Thursday, April 14
I caught you this delicious bass.
Lucky!
Dave
Tuesday, April 12
Good enough for me
Really, I think a little moderation is a good thing.
My favorite part: "plus the occasional object." That makes me happy.
C is for cookie,
Dave
Monday, April 11
The quill! The page! Lyric, rampage! Word up?
Soooooooo.
You might recall my ire last year about all the hoo-ha over Ms. Shandi Finnessy, soon-to-be-former Miss America, and more-or-less resident of Florissant, MO. It was, and still is, silly, although it may have been topped by two new additions to our roadsides. One is a rather large, gaudy, tacky, and pretty unnecessary...thing at the New Florissant/ I-270 exit. It looks more like a memorial plaque than anything I can bring to mind, but I'm pretty sure she's not dead (I think I'll go for a walk!). The other is a little addition to the 'Welcome to Missouri Sign' driving in from Illinois that reads "Home of Shandi Finnessy, Miss USA (America?) 200X." I don't recollect the year, nor do I care to investigate.
Now, unsightly as it is, I can understand a sign in Florissant, although I wish it was a wee bit smaller and moved somewhere other than where I get off the highway everyday. But the addition to the highway sign is just way out there. I mean, why does she get her name on a sign before other famous people we have? You know, someone like that President we had, or that author who wrote some book about the Mississippi? In 10-20 years, will people still be talking about Ms. Shandi Finnessy? Hmm?
Grr.
Anyways.
With the help of one Janice "I may or may not be related to Juggling Jeff" Koziatek. the computer room was most masterfully painted. Ceiling and all done in just over two hours. Looks quite nice, I think. Thus ends my upstairs painting endeavors, save for redoing the ceiling in the living room. Next up: the basement. Ooooooo, aaaahhhhhh.
Tax day is Friday. Have you turned yours in yet?
I have to wonder: who in the realm of One Hour Photo World decided that cutting negs into strips of four was a good idea? There is not a single neg sleeve on the market that I know of that holds any less than 5 frames across. It doesn't matter much on 24-exposure rolls, but for 36-exposre rolls, what should fit on one sleeve now takes two. Ideally, negs should be cut into strips of six, I think, so even the longest rolls fit onto a 6-frame sleeve. Plus, no one pays attention to how they cut the negs. Instead of starting at the first frame and cutting, the cut starts at the front of the roll, meaning the first strip is 3 blank frames and one good frame, and the last strip is invariably some odd-ball number.
Grr.
S'pose I should get the negs uncut and do it myself, eh?
I wish I was better with words so I could describe last night's Eric Sardinas/Steve Vai extravaganza. Eric wore a cowboy hat of the Griff-style, but had it low enough to hide all but his mouth. Long, black, curly hair. Tight pants, tatoos, velvet-esque shirt. Tatoos. He played slide with a bottle of beer and lit his guitar on fire at the end. When he joined Steve for the encore, he was wearing tight, floral print pants.
Where to start with Vai....he played with his tongue at the end.
What else can I say?
That said, it was an excellent show. Depsite their weirdness, both guys seemed like very nice gentlemen, and were obviously very grateful to the audience for coming out and looked to be having a lot of fun on stage. I wore earplugs, and it was the greatest thing ever. Not only could I hear the notes during the show better, but I could hear AFTER the show too, which is an incredible sensation. Fun times, yo.
But what about rules of verse? Iambic pentameter is where it's at!
Dave
Tuesday, April 5
I'm ready for the balls and the...bat.
The Cardinals, while not panicking, understand the position they find themselves in today: not in first. The stunning development---the first time since last May 30 that the Cardinals found themselves below first place---has the team speculating on what they need to do to get back on top:
"We need to play a game," said skipper Tony LaRussa. "That would be a start."
