I will forever remain appreciative for every person that has bought our albums, came to a show, baked us a pie, sung along or approached me individually or anyone from the band just to talk. That will never change. And I hope your support of us as a band can say the same.

In the last couple weeks we released a 7' on Six Feet Under Records titled 'Eccentrichine'. We let Dave handle putting that out for the most part how he wanted, because, well, he is in the band.

Towards the end of the last U.S. tour we did in November of 2008, I became completely disillusioned regarding the entire world I was completely miserable and more than difficult to be around. I found my inner Judy Garland retreated home and tried to change those things. I have gotten countless emails starting out asking for an interview or to talk, and than turning into me being called, faggot (I don't think so?), asshole(depends), self-absorbed(I don't know, maybe), drug addict (I am still straight edge) etc, etc. One guy emailed me and asked if he could do a photo shoot with me at my apartment in my 'natural element' for a piece he wanted to write about Blacklisted, our new record and the Philadelphia scene. When I declined he told me I was a cock sucker and no one would want to read about some white trash band from Philadelphia anyway. I'm pretty sure he wanted to sleep with me. Creep.

We are about to embark on a U.S. tour. Why? I have NO idea. Because that is what we know how to do I guess. We are playing with bands from all walks of life. Not because we want to be different or whatever it is we are being called this week (we are still just a hardcore band). Not because we are trying to break out of hardcore. But because frankly we don't want to play with bands filled with the same people who do/say all the things I mentioned above. I would rather not be on the same stage as someone who only a week prior was telling people we are this or we are that, or in most cases specifically attacking a member. I'd rather play with the people in PS Eliot, who I have followed randomly throughout different bands than play with some band that is just chugging away and all they have to say is 'Smash each other, etc etc' when the reality is they have never smashed anything, they drove their moms Lexus to the show, have cool neck tattoos(not really) and borrow ALL of our gear, thinking about that scenario gives me the idiot shivers and makes me feel very embarrassed. If that makes Blacklisted overrated, pathetic, embarrassing, horrible, grunge core rockers or Sonic Youth Crew (I actually like this one) then so be it, I would rather be ALL of those things. The fact of the matter is, I don't want to answer questions. I don't want to really talk to people. Believe what you want. Hopefully at one point you realize that anyone can create any reality they want and that is fine. So believe me, believe others, whatever you choose.I write this here in this machine that I constantly delete and I do it because if you read it, I feel as though you care and I care about you, though you may have been told otherwise. I just want to play music and love hardcore. That is what I do.

The death of my favorite wallet.

2009-06-30T19:57:00.004-04:00

This is my current wallet.

I hate wallets. I collect too much crap in them. So when I discovered the "wallet for people who hate wallets" from JIMI, I got stoked. I bought one immediately, and had been using it happily for the past 4 years. It's a simple plastic shell made of recycled plastic that holds your cards.

I will be purchasing a new one "ASAP" as I don't think the rubber band holding my cards will last too long.

New Pulling Teeth...

2008-12-09T14:19:00.004-05:00

Spent some time just listening to two new Pulling Teeth songs on loop. Loop? Yeah, quicktime... I don't always like to import new and unfinished jams into iTunes. Down the line it can wreak havoc on organization.

The band is still putting some finishing touches on their next LP, "Paranoid Delusions / Paradise Illusions" We never like to lightly toss around the term, "concept album" but there is a concept at work here. They also have finished up work on their tracks for the split we are doing with them and Irons called "Grey Saviour"

I am a fan. New directions in modern hardcore. It's dirty and dirge-y...then fast... then dirty again... Can't wait for the finished record.

Oh cool... you are allowed up there...

2008-06-24T19:47:00.002-04:00

My dog ON my desk...

Moonlight walks...

2008-06-17T23:17:00.002-04:00

My dog and I love moonlit strolls thru the park...

Meet Alabama

2008-06-04T21:58:00.002-04:00

Just trying something out...

2008-05-07T16:53:00.001-04:00

Blacklisted
"I Am Weighing Me Down" (mp3)
from "Heavier Than Heaven, Lonelier Than God"
(Deathwish Inc.)

Buy at iTunes Music Store
Buy at Rhapsody
Stream from Rhapsody
Buy at GroupieTunes
Buy at mTraks Download
More On This Album

Apparently I turned into a Euro Yuppie...

