A Big Break

Just took a few Months off from writing here.

Not sure if I'll get around to catching things up from then (as I rethink the purpose of this blog, if any of course - some blogs just have no purpose).

We will see where things go.

Peace all.

The Great American Pastime

Its Baseball Season again. So although I missed the Fenway South Season opener (Red Sox vs Orioles @ Camden Yards) I did manage to see the ol Florida Marlins (eventually to become the Miami Marlins as everyone basically knows it should be) play at the new Washington Nationals Stadium for the first time.

Happily my old team won - that they are doing good is a miracle - maybe the sell off of players is finally to an end with the new manager and owners (Even I lost track of that).

But Its interesting in what they consider for new stadiums. The architecture is seriously uninspiring - supposedly taking the concrete and steel look of DC vs. the Neoclassical look they could have incorporated from the city's government buildings and made it different from all other stadiums. So it looks boring, the view is relatively blocked so you really cant see much beyond the Washington Monument or the far off National Cathedral. But at least it took one inspiring step and built it part way into the ground like Camden Yards was done. At least it doesn't stick out like a major sore thumb.

Eventually I will see its predecessor (RFK Stadium) go much like the good ol venerable Orange Bowl did a short time back (looking at the pictures of the demolition tears my heart out as I once lived within 5 blocks - saw many Dolphins games there and even The Boss, Journey, and the Police in concert there). I sure do hope they do something decent with the area of the new Nationals Stadium- and not just a bunch of chain stores. Otherwise it was good to see the Marlins winning again- a good 7-3 score, and some cool fireworks to country music? In D.C. ?


(My last view of the Orange Bowl, summer '07)

Music for the Eyes

One of the hidden Gems of this city is all the gala and special events that you can score tickets to once in a while for an amazingly inexpensive price.

Thus was the start of May when my good friend Stefanie calls me up at 6pm asking if I wanted to go to a Gala event at the Kennedy Center for the performing Arts at 8pm since they had a VERY last minute drop out. I knew that this involved The most Amazing living conductor of our time (IMHO) John Williams. So despite that I was down in Del-Ray, on my bike - did not stop me from saying no - I would get home, somehow fast enough to clean up, eat something and get to the Kennedy Center in time - and despite being well over 8-10 miles from home - by George I did it!

The event was the annual fund raiser for the Center itself - and the theme was THE ART OF FILM MUSIC and featured the films of David Lean (including personal favorites of Bridge Over the River Kwai, Lawrence of Arabia and my mom's favorite Dr. Zhivago) and the films of Steven Speilberg - of which was a treat since Williams has composed & directed soooo many of them, including JAWS, ET, Close Encounters of the Third Kind (which I remember seeing during a summer vacationing in Puerto Rico and was subtitled in Spanish as I remember seeing the original Batman that way also)

Anyway it was quite amazing to see Martin Scorsese, John Williams & Steven Spielberg in person - even if at a distance. Even more impressive was seeing Williams at work. It was probably as close to being *IN* the recording studio as possible when they record a piece for the movies.

Though I much rather have preferred "Belly of the Steel Beast" from Indiana Jones and the Last Crusade (that is the peice where Indy "battles" the WW1 era tank to save his father) - Williams chose the opening set piece of "Indy's Very First Adventure" (the opening sequence that gives good background to a young Indy played by River Phoenix).

Williams & Spielberg basically first showed the film without music, then - live with the National Symphonic Orchestra, Williams played to the film the corresponding music which (according to Spielberg) included over 45 music cues and other things I cant remember. Like I said - the closest to being in a recording studio with Williams. And although he played other pieces of Spielberg's films - he also did parts of ET's Finale, The complete Indy Close credits, a compilation from Hook, and so many in their performance and unheard of THREE (3) encores!

So needless to say - John Williams is rated #1 amongst my top modern composers/directors - not just for this - but he also gave me all the music for Star Wars (Main title, Imperial March & Duel of Fates in particular). Though I still give MAJOR props to Basil Polidorous for his Conan Soundtrack and Jerry Goldsmith for his 13th Warrior Soundtrack.

Running with the Horses

Wait - didn't we cover this subject before? Well never mind that (ok actually mind it if you wish - I don't mind) since this is the what is now becoming a tradition to enjoy the Gold Cup Affair whether its International of the Virginia version.



Luckily I went back on my winning streak taking home yet more of Dave's $2 Bills and a few of his specially procured presidential coins (John Adams & Thomas Jefferson). I did not realize that the coins will have a different president on each run that is minted (2 or 3 per year?) Kind of neat similar to the State quarters that the mint did. Question is - do guys really want a junk load of change jingling in their pockets? SO the Jury is still out whether we transition to those $1 coins .... I figure at some point the demand will be for those good old Jefferson $2 bills as the dollar gets weaker.

Hiking Season has begun!

A few interesting hikes over the last month or so with two of note that are rather different. The first one was a great new one out in Shenandoah National Park. The Meneka/Signal Knob Trail was a fun hike as the first of the year one. Not very picturesque or lots of water this is a nice forest trail with lots of ups and downs in a round loop for about 9 miles. This was a fun one since we had two shepherding dogs to keep all us humans in line.

The second hike is unusual from most of the others as it was an Urban Hike with portions that you could almost never tell you were in the middle of the city along Soapstone Valley and the Melvin Hazen Trail. Connected via Rock Creek Park it makes an interesting contrast with the forest and the trappings of our city - finding the oddball sewer access or the variety of buildings from expensive to cheap apartments spotted amongst the trees.

This hike definitely has sparked an interest in trails in the area of which there is more to come.

