Musical weekend

This weekend I went to check out my buddy Andrew's new band, the Brokedown Playboys, at the Quarry House in downtown Silver Spring. The QH is a nice place to see bands (and a great place to play, too. MyLOH played there and got free Belgian ale all night long), and the beer list is just insane.

I went with Sylvia's friend Charlotte's dad, Bill. We had gone to Baltimore to see the previous incarnation of the Playboys, then known as Ron Scott's Four Star Combo (the BP is the combo minus Ron Scott). It was interesting to see how the band had developed without a "front man." The band seemed tighter and more focused, and the sound was much better (Andrew's guitar playing is fantastic rockabilly precision, and his Tone King amp is smooth as a greased mink). I like Andrew's vocals better than Ron's, too, to be honest. Plus I always like to support my friend's bands, because goddammit, it's hard to get people off their asses and into a club these days.

An unexpected plus was running into another musician friend, John, who plays bass in Her Next Friend, a band that opened for MyLOH on a couple of occasions. Nice guy, and I hope to collaborate with him in the near future on an upcoming project.

Speaking of projects, I have a new single up on the myspace site for ¡Coño! called "Fool You All." Check it out...IF YOU DARE!

Goodnight, America. I miss you already.

The end is neigh, as they say. Someday, in my old age, I will tell Sylvia and Joseph of the America they never knew. The one where you could speak freely without fear of being labeled a traitor. The one where you could fly on an airplane without being suspected a terrorist. And the one where you didn't have to fear that the government was going to break into your house or tap your phones on a whim.

Yesterday, the Democrats in the Senate followed the Republican minority into the abyss and effectively shredded the 4th Amendment to the Constitution, which reads (bold mine):

"Fourth Amendment – Protection from unreasonable search and seizure.

The right of the people to be secure in their persons, houses, papers, and effects, against unreasonable searches and seizures, shall not be violated, and no Warrants shall issue, but upon probable cause, supported by Oath or affirmation, and particularly describing the place to be searched, and the persons or things to be seized.

Maybe a staffer for one of the following worthless assholes who voted for the despicable FISA bill will Google "Fourth Amendment" and actually read to his or her boss what it used to guarantee (especially galling/surprising turncoats in bold):

Baucus (D-MT), Yea
Bayh (D-IN), Yea
Carper (D-DE), Yea
Casey (D-PA), Yea
Conrad (D-ND), Yea
Feinstein (D-CA), Yea
Inouye (D-HI), Yea
Johnson (D-SD), Yea
Kohl (D-WI), Yea
Landrieu (D-LA), Yea
Lincoln (D-AR), Yea
McCaskill (D-MO), Yea
Mikulski (D-MD), Yea
Nelson (D-FL), Yea
Nelson (D-NE), Yea
Obama (D-IL), Yea
Pryor (D-AR), Yea
Rockefeller (D-WV), Yea
Salazar (D-CO), Yea
Webb (D-VA), Yea
Whitehouse (D-RI), Yea

You all disgust me. Not to ramble, but I am reminded of a very prescient Aesop's Fable that the above Senators would do well to take to heart when looking back on their decision to join the Republican "patriot" cause:

The Tortoise and the Birds

A TORTOISE desired to change its place of residence, so he asked an Eagle to carry him to his new home, promising her a rich reward for her trouble. The Eagle agreed, and seizing the Tortoise by the shell with her talons, soared aloft. On their way they met a Crow, who said to the Eagle: “Tortoise is good eating.” “The shell is too hard,” said the Eagle in reply. “The rocks will soon crack the shell,” was the Crow’s answer; and the Eagle, taking the hint, let fall the Tortoise on a sharp rock, and the two birds made a hearty meal off the Tortoise.

Moral: “Never Soar Aloft On An Enemy’s Pinions”

Date night: Infant-sitting edition

It's Tuesday night, baby. Tuesday is the night when we...watch Woody Allen movies. It's business time!

Netflix DVD of Woody Allen's "Manhattan" in DVD player: check.
Sylvie in bed: check.
Joseph fed and asleep on the floor in his papoose: check.
Beer for Mommy in Sylvie's baby cup: check.
Curious George book serving as impromptu coaster for said beer: check.
Cheddar cheese goldfish within easy reach: check.