2008-03-23T15:41:00.000-04:00

03/05 2005 - 2007

2008-03-05T09:29:00.002-05:00

2005

2006

2007

2008-02-02T01:22:00.000-05:00

Got this the other day. USB turntable for my desk at work.
Love it.
Best purchase I have made in a long ass time....

I love sports?

2007-12-11T09:14:00.000-05:00

I bought a Nerfoop.

I don't know why, it seemed like a good idea at the time. I was walking the isles of Target with a Nerfoop in one hand, and a lil vacuum under the other. I went with the Nerfoop, and left the vacuum. I hate cleaning. More than I hate sports I suppose. Is Nerf a sport?

SAVAGE!!!

2007-07-13T16:03:00.001-04:00

No one looks you in the eye when you're walking a vicious killer like this...

Apparently he knows how to drink from the fountain...
He jumped right up and looked at me to push the button...

RIP Mr. Butch

2007-07-12T18:11:00.000-04:00

I remember Mr. Butch going all the way back to the first shows I ever went to in Boston. He was always down in front of The Rat. Real nice guy...for a crazy homeless dude.
"Hey, who's that?"
"Shit man, that's Mr. Butch...he used to roadie for the Bad Brains!"
"No Shit!"
Of course he used to roadie for the Bad Brains, he was a black dude with dreadlocks hanging out at punk and hardcore shows. Did he really? Who knows. Well, I am sure Al Quint knows. He knows everything.

Either way. It is sad that he is gone.

(from Boston.com)

http://www.boston.com/news/globe/city_region/breaking_news/2007/07/mr_butch_the_st.html

Mr. Butch, the street icon, dies in a scooter accident

Mr. Butch, shown above on Harvard Avenue in November, had lived on the streets in Boston for about 30 years.

By Bryan Marquard, Globe Staff

Mr. Butch, the dreadlocked, homeless man who was an icon in Kenmore Square and Allston, was killed today in a scooter accident, friends and family said.

Boston police said there had been a fatal accident just after 7:30 a.m. on Cambridge Street in Allston, but did not release the name of the victim. Mr. Butch's sister, Jeannette Madison of Worcester, said she had been notified of her brother's death.

Mr. Butch’s real name was Harold Madison Jr. The 56-year-old had been the subject of YouTube videos, a MySpace tribute page, and a Wikipedia entry. He was so popular that The Boston Phoenix wrote in April that it was considering changing the criteria for its "Readers' Pick: Neighborhood Character" category because Mr. Butch won so regularly.

"He's been in so many local movies, videos, in the Phoenix -- he's like an icon of the neighborhood," said Erin Scott, manager of New England Comics on Harvard Street in Allston.

Mr. Butch had lived on the streets of Boston for about 30 years. In Kenmore Square and his neighborhood in Allston -- areas rife with college students and people who cleave to less traditional approaches to living in Boston -- some saw in Mr. Butch a latter-day Thoreau, a man who chose a life that didn't involve taxes, rent, or office cubicles.
-
Check out a webpage, with more photos and links here.
http://mrbutchshow.com/

His wikipedia page.
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Mr._Butch

Hot

2007-07-11T18:01:00.000-04:00

Went and saw Harry Potter at midnight last night.
It is very hot today.
That is all.

Happy 4th.

2007-07-04T22:05:00.000-04:00

So I just got back from a rainy display of fireworks. Went up to the roof of the (old) office to check out the display. It's pretty cool up there, cause they launch the fireworks from the wharf that can't be more than 100 yards away out in the bay.

The best part of the evening had to be when one of the big ones must have gone off course a little bit, and exploded over the roof of the building. Little firework fireballs fell from the sky onto the roof and I actually had to DUCK to not get beaned in the head with a blue fireball. Pretty cool. There were witnesses... I shit you not.

Can't sleep...again...

2007-06-18T07:02:00.001-04:00

2007-03-05T15:37:00.000-05:00

108 - The Making of

So 108 just left, and Vic made a couple cool lil videos of the writing and recording process. Check em...

Check out the other one, and more at Deathwish Inc. YouTube

Sunday drives

2007-02-18T18:09:00.000-05:00

I love Rockport. I haven't been coming up here as much as I used to. It was nice to take the drive again, drink some coffee, and grab a bite. There were a decent amount of people out and about, especially for a 20 degree Sunday...

2006-12-17T14:53:00.000-05:00

Chicken Fried Bacon

2006-12-08T04:06:00.000-05:00

Converge

I know I have a ton of photos from that lil vacation I took that I need to upload. I am lazy. Here is the new Converge video...