Tale of the Flying Cherry Blossom

Once there was a teeny tiny Cherry Blossom that wanted to fly. So it worked all winter long to bloom, waited patiently and silently through the cold through the snow and through the dark.

Then one spring day it was fed up - it wanted to fly. It pushed hard to free itself from its small prison with all its might until suddenly, it saw the light. It was free, and it saw it had many brothers and sisters. It was happy, but still it wanted to fly.

Then suddenly one sunny day the wind blew - it saw its chance and let go. Up it went - up, up in the sky - and it saw a glorious sight. not just many blossoms, but other bigger blossoms of all shapes, sizes and all colors and made of many things all over the sky.

And thus the Blossom was happy - but as the blossom flitted about through the great monuments it started to fall, slowly and gliding to the ground. Down it fell to the ground, a single blossom, one of millions, unnoticed, but happy.

(more pictures of Cherry Blossoms here and Kite Festival Here)

Re: Your Brains

Just A few notes on a great set of bands that I saw about a month ago: Paul and Storm who's set was :

Opening Band /Your Town /Count to Ten /Nugget Man /Easter Song /Mothers Day Song

“Commercial Break” / Nun Fight / Lullaby for your Vagina / Urinal Cakes
James Taylor on Fire / Randy Newman theme song for LOTR, Passion of the Christ (Go Hobbit Go & Go Jesus Go)
TMBG as the Ice Cream Man / The Captains’ Wife Lament (seamen everywhere!)


And then Jonathon Coulton was the main act. His songs as Paul and Storm's are found on their web sites (follow the links) as I cant explain them well - so listen to it yourself - they are hilarious! :

Future Soon / Ikea / Shop Vac / A Talk with George (Plimpton) / I’m your Moon (Pluto Song)
Baby Got Back (Cover) * / Soft Rocked By Me * / Code Monkey * / Chiron Beta Prime *
Creepy Doll * / I Feel Fantastic * / I Crush Everything * / Skullcrusher Mountain
Mandelbrot Set / Still Alive / You Ruined Everything /
Re: Your Brains

Encore: 1st of May (F*#$ Outside) * / Sweet Caroline (Cover) *

Check them out if possible

I Got the Fever!

Dengue Fever! yes its true - and I'm contagious! Well more like the band Dengue Fever (MySpace or Wiki) - not the disease. I got to go to thier show at the Black Cat almost a week ago with Exit Clov opening (though I missed Cordero's act ).

Exit Clov (who will be playing Austins SXSW festival soon), is definately a band to watch out for in the future - though thier sounds style is wide ranging and cohesive (which shows talent) it is too wide ranging to give them an identity. Lead singers (twin sisters of asian descent which I overheard fullfills 80% of the male populations 16-45 fantasies) are classically trained - violin & piano (translate synth). Using these tools and some good bass lines they put up songs that were melodic (the venue might have been too big for their sound - or maybe it was just drowned out in the rear where I was ), but others just poped out and worked the crowd well like MK ULTRA and DIY (Do It Yourself). Overall a neat little band that I want to give a second chance listen at a smaller venue - say ... March 22nd at IOTA in Arlington.......


But Dengue Fever was the real star of the show.

They are apparently getting rave reviews from Tapei from NPR and across to us here! Better described in others words (I can't do it justice) "vintage Cambodian pop, Western-influenced surf and psychedelic rock sounds".

Sounds complicated? Yes! And it also is FUN!! and very good!

I actually got into the gaggle near the stage , a rarity - but a well worth effort. Seeing lead singer Cchom Nimol in her cool silk Cambodian dress, and the rest of the band - gave it more energy, and you could enjoy the onstage antics of bassist Senon Williams and Lead Guitar Zac Holtzman (jumping up & down in sync as they played) even more. I even managed to grab the set list which was (with a few notes where possible):

• Hold my Hips
• Shave my Beard (cover of old Cambodian traditional song)
• N.Y.E.
• Tiger Phone Card (Fun
• Lost in Laos (lead Guitarist Zac made tha guitar sound like a sitar!)
• Sober Driver ( Sung by Zac w/ CChom, about a long distance relationship)
• Seeing Hands
• Clipped Wings
• Thanks A Lot
• Ah GoGo (Fun Cambodian Pop Song!)
• Pow Pow
• 1000 Tears
• Mr. Orange

Encore:

• SniBong CChom brought 2 people up on stage from the audience to do the songs with her)
• Glass of Wine
• I'm 16

Overall I am a fan of this group now. After the show I got to talk to Senon extensively about their current tour (I wish could remember in more detail), but as you can see by the set list - it wasnt a short show! So hopefully you'll get the fever also!

Can you Wish Upon a Fading Moon?

Is it Christmas time yet?

For those of you who were lucky enough to catch this months earlier Lunar eclipse, it was a definate amazing sight. I took a few pictures that came out pretty cool - I even broke out my old 35mm film camera and snapped a few photos. But what I really wanted to do was snap a whole bunch of shots with with my very much desired Sony Alpha Camera. Desperately *WANT* this new toy... unfortunately I dont *NEED* it, and have been convinced back to sanity by Ray, and a few others.

Ahhh... Materialism

So I leave you with a few shots of what I was able to take with Wayne's camera, since mine totally SUX'd !!! (do note either Saturn or Venus at the top of the shot as a small pinpoint of light)

Its the Great Pumpkin Charlie Brown!

Well I apologize for the long lapse in posts... I know its been a while, much like a sighting of the .. well, Great Pumpkin.

Life gets busy with small things and other distractions to