We're ready.

Step 1: Begin movie.
Step 2: Turn up volume to hear dialogue over six-week-old's snoring.
Step 3: Laugh at Woody Allen.
Step 4: Fall asleep ten minutes into the movie.

This is parenthood.

Sylvia turned three and the 4th of July

Sylvia turned three this past weekend and we are all amazed how fast time has flown by.
Her birthday bonanza party was at our local pool club and she and her friends had a blast!
They swam, played in the sand, wore cone hats and devoured cupcakes.
We also have a really fun annual event in our neighborhood: the 4th of July parade. All the kids participate and march around for about two blocks. It's very cute! Sylvia and her best friend, Charlotte marched very well together and waved their flags! How patriotic!

Operation: Take Advantage of D.C.

No, I'm not talking about our überfantastik D.C. public employees. It's not that kind of taking advantage. No, today we're talking food. Good food. Ethiopian food!

Live a little: Dukem makes a mean veggie combo platter
In what I hope will be the first installment of an ongoing series, I am chronicling my adventures at lunchtime in the nation's capital. Since I work downtown at the middle of the Red line (DC Metro's main street, as it were), there is no excuse for sitting behind my desk with my food every day. With so many free (or almost free) things to see and do, literally within walking distance of my office, I'm determined to keep from living life like some schmuck stuck out in an office park in Fairfax all day.

I have already made a couple of trips down to the Smithsonian (the Hirshorn Gallery and the Holocaust Museum), but, alas, forgot my camera. I brought it today so I could share with you my Friday adventure: a trip to U. St./Cardozo and lunch at my favorite Ethiopian restaurant, Dukem.

U Street NW is a funny neighborhood. It is the traditionally black entertainment district of the city, but after the 1960s riots, it went downhill fast. What brought it back up to speed was a steady influx of immigrants from Latin America and east Africa (principally Ethiopia and Eritrea). The neighborhood now is an eclectic mix of those cultures combined with African-American holdouts from the '60s and newer, loft-dwelling white couples in fancy new condos.

The neighborhood sports some great bars for live bands, like the Velvet Lounge (my old band played our first gig there), and, of course, good restaurants like Dukem and (although not my taste) the world-famous Ben's Chili Bowl.

Today I feasted on the veggie combo platter comprising spicy split lentils, yellow peas, greens, cabbage, and salad and washed it down with a rich and thick Beck's Dark. The On the TV above me was an old Germany vs. Belarus Euro 2008 qualifier that I hadn't seen. Life for lunch was indeed good today.

Satisfaction on a beautiful Friday

What I hope Sylvie will be when she grows up.

Janet Weiss is the most powerful live drummer I've ever personally seen. Her intensity is really insane. Check out this great close-in video of her with Sleater-Kinney in 1999. Power.
I hope Boo will grow up with the kind of self-confidence and positive vibes that these girls exemplify.

And I'm serious. That drumming is nuts.

I'm switching parties

Well, I'm gonna go for it and register as a Republican* like these fine folks:



*uh, no I'm not.

Rockabilly Hot Rockin'!

My good bud Andrew Ladson has just formed a new rockabilly outfit that you all should know about: The Brokedown Playboys. They are period-correct in the fancy dress department, and the musicianship is insane!

Check out the Brokedown Playboys myspace site here.

We're in lurve!

Joseph David is here!

I am cuteness, hear me roar.

We are so happy to announce that Joseph David has arrived and is doing well. He has a full head of fuzzy blond hair and is just a doll. Sylvie loves his "teeny toes." We love all of him!

Carrie and Fred: Sleaterday Night Live?

Carrie Brownstein (formerly of one of my favorite bands, Sleater-Kinney) and Fred Armisen (of SNL fame) have teamed up to make some amusing videos as ThunderAnt.

"The Perfect Song" is probably the most entertaining of the videos up there, and features a cameo of another third of Sleater-Kinney, Corin Tucker. I had the great experience of interviewing both ladies for a Guitar Player cover story a few years ago, and found them both to be utterly cool and charming. Nice to see that they seem to be doing fine post-Sleater-Kinney.