Rome or bust...

2006-11-07T09:41:00.000-05:00

The first time I went to Rome, 4 or 5 years ago, I only got to spend about 7 or 8 hours walking around and sightseeing. It was definitely not enough time. Now, I hope I will have enough time.

This is probably the first real vacation I think I have ever really taken in my adult life, and it's about time! So I am going to be gone for 2 weeks. I am still not 100% on leaving my laptop at home, but I really want to try and get away from work as much as possible. So hopefully when the time comes, I really can just leave it sitting on my desk.

Oh, it is about 6am, and I am leaving for the airport at about 2pm, and I haven't packed a thing, I have no clean clothes...um...yeah. Way to prepare.

Italy...real soon.

2006-11-03T02:02:00.000-05:00

Going to Italy in a few days.
Coming up fast.
Very unprepared.

Holy Shit... Joe Lauzon...

2006-09-24T03:06:00.000-04:00

All I can say is WOW.

We are proud to announce that Deathwish sponsored fighter JOE LAUZON defeated acclaimed lightweight Jens Pulver at UFC 63 in Anaheim CA!!! Congrats to JOE for the amazing win....Fear No Evil...

JOE LAUZON is a truly talented and respected Mixed Martial Artist from the Boston Area. At only 22 years of age, he has a proven winning reputation (12-3-0), in bouts throughout New England. In addition to his constant training, JOE LAUZON is also an instructor at the highly respected Reality Self Defense MMA school in Bridgewater MA.

http://www.joelauzon.com
http://www.rsdmma.com
http://www.deathwishinc.com
http://www.myspace.com/deathwishinc

more Bonnie...

2006-09-18T10:15:00.000-04:00

Bonnie 'Prince' Billy THE LETTING GO (part three)

Stoked on tomorrow. Not only are 2 new DW releases coming out (Hope Con and MLIW) but the new Bonnie Prince Billy drops. Stoked. Also, check out his Cursed Sleep video

You have new Picture Mail!

2006-09-16T13:09:00.000-04:00

Trying to get back into making coffee at home. I bought coffee with a skull on it....of course...

Seriously...go fuck yourself...

2006-09-12T14:11:00.000-04:00

My political rants don't ever go much further than, "Fuck Bush"
And this will not go much further than that.
Oh the irony...

Yes, it's real. Fuck Bush.

http://photos.reuters.com/Pictures/slideshow.aspx?id=0&name=632935502926093750&dat=11%20Sep%202006&WTmodLoc=Home-R5-Pictures-2

2006-09-11T12:45:00.000-04:00

Scene from Will Oldham's new film

http://www.kino.com/oldjoy - The story of two old friends, who reunite for a weekend camping trip in Oregon's Cascade Mountains. OLD JOY is the critically-acclaimed film The New York Times calls, "A MUST SEE!" Starring Will Oldham and Daniel London, the film features a soundtrack by Yo La Tengo

2006-09-06T15:43:00.000-04:00

I heart Banksy

There was an ebay listing up for this CD just a couple hours ago, and the top bid was over $600. I went back to get the link, and it was taken down. Too bad.

2006-08-21T17:56:00.000-04:00

Iron Age-we're dust

Into it.

2006-07-12T16:44:00.000-04:00

Bonnie 'Prince' Billy THE LETTING GO (part one)

A "commercial" for the upcoming Bonnie Prince BIlly CD... into it.

HAIL

2006-07-11T17:05:00.000-04:00

It's a hailstone.
It looks like a Lifesaver.

There were a lot of them.

Camilla.

2006-05-25T13:15:00.000-04:00

Lil Camilla makes all work come to a grinding halt...

I can't remember 97% of what I learned in school...

2006-05-25T01:29:00.000-04:00

But wow, can I catch when Friends uses the same reference twice...

Episode 7.24

The Director: Look Joey, there’s nothing I can do. Besides, you’re probably gonna be out by four anyway. We’ve just got one short scene. It’s just you and Richard, and God knows he’s a pro. You’ll be fine. (Walks away and sees Richard entering.) Morning Richard.
Joey: Hey! You’re here! Great! Great! Great! Let’s get going buddy, we’ve got a scene to shoot!
Richard: I’m wearing two belts.