Still, with just 162 games left to go in the regular season, some fans wonder whether the team has enough in the tank to catch the Cubs, the Reds and the surprising Brewers, all of whom sit atop the N.L. Central. "It's disappointing, so far," said George Andrews, a Cardinal rooter from Painesville, OH, who arrived this afternoon in St. Louis after driving eight hours to see Opening Day. "I haven't seen much from any of the new guys, but, hopefully, they'll start to perform before it's too late." When told that tonight's Cardinal opener is being played in Houston---not St. Louis---Edwards said, "That seems really stupid. Opening Day should be at home."
Got this over at The Birdwatch. Pretty amusing, I think. It's yet to sink in that today is the Cardinal's opening day, albeit in Houston. Home opener is Friday night against Philly, I believe.
According to mum, who never lies; ever, all baptized males are eligible to be elected Pope. They've just been choosing Cardinals for the past million years or so. I tell you what, if the Yankees hadn't swooped in and grabbed my man Womack, I'd vote for him in a heartbeat. He'd be the best...no, wait a minute. Wrong kind of Cardinal. Um, yeah. Going back to the beginning: she suggested I could be Pope. I had to say no, if only because I had no good way of telling Janice I was breaking up with her to go lead the Catholic Church. A valid reason, yes, but how do you break that to someone? Although, as mom poined out, the Vatican would be great for family reunions. A tough call, yes, but I think I'll leave the Papacy to those in the know. Plus, I don't know Latin. Dominus Pizza delivery or something, I don't know.
All joking aside, I'm sorry the JP died, although he's probably more comfortable now than he'd been in a long while. Plus, the idea of a new Pope is a bit exciting. Learning all the ins and outs of the process makes the religion a bit more interesting too, mostly because I've never had to think about it. There's just always been a Pope. So this oughta be fun.
Requiescat in pace, Carol Wojtyla, a great friend to the world's poor. And a great wearer of Fly shades.
Wednesday, March 30
You Don't Know God From Godzilla!
It's the same way I tell people they don't know the difference between firm tofu and cream cheese.
Okay, that was silly. But I think the whols Schiavo situation is getting pretty silly. her parents claim she tried to talk when they removed her tube. Jeb Bush tries to have her removed from the hospital and placed under special care. Shoot, at this point, I almost wouldn't be surprised if Godzilla (or God Himself, for that matter) did show up to end the silliness. I think I just want everyone to let her go. Of course, she is being pretty much starved. Of course, I don't know how much alive she would be if they kept the tube in. A thorny issue to be sure. I can see both sides, and they both have a good case.
Anyways.
So there was some Irish band that kicked off a world tour on Monday. There was some other guy who decided it'd be a good idea to sit near his computer all night and watch the setlist as it was updated one song at a time. Is it dedication or fanaticism? Maybe a bit of both, but it was kinda fun. So the countdown to December is in full swing. I figured out the days at one point, but I don't remember. 260 or something like that, I think.
I actually think I've got less going this week, even though I work everyday. Compare to last week, when I was off 2 1/2 days, and was barely home. No fruit was involved, but I did spend a lot of time at SMDP in the dark. I mean, if I hadn't known any better, I'd have thought they forgot to pay the electric bill. I will say that a mass by candlelight is way cool. Oh, if only I could truly capture in print the wackiness of the dude singing the litany of saints during the Easter Vigil mass. Let this serve as a mere reminder so I can laugh about it later. That Vigil mass was a Power Mass, to boot. Two hours and ten minutes, I think, and it only had 4 of the usual 8 readings. I've been to rock shows shorter than that. If we'd had everything read, the mass would have given a Flecktones show a run for its money. Congress might want to see if anyone from BALCO was around. You get the idea. But it was far from dull.
I butted eggs this weekend. It was...interesting. I shan't go into details, but I'll tell you this: an egg with small stress fractures seems to do a better job absorbing impact than a solid egg. I didn't get to test the theory 100%, but it held up over a few small tests I ran. And do make sure your eggs are hard-boiled.
I actually had a post typed out yesterday, but there was an error while I was loading it. It's just as well, since it was pretty lame, I think. This one? Well, it's not great, but it's got more going for it than anything else I could come up with.
Well, that's simply not true. I have long pants, I wear long pants.