And speaking of Sleater-Kinney, at Sleater-Kinney.net, you can download live versions of every single song they ever played for free. Very cool!

Good soccer news

First, my game report:

1 goal, 2 assists. Schweet.

Now, in the Premiership, Fulham has somehow managed to win its last four out of five to stay one spot above relegation to the English second division. This means I'll get to see McBride, Dempsey, Keller, and the gang on TV next season. Yes!

Also, Sporting de Gijón, the only Asturian side in the running for promotion to la Primera in Spain, are in third place with six weeks to go...hang in there dudes!!!!

ASCII JESUS

?????????¶¶¶¶¶¶¶¶¶¶¶¶¶¶¶?????
???????1¶¶¶¶¶¶¶¶¶¶¶¶¶¶¶¶¶¶????
??????¶¶¶¶¶¶¶¶¶¶¶¶¶¶¶¶¶¶¶¶¶???
?????o¶¶¶¶¶¶¶$???????ø¶¶¶¶¶¶??
?????¶¶¶¶¶¶?????????????ø¶¶¶¶?
????¶¶¶¶¶¶???????????????o¶¶¶?
???¶¶¶¶¶¶¢????????????????$¶¶?
???¶¶¶¶¶ø?ø¶$¶¶¶ø?????????1¶¶1
??o¶¶¶¶¶?1o¶¶¶¶¶???1¶¶ø¢o$?¶¶¶
??¶¶¶¶¶?????7o71???¶¶øø$1?¶¶¶ø
?$¶¶¶¶¶o???????????¶?¢¶¶¶o¶¶¶ø
7¶¶¶¶¶1????????????$?????7¶¶¶ø
ø¶¶¶¶¶7?????????1??¶?????¶¶¶¶ø
¶¶¶¶¶¶¶¶??????¢¶¶¶¶7????*¶¶¶¶¶*¶
¶¶¶¶¶¶¶¶¶1??¶¶¶¶¶ø¶¶ø?o¶¶¶¶¶¶¶
¶¶¶¶¶¶¶¶¶¶$¶¶??7117¶¶¶¶¶¶¶¶¶¶¶
¶¶¶¶¶¶¶O¶¶¶¶????????¶¶¶¶¶¶¶¶¶¶
¶¶¶¶¶¶¶7?¶¶¶¶¶oo7$¶¶¶¶¶¶¶¶¶¶¶¶
¶¶¶¶¶¶¶7??¶¶¶¶¶¶¶¶¶¶¶¶¶¶¶¶¶¶¶¶
¶¶¶¶¶¶¶?????ø¶¶¶¶¶¶¶??¶¶¶¶¶¶¶¶
¶¶¶¶¶¶O???????????????1¶¶¶¶¶¶¶
¶¶¶¶¶??????????????????¶¶¶¶¶¶

Guy Ritchie + Soccer = Awesomeatude

Guy Ritchie, who directed a couple of my favorite movies, Lock, Stock, and Two Smoking Barrels and Snatch, has just put out an ad for Nike Soccer that, for lack of better terminology, simply kicks ass.

Fabregas celebrates with you on your goal
The "mini-movie" is in first-person perspective and takes the viewer on a whirlwind tour of scoring for a small-time club, being signed to and playing for Arsenal, and, finally, playing in a Dutch National Team game versus Portugal.

Ibrahimović mocks your attempt at marking him after scoring on your sorry ass
What makes this commercial so compelling is the on-the-pitch action of real-life European soccer stars such as Arsenal player Cesc Fabregas, Man U. players Wayne Rooney and Cristiano Ronaldo, Inter Milan players Marco Materazzi and Zlatan Ibrahimović, Barça players Ronaldihno and Rafael Márquez (the Barça game is on the Internet-only longer version of the commercial) and Dutch National side players Ruud Van Nistelrooy and Wesley Sneijder, among others.