Episode 9.21

Joey: She's so much smarter than all the girls I've ever dated. Combined! I just don't want her to think I'm stupid.
Ross: Are you wearing two belts?
Joey: Hey, what do you know!
---

And yes. I love the internet for letting me track down the direct quotes, and episode numbers.

05/22/06

2006-05-22T01:55:00.000-04:00

Recap of the past couple weeks, or days, or whatever...they all just blend together anyway...

First off, we got a lot of rain. Like a real lot. It rained for 4 days straight, and the following is a picture of the water level in my basement. I was without heat, and hot water for a couple days. Real gross...

It took while after the rain for the pump to drain all the water out of the basement. Just shooting right out onto the sidewalk. I guess this is legit? It took about a week to drain out. Sweet huh?

Been playing a lot of cards with dudes. That is normal. What is not normal is having a dude come over and do magic tricks in the living room. I got to see how them there magic folks do some sleight of hand stuff... it made me sad...the magic was gone.

Cool Breeze was up last week for Training. The Man caught up with us on the 84, just off the Mass Pike. Cool Breeze had "forgotten" to renew his registration. So we got snagged. The Man was coming down HARD on me and The Breeze. You get a long-hair and a long-beard in the same vehicle, and apparently that spells D-R-U-G-S. We got shook down like no one's business. Some conversational highlights perhaps?

Pig #2 (during the pat down) - "What's that?"
Cool Breeze - "Chapstick"
Pig #2 - "Lemme see it. Why isn't there a label on it?"
CB (removing cap to show The Man it is, in fact, a lip balm product) - "Um, I guess it came off in my pocket...it is pretty old."
Pig #2 - "What kind of chapstick is it?"
CB - "Um...Aveeno Oatmeal, I gue...."
Pig #2 - "DID YOU SAY OPIUM!?"
CB - "No? Oatmeal..."
Pig #2 - "Listen, just tell us where the drugs are..."

So the car had to get impounded. It happens. The Man called the non-AAA tow truck, and the driver informed us that there was a recent State Trooper graduation, and they are all out en masse for practicing for Memorial Day drunkards. And they were, we passed 3 cops pulling people over on the 2 mile right to the garage / impound lot. We had 2 rides in 2 different tow trucks, both of the drivers were camera shy.

The 2nd ride was the long one. From Sturbridge all the way back to Beverly. So in 7 hours, I went all the way from my office in Salem, just over the bridge to Beverly. It was great. Especially since I had to (HAD TO) be in NYC at noon on Friday...

I caught a ride from Beverly at 2:30am to South Station. Thank god none of my friends have real jobs, cause I can call them in the middle of the night and ask for rides. Oh, and if you were wondering... South Station is NOT open all night. So I got there, and had to wait outside for about an hour and a half till they unlocked the doors. Luckily it was not so bad out, and I ended up sleeping on a bench...like a hobo...for about 30 minutes.

I was on the first train out of Boston, and almost slept thru Penn Station in NYC. Sweet move dude. I got out of the station, and headed to the first Starbucks I saw, and got in, and got online. Starbucks is great, coffee is $5, and they charge you $10 to use their WiFi. Sweet. Just making money, hand over fist. I am jealous. After about 10 minutes online, I looked outside, and it was FUCKING POURING RAIN. Since I had to take the train in, I took very little with me, and only had a hoodie. It took me about 10 minutes of standing half in the rain to get a cab.

I did my business and all that. Sweet view huh?

After the business was done, I called Chrissie who happened to be in town with her family. We strangely were only about 4 blocks away from each other, so we met up, and did a lot of walking. Like a real lot. We went to Red Bamboo, and ate a sweet ass meal. And then walked more. We walked a lot. We managed to walk to Times Square, which is very touristy, and predictable, but still rad. Standing on corners, people watching, all that. Good times, good talks. I think this is the first time I had ever been around her without her camera...

We walked all the way back to the hotel she was staying at, again...a lot of walking. Then I jumped in a cab and ended up back at Penn Station. And then I sat...and waited...and waited. It was about 12:30am when I got to the train station. Bought my ticket, that was about $40 more than I thought it would be, and just sat around for 3 hours, till my train left at 3:30am.

I was totally shot by the time I got on the train. I had a crazy headache, and was on about a total of 2 hours or so of sleep over the last 3 days. I fell asleep HARD on the train as soon as I sat down. I crashed out with ticket in hand, and the ticket lady had to call another dude over to wake me up, cause, like I said, I was OUT. I took my ticket back, and fell right back asleep. Only to be woken up about 30 minutes later by a very very very loud noise...