Dave*
*Isn't it cool how I got through the whole post without a footnote?**
**Well crap.
p.s. For Janice: Whoopty-shit.
Tuesday, March 22
Monday morning, eighteen years of dawning, I say how long?
Implied by the above, I was quite successful in acquiring tickets to the U2 show in December. It was about as tense as I've been in awhile, and I was just staring at a screen for 10 minutes watching a counter fluctuate. Two minutes! Score! Seven minutes?!? No!!! And so on and so forth. It all worked out, as these things tend to do. Would it have been the end of the world if no tickets were bought? No, not really, but it would have been a bit of a bummer. I suspect I would have got over it. But I am happy to be going, even if it is nine freaking months away. If we can get Cowboy Mouth here over the summer that may help, along with Steve Vai, Béla Fleck, Green Day, and...maybe the Moody Blues. I hope Riverport* has a good line-up this summer. So far all I've heard are Sammy Hagar and Motley Crüe (not together, mind you). Not too inspiring, even though I kinda like the Red Rocker. But I've seen him before, and while I had fun, it wasn't enough to make me want to go again. Where's Rush when I need them?
Went to mum's over the weekend. Always a good time, even if she and Mike opted for The Incredibles over Napoleon Dynamite. Not to say that The Incredibles is a bad movie. Far from it, actually. I just don't think they realized what they were missing. We went to the Wurst Fest in Hermann. Lots of sausage. Good sausage, at that. It's true what they say, you know: "sausages can be very seductive." No Knockwurst Knightmare Platter, though. Otherwise, all yumminess and general...all around German-ness. I approve. That night Janice and I stopped by a Chinese establishment for Chinese food. Like ice cream, donuts, and tater tots. Janice, of course, grabbed a few specifically so i could ask her to "Gimme some of your tots," which she did, bless her soul.
There was, of course, actual Chinese food. And we ate it. Some of us (Cindy) ate somewhere around 14 kilos of the stuff, but hey, to each their own. Buffets will do that to people, I guess.
Excited to see that another scramble is set for sometime in August.
Because I'm jealous of all school-types who get spring breaks this week, I took half of tomorrow, and then Thursday and Friday off. Lots planned: dinners with mom and dad, mass Thursday and Saturday, playing guitar for SMDP's Stations tomorrow, bowling, shopping, a trip to the gym, fun at the DMV, home repair, aaaaaand.....fruit.
Oh my, it must be lunch time.
dot dot dot
Dave
*I refuse to use the name "UMB Bank Pavillion." Not only is it redundant, it sounds really stupid. So there.
Tuesday, March 15
Yeah... Coach woulda put me in fourth quarter, we would've been state champions.
I've oft been heard saying I don't enjoy going to the dentist. This is not entirely accurate. I don't enjoy going to the dentist's office, and allowing the dental hygenist to run iron hooks along my gums and teeth and tell me I haven't been flossing*. Sometimes I wonder if metal hooks in my mouth are such a good idea. But, a visit from the dentist him/herself is not that bad, unless it involves drilling (not too often, thankfully). A quick check of the mouth and I'm on my way. And I imagine he/she gets paid gobs more than the ladies with the iron hook.
You know, "Ladies With the Iron Hook" would be a good name for a rock band.
There, I feel better now. I'm still antsy about this week's impending U2 ticket sale. I'm not overly worried about not getting deats, but you never know. I'd just rather have it over and done with.
I'll be buying six tickets, which works out to a whopping $570 (that's $95 a ticket). Whew. I can't think of any other band I'd spend that on. Maybe the final shows for the 'Tones or CM.
Road work has commenced on New Florissant the past week, and they've taken it upon themselves to tear up the road so the new surface will stick, or something like that. It's really, well, rough. I was coming home from work yesterday, and got stuck behind an SUV of some sort poking along at about 25 mph. Now, I know it's not the sort of surface you want to go over all ablaze, but aren't SUVs supposed to be built for such an environment? What's the point of having something that can handle the rough stetches if you drive it like a ninny? God forbid any dust get on the paint, I guess.