Materazzi gives you the one-handed definition of "man marking"
The action scenes are very well-done and give you a good sense of how brutal it must be to play at that level. When Materazzi stiff-arms "you" in the face (see photo above), you can almost feel it, and when "you" score the pick-up pass in front of goal from Fabregas, the exhilaration is undeniable. The killer soundtrack from the Eagles of Death Metal propels the action perfectly.

Sneijder intones one last word of encouragement prior to your free kick
This type of commercial should be incredibly cheesy, I understand that. And maybe if you are not a soccer addict you will get a eau d'fromage. But for me (and I suspect legions of die-hard fans just like me), it really resonates. And it works—I had to hit up the Nikesoccer web site to watch it again (and, I confess, again and again).

Great visit from a dear friend

On Tuesday, one of my good friends, Helen, came to visit us. She's in DC for a convention and gamely made the trek all the way up the Red Line from Ballston to have dinner with Jenny, Sylvia, and me. I met Helen when I was studying abroad in Salamanca, way back in 1991. Who would figure that a West Virginia kid and a California girl would have so much in common?


Since that time, we have stayed in touch via letters, much too infrequent visits, and, these days, email. Regardless of the geographic distance between us, we have remained close friends. She now works for the Lance Armstrong Foundation in Austin, doing some immensely important work (work that includes hobnobbing with Lance and Hillary Clinton), is happy married to a great guy, and is as fantastic to be around as ever.

She has surmounted some seriously daunting obstacles in her life, and even survived a near plane-crash a year ago. Still, she always beams with enthusiasm and zest for living. I can honestly say that she's one of the most inspirational people I've been lucky enough to know. (Plus, Sylvia thought she was super cool from the minute she walked in the door—the killer Austin tee-shirt Helen brought her was a great icebreaker!)

We were all sad that she wasn't able to spend more time with us, and hope to make a trip to Austin when the baby gets ready to travel.

Why Americans Are Overweight

Here's a perfect example of the kind of food logic rife in America:



From The Consumerist.

Soccer is teh cool

I am obsessed with soccer, I think. It's pretty much all I watch on TV lately (other than Good Eats), thanks to a DVR and massive helpings of GolTV, Fox Soccer Channel, ESPN2, and, occasionally, ABC.

I also play every Sunday with a bunch of other soccer-obsessed over-30s in a pickup game on small goals. I usually score a couple times per game (I'm a winger/forward), and this week I scored my team's only two goals: one was a sweet knee-in from a high cross into the box, the other was a simple pickup on a breakaway pass that got through the defense.

When I get home from a game, Sylvie always asks how many goals I scored. If the answer is two, she says "you forgot one." She's my number one coach and motivator, as you can tell....

I'm working on my self-confidence on the ball and trying (in vain, as of yet) to make myself drive to the goal instead of shooting from too far out. It's difficult to keep your composure with defenders trying to catch up to you, as you can imagine, but I'm convinced that I can do it.

I used to only play defense, but decided a few years back to quit pussy-footing around and take charge of my game. Since then, I've only played up front and am now a terrible defender. :-)

There is no real point to this post, other than the fact that I love soccer and wanted to brag about scoring goals. Yes, I am lame. Sue me.

Wow! Can you believe a customer-driven corp.?

In my inbox:

"April 23, 2008

Dear Bolt Customers:

When we began service last month with free WiFi service, many of you (particularly Mac users) had just one request--remove the security key login requirement! Well, we're happy to announce that the key is no longer required on board.

Boltbus remains committed to provide service that is responsive to the needs of its customers, and we hope everyone will now be able to enjoy free WiFi service en route.

Boltbus Customer Service"

It's nice to see a company being run by a team that actually listens to its customers!

BoltBus...the only way to fly.

My Boo

I lurve her.
Photo by Mommy

Clinton...Obama....meh.

Try as I may, I just cannot get jazzed about this election cycle.

I personally don't like either of the Democratic candidates. Both are substantially unpalatable to a significant portion of the electorate, and to call either of them a slam dunk would be laughable.

It is no small feat that the Democrats have successfully found two candidates that have a serious chance of losing to a Republican after eight horrible, truly disastrous years of Republican rule in the White House. This election was un-losable. Yet, we've found a way to make it interesting. Our party is a collective freaking basket-case.