I think the only way to describe it would be to say, "Imagine if you were on a train that had a flat 'tire' or two, and it was blazing down the track at 90mph...." The whole car was shaking, and the noise was unbelievable. Not only was it shaking back and forth, vibrating violently, you could feel the car pounding up and down. Something was really wrong. And I am sitting there, in the pitch black, and people are starting to freak out, and there is dust and stuff falling from the ceiling, and all around...and the cabin is filling with smoke...

And I think to myself, "This train is fucking derailing...."

I pulled my legs up off the floor. All I could think of was that woman in Alive whose legs got pinned and then that dude just freaked out and killed her. I braced myself for some inevitable impact. I looked across to the other side of the car, and I could see that the seats had come off a hinge and were turning, and shit...I was fucked. The pounding went on for what seemed MUCH longer than it should have. Either we should be slowing the fuck down, or STOPPING...or the car behind us should slamming into us and we should be seeing which one of us is Bruce fucking Willis in Unbreakable.

But nothing like that happened. The train eventually started to slow down. And people started poking their heads up over the seats, as the train slowly, and painfully made its way down the track, and we pulled up right into the New Rochelle station.

Apparently, the last two cars of the train had derailed. Literally, they came off the rails, but nothing HORRIBLE happened. They just continued down the track just pounding on the railroad ties. It was pretty fucking scary. I mean, if you have been in a car accident, you know you got that 1 second before impact, and after you realize, "Shit, I am about to get in an accident." But that one second of terrifying anticipation lasted about a minute.

At first they made us stay on the train. Then they made us get off...in a hurry...as if something bad was about to happen...which is wasn't. Which was very annoying. They then made us stand on the other platform, and wait for the replacement train. Fuck it. At this point, all I care about is getting some fucking money back.

So yeah. There you have it. The last couple weeks of my life. Sweet huh?

KURT RULZ

2006-05-11T12:16:00.000-04:00

GodCity: but on an unrelated note, the fedex guy came and i had to answer the door wearing playboy pajamas and a wrangler brutes t-shirt which features a hamburger smoking a joint.

Chunk's not fat no more...

2006-03-11T22:45:00.000-05:00

I dunno. No one told me. Maybe this is not new info, but I had no idea. I mean, he doesn't look as chiselled as the fat kid from Stand By Me...but whatever.

See Scott....

2006-03-03T02:40:00.000-05:00

...this is how you "mobile blog"
Now you just need to get rid of that caveman phone you use...

Standard fare at the coffee shop...

2006-03-01T16:22:00.000-05:00

Yup...it's a dude walking into the coffee shop with a big painting of jesus with a smiley face. Should I expect any less?

Sometimes all it takes is a photo...

2006-02-03T20:04:00.000-05:00

...to make my day.

Thomas and Modern Life Is War - two great tastes that taste great together.

I've been walking around London for 2 days...

2006-02-01T18:55:00.000-05:00

...and have not seen one of these yet.

...and onto London...

2006-01-30T19:06:00.000-05:00

I got to check out Blacklisted, Modern Life Is War, Terror, and Donnybrook two nights in a row. The first night in Bochum Germany at the Matrix, in front of like 800 kids. The 2nd night was at the Reflections Fest, somewhere in Holland in front of like 500 kids. Great times each night, and for some reason, I took very few pics. Here are a couple crappy ones of Blacklisted from Reflections Fest...

Camden. There is an all you can eat vegan Chinese / Thai place right down that street. It was good. I hope to go tomorrow, and eat a lot.

Case De Sheep. Where we crashed out at in London.

Under the trains...

...over the trains.

2 pieces for a pound seemed like a good idea at the time. Seemed like a good deal. Eh...not so much. And not too keen on wrapping each piece in cellophane.

Standard fare down in the Tube pic...

Dear IRS. Here is proof that this was, in fact, a business trip. Few pics from the Shellshock office. Ryan in the foreground of the first pic was kind enough to put me up for a night out on East London.

Banksy "piece" on the way to Brick Lane for Indian Food.

And so ends my night. This is from today's Daily Mail.
Saw this on the train today, and tried to snap a picture of the guy reading it. But I had to drop a buck to get it myself...then I left it at Ryan's, with my leftover Indian...

More to come from my lil day trip around London tomorrow...

Greetings from Holland...

2006-01-28T11:41:00.000-05:00

Shawn Foley sends his love...