Band scramble, you say? Saturday it was, yes. Fun times were had by all in the band, and we didn't tank. Granted, we did finish last out of last, but there's a train of thought that we lost points because our take on "other" differed from the judges'. They were probably expecting something like flutes, bongoes, keys, spoons, etc. They got dancing. Still, as I said, it was very fun, even if the stage lights were damned toasty. I think I've got an itch to get back on stage, although it might just be something I ate. All the other bands were good, although only a couple made any impression on me, and, of course, they didn't win. Maybe they should have let me judge. No one sucked, and there were few signs that most songs were probably thrown together over a couple weeks or maybe even a few hours. The only give away was probably the song called "Two Week Old Band." You'll get that. There was one guy on jew harp, which was fun...and a bald guy. Tell you what: I'll get some pictures on the web site and let you look at them.
Sa'right? Sa'right.
You think I got where I am today because I dressed like Peter Pan over here?
Dave
*Okay, so a lot of the time I haven't been flossing. But she told me that today, and I have been flossing. I wasn't in any postion to argue, because she had her hands in my mouth. Plus, it's probably not a good idea to argue with anyone wielding the aforementioned iron hooks. She might give me a reason to visit the dentist again for a completely different (and more painful) reason.
Tuesday, March 8
Sodium Hypercholride
And then take Monday to contemplate the purchase of.......drum roll.......U2 tickets!
Whoo!
December 14 at Savvis. U2 and...someone or other. it's gonna be good, and I will be there, oh yes. I'm excited to see that all the problems I posted about last time are by and large gone. It seems one Larry Mullen, Jnr. was pretty dismayed at the way things went last time, and he (and maybe the rest of the band) stepped in to fix the problems for fan presales. Good stuff.
Yesterday was a joyous day, if for no other reason, I got my Girlscout cookies. Yum. Six bosex worth, even. It didn't seem like a lot when I bought them, but seeing six boxes all together looked like quite a haul. granted, there aren't that many to a box, but still. I've already had my share of Tag-a-Longs today, and I could easily eat the whole box if I'm not careful. Maybe if I pretend they aren't in my desk drawer they'll just...go away,
Poof!
"Who wouldn’t want Girl Scout cookies? Communists, maybe. Or people with no souls. You can’t trust a person who doesn’t know a Tagalong from a Samoa."Makes sense, don't you think?
-Bob Rybarczyk
News flash: "We've got a new bookmobile, and it's going to be in a parade Saturday."
I bought a cool, new movie on Friday night. Perhaps you've heard of it: The Spongebob Squarepants Movie? Yeah, it's good. Gotta love the Hasselhoff.
Baseball back?
Check.
If that's not the best thing you've ever seen, done, or eaten, then may I politely ask you to gouge out your eyes, cut out your tongue, and um, have all your done removed.
Dave
Wednesday, March 2
Not only good, but good for you.
Oh, wait, sorry. That's...something...else.
No, I have no idea if we have any new Cheeseballs. I am looking forward to judging the new recruits on their bowstaff skills in a life-or-death struggle against a vicous liger (pretty much my favorite animal).
You should see their talons.
Other exciting news:
My band has an official name: Roland Pacific.
No, it doesn't mean anything, and no, I'm not going to divulge its meaning (unless you're Janice). I'm gonna leave it to you to figure out. Or come watch us play next Saturday, assuming you're 21+. That probably eliminates many of the people reading this, but for anyone who can make it, let me know and I'll pass along the details.
Practice #2 was last night, and yielded a second song. I quite like it. It doesn't sound like any classic rock songs I can think of, and it has a sort of punk-y feel to it. There's a nifty rhythm breakdown followed by a guitar solo, so it's all good in my book (coming soon, only $24.95, order now!). Actually, it started as something pretty simple: our drummer told me to pick a chord, then another chord, and I put a nifty rhythm over a drum part he came up with. It's only got about 3 chords (4, actually), but our singer/frontman guy decided that it needs to be more complex to impress the music snobs out there. Now, I'm all for that kinda thing, but in this case, it's not what we need. We don't have a lot of time to be messing with songs, and we're not out to win a record deal or anything. I mean, are there going to be that many "music snobs" at this event? We're playing in a bar, so I imagine the avergae listener isn't going to be listening for complex chord changes. Will judges be impressed by putting a flat 5 on top of a minor third?* Maybe, but I bet we get more points for a good song they can hum back.** Anyways, we'll see. I think we're in good shape, though.
Just noticed at lunch: someone had a steak in the toaster oven. Makes my Chili-Mac seem rather ordinary, doesn't it?
I'm shooting the musical at DeSemt tonight. This is the last show to feature anyone at the school I can say I really "know." And by that, I mean "people who are somehow acquainted with Steve or Janice." Weird, huh?
Anything else worth mentioning? Eh, nothing springs to mind. Starting this post before lunch and finishing it after lunch sort of ruins the train of thought.
Yeah I can play the guitar. I know all about virtuosos...and...trembalos...and arpeggios.
Dave
*I have no idea if that would even sound like something worth hearing. It's all I could think of, and I don't have a guitar handy to check it out.
**And that doesn't have to mean "poppy" or "crap," of course. Think 'Smoke on the Water' or '(Don't Fear) the Reaper.'
Wednesday, February 23
I totally always look awesome singing backwards metal.
We laid the groundwork for one song, which doesn't sound anything like the basic groove to 25 or 6 to 4, and by that, I mean I more or less ripped off the main groove to 25 or 6 to 4.
I hadn't planned on it, though. I just started noodling around on something, the band joined in, and 5 minutes later, I realized what I was playing. Then we all got over it and had a beer. Well, everyone else did. I had a Coke. We did flesh out the crux of the song, and made enough little tweaks to save it from being a total rip-off. More like "homage."
One nice thing I noticed was that we played off each other pretty well. There were few moments of total lossness, and most of those were on my end, because my amp isn't loud enough to get over everyone else.
Anyone have an extra guitar amp?
It's a pretty good group I'm with. I don't think I'd want to spend oodles of time with anyone, but everyone's...pleasant, for lack of a better word. Strangely enough, I'm the only one playing the instrument I'm best at. Our drummer can play just fine, but is more of a guitarist. Our bassist, while being quite good at bass, can play the dulcimer quite well, along with (ta da!) guitar. Our singer guy plays keyboards too, which adds an extra layer of chewy-nougaty-goodness to the proceedings. He definitely looks and acts the part of a frontman (think Ed Roland with some Michael Hutchence and Bono for good measure), which probably helps. He's good at arranging songs, too, although he seems to think faster than he can talk, which confused us at times. Also, I'm apparently his favorite because I'm the quietest or something like that, because it means I'm "probably the best --curse of your choice starting with f-- one here," or words to that effect.
Then there's Ms. Kim. I don't know what she's going to do. She came for about half our practice, and, well, didn't do a lot. Apparently she does ballet, so she might dance or something. I don't know. She might (wo)man the tambourines, or she might sing. She signed up as "other," so your guess is as good as mine.
On another note, I'd like to announce that I'm getting married in June 2007. Follow this logic: Tom got married last June, Edler this June, and Mense next June. Hence, it only makes sense that I go next, right? I'm going to start registering now, I think, and start stocking up on sheets, towels, and kitchen appliances. Plus, I need to call U2 about the reception.
I, for one, vow never to wear anything plaid.
Except my pants. Those are cool. And checkered. Yeah, that's it.
Positate without pizzaz and jam!
Dave
Thursday, February 17
Scuttlebuttin'
Sometimes.
I entered three pictures in this year's Best of Photojournalism hosted by our friends at the National Press Photographer's Association (motto: "Try saying NPPA three times fast without messing up). Linkage to said pictures: here, also here, and...um..well, there is a third picture, but I don't have it on my site for some stupid reason. I'll post a link when I fix it. I would have wanted to enter more, but anything entered has to have been published in print somewhere, and most of what I do here at work doesn't make it past our little montly newsletter, so it's tricky. Such is life.