Last show of the Terror / Donnybrook / Blacklisted show is going on right now. Hardcore dudes are a bunch of nerds. So many iBooks, and G4's just all over the place piggybacking off Tim Blacklisted's airport connection. Dudes are in nerd heaven.

Dudes love buying shit. Reflections loves when dudes buy shit.

Arnhem...

2006-01-27T05:16:00.000-05:00

Jet lag is a bitch. No idea what time I fell asleep...or what time it was that I woke up. I was in no shape to do the simple math needed to calculate the time here from my watch set to EST. I think this trash truck was outside at like 8am, and as you can see, it is still dark at 8am, which does nothing but fuck me up even further. The trash cans are buried in the ground. Europeans are so weird.

One of Johan and Suzanne's neighbors has a nice collection of Snow White and the Seven Dwarves collection overlooking the courtyard.

Coffee with John. Despite his reading the menu, he did not order anything. We were just waiting for the post office to open. It has started out to be a VERY exciting day. Non-stop action.

Iceland...and now, Holland.

2006-01-26T10:23:00.000-05:00

So technically, I have now been to Iceland. This is the 31st stamp in my passport, but all I had there was a layover. Just a little over and hour, but long enough to be surprised to see the Modern Life Is War dudes there. I had no idea they were going to be on the same flight as me, and now, we are all over at Johan and Suzanne Reflections place, where dudes are crashed out completely from sick jet lag.

I think that if I hate toys...and I hate KISS, then Johan's bathroom has to be the place on earth I would least like to take a dump...

Leaving on a jet plane

2006-01-25T20:17:00.000-05:00

Sitting on a plane right now, bound for Iceland. Final destination: Amsterdam. Got 10 days over in Europe. Been a long time since I've been there...

A Picture Share!

2006-01-12T09:00:00.000-05:00

Apparently this is the new shit on the T.

Grand Canyon

2006-01-01T19:46:00.000-05:00

It's a 12 pointer!!!

This is the kind of thing BLOGs were made for...

2005-12-14T08:51:00.000-05:00

It is about 8:30am, I am in the office. Been in for a couple of hours, jet lag has me fucked up and on no sleep. The phone rings, the office is empty.

Comes up NO CALLER ID.

I decide to gamble, and answer the call.

"Hi this is (so and so) from the office of Republican Congressman Tom Reynolds, I am looking Tre McCarthy."

"Um, he is not in quite yet, can I take a message?"

"Certainly, I am calling today, to let Mr. McCarthy know that he has been nominated for the National Leadership Award for his outstanding achievements in the business world."

"Um...ok...let me write this down..."

She rambled on for a few minutes, I took down the number, and got scared. What went thru my head was a fun little bit of imagination where I figured that the police were on the other end, and this was some sort of STING operation to bring me down for some unpaid parking tickets, or maybe a warrant I had forgotten about at some point.

I came to my and entered the following into my little Goggle toolbar; "national leadership award"
And about a million different links popped up, not really giving me any help. I then added the word "republican" to the search. And the following link popped up at #1.

http://aggressive-voice.com/zz532.html

After reading it, I had to call. So I got my pen and paper handy, and called the number back. I told the woman on the phone that I got a message that I had been nominated for some kind of an award. I gave her my name, and she told me that "Congressman Tom Reynolds had a special message just for me" and she asked if she could play it for me. Of course, I said yes, and listened to a really really really horrible recording of the Congressman telling me that all of my hard work had paid off, and I had been nominated for this prestigious award, and that I was needed to join the ranks of other small business owners and the NRCC along with the Business Advisory Council to help stop the overtaxation of small businesses.

After the recording, a man came on the line. No, it was not the Congressman, but another "assistant" to the Congressman. He was now asking if I wanted to accept this award, and also be awarded a position as "honorary chairman" of the Massachusetts Business Advisory Council. I would be able to attend black tie events like the Annual President's Diner, where I would be invited to appear on a panel to discuss the importance of supporting tax cuts. And, most importantly, my business would be added to the long list of supporters that would share space in a FULL PAGE WALL STREET JOURNAL AD calling for more support to the President's important tax cuts. And all that it would cost me would be a portion of the ad cost, $500. And, if I needed to, I could split that up over two payments... Of course, I would also get a copy of my award, suitable for framing, and some sort of a desk top gavel plaque.

I checked my bank balance immediately, and, to my dismay, I was short. I had to turn them down.

A Picture Share!

2005-12-10T19:07:00.000-05:00

Merry Xmas

So sleepy...

2005-12-09T17:53:00.000-05:00

Apparently you go to the coffee shop to nap...
I come here to drink strong coffee, work, and KICK ASS.
These slackers really get under my skin.
MORE INTENSITY
I am going to adopt a more Rollinsian approach to my work.

Rollins.

2005-11-26T02:52:00.000-05:00

Rollins was great.
Funny.
I almost got thrown out for taking this "photograph"

As I am taking it, a "bouncer" comes up to me and says,
"Put that away."
I comply, starting to put my "camera" in my pocket.
As I am doing this...complying with what the bouncer said, he keeps going.
"There is no photography allowed in here...."
(in my head...while a couple seconds tick away) "Dude, chill...it's a fucking phone. And I am putting it away anyways"
"If I catch you doing that again...I will be forced to escort you off the premises"

I have been around. I have been in plenty of clubs. THIS is how a problem starts. A douchebag bouncer (with a shitty mohawk, and a labret piercing) gets to "into it" and just pushes and pushes, waiting for a reaction. I mean, let's keep shit moderately real here. It is a fucking PHONE. I mean, all it takes is the first 3 words. "Put it away" I know what he is talking about. I KNOW I shouldn't be doing it, otherwise, I would have run down to the front of the stage, and taken out my real camera...

Every sentence he spoke, left me some time to "mouth off" and he stood and stared at me...for WAY too long.

I am getting mad just thinking about it.

Well, Rollins was great. I wish he would focus more on his social commentary, and less on being funny. He strays a lot from his "point" in telling his stories, and has to come back to the point at the end, and remind you why he is telling the story. I guess it might be a good way to "convert" or convince someone of your stance...to tell a funny story, and make them forget your questionable political stance that started the story in the first place.

Naked In Ashes

2005-11-25T17:43:00.000-05:00

Naked In Ashes

I have a lot to say about this film.

Just not right now. Shortly I will speak about it.

In the meantime, if you have a spare couple hours, and even the slightest interest, or curiousity about Hindu people, India, deep shit.... check it out.

Jarhead...

2005-11-23T16:56:00.000-05:00

Jarhead

Seeing a movie alone...sometimes you walk out of there, not really knowing what to think, or what to feel. If you go with someone, you can talk about it, go over points of the film, and really examine whether you liked it or not. When you go alone, sometimes you walk out, and you are just...just sort of...

I mean, when you see a SHITTY movie, it is shitty. You walk out, you KNOW it was shitty. (Charlie and the Chocolate Factory...Matrix II, and III) When you see an AMAZING movie, you walk out, and you are floored. You walk fast so that you don't have hear what some asshole thinks about it. You just want to get away from everyone, and fucking rant about how fucking amazing it was.

Then sometimes you see a movie, and, well, you know it was GOOD, but you don't know how good. Or maybe...maybe the cinematography was GREAT, but the story, and acting was kinda bullshit...but hell, it LOOKED good. Or maybe there was a great soundtrack, the story was "eh" and, well, it had that dude that normally I hate, but he pulled that roll off pretty good...

Jarhead LOOKED great. Jake Gyllenhaal and Jamie Foxx were fucking amazing. And the non Zach Braff dude from Garden State (Peter Sarsgaard) was pretty good too. So it LOOKED good, and the actors were kick ass...but what about the story? I am not sure how I feel about it.

So it wasn't AMAZING, and it wasn't SHITTY.

There you go. How is that for a review?

Capote

2005-11-23T00:20:00.000-05:00

Riveting

Leaving Las Mexico

2005-11-21T19:14:00.000-05:00

Leaving Mexico. Anyone want any churros?

Old School

2005-11-18T16:29:00.000-05:00

Someone at the cafe is actually using a 1st gen blue iBook. They are also selling handmade candles off their table, which is on the sidewalk, and she is knitting too.

It came alive, and came in to do its laundry

2005-11-18T02:30:00.000-05:00

The male Vice Magazine DON'T figure apparently came to life and did laundry with me.

The birds

2005-11-17T17:47:00.000-05:00

There is a pigeon in the coffee shop. That is all I have to report.

kitties

2005-11-15T20:04:00.000-05:00

Apparently, this is cute. I dunno. I am sure chicks will dig it. The little one won't leave me alone. Apparently that means she loves me.