Annual report time is upon us, and we all know what THAT means for me. Or meant, as is the case this year. I've made my case as good as can be done, but I don't think I'm going to win, because I'm not in charge of designing the thing. Logos can be removed, pictures flipped, arms lopped off, backgrounds blurred, and more, all because something was "distracting," apparently. And wanting to run the pictures unaltered makes me a "purist." Mayhaps, but it's got nothing to do with me being an old-fashioned "dinosaur.*" No, it's more like, "this is what I've been tought for 3 years in school." If, say, the Post-Dispatch can get in trouble for removing a Coca-Cola can, why is it okay for us to reverse an image, remove a shirt logo to cover up said flippage, and then remove the guy's arm? And why are all decisions concering photos, text, and layout made by someone who has no experience in any of those fields? I don't mind SOME input, afterall, he's the Boss, and we don't want to make ourselves look stupid, but we ARE professional-types, trained to do this. I think we know what looks good. Finally, the exclusion of good pictures because of personal politics is really lame.
Complaining over.
You should all go see Jeff Coffin and the Mu'Tet. It's good. Really good. Kinda jazzy, kinda funky, kinda...something else, but definitely worth your time.
And, I've probably come to the point when I should wrap things up and get back to work. Sounds good to me.
Even when we win, he wins.
Dave
*This comes from a lecture at school, when some photo-type-man referred to shooters still using film as "dinosaurs." Or maybe "fossils." I can't recall for sure. Oh, and he didn't used the word photograph or picture. They were "intellectual property." Geez.
Saturday, February 12
Hot, merging action!
You think you can take me? Go ahead on, it's your move.
Dave
Thursday, February 10
The fire in my britches is not the issue here!
That's all.
Throw baby!
Dave
Monday, February 7
Last Update: 04 Feb 2005
Anyways.
I had a shoot for the Journal yesterday morning at one of those non-denominational-type choiches for a story running on choiches using 'nontraditional' methods to attract persons. There wasn't anything terrible revolutionary about the proceedins, save for a couple luckey fellas going up on stage to help the...pastor/speaker/guy/thing prove a point. Otherwise, it was set up a lot like the old days of TFC, but minus the snipers. And, to be honest, it wasn't all that exciting. Granted, I was in Photographer Mode, but I didn't feel terribly compelled one way or the other. I do much prefer your everyday Mass (mine too). It didn't help matters that, save for a couple banners, there was nothing even vaguely church-y to be seen. It could have just as well as been a small theatre.
J and I hit the Galleria Friday night before bowling. We were wandering around Famous and/or Barr because someone wanted to drool over the kitchen appliances before we left. I won't say who, but I hear he make a mean cracker. Anyways, as we were heading up, we passed the girl-type clothing area. My eyes happened across a pink t-shirt with the cover from Mind Over Matter: the Images of Pink Floyd embroidered on it. This upsets me, because some 12-13 year old girl is probably going to buy it because it "looks neat" or some such nonsense, and not have any idea who that band is. It could only get worse if she went up to someone who knew the band, and asked "which one's Pink?" Ick.
Friday night I signed up for a band scramble. Confused? Yes, well you should be. I'd be lying if I said it had something to do with egss and/or cooking, so I won't say that. I will say that it may or may not involve people signing up, being selected at random, and then being placed in a band with other random persons. Said persons than may or may not have 3 weeks to develop 3 original songs and then perform them. Maybe. For all you know, I might be lying again. But if I'm not, it should be fun, unless I get stuck with a group of death-metal types. Or Yanni.
I don't like short posts, but this is going to be a short post, because....
........because.
M.C. Hammer?
Horse laxative?
Boston Public?
Not tonight he doesn't... come... in the night... Trogdor.
Dave
Wednesday, February 2
Don't ask me why, pumpernickel and rye.

Which HomestarRunner.com Character Are You?
I could have guessed as much. This isn't that bad of a result, really. Better than being the King of Town (even though I like the KOT).
Bread is a good time for everybody!
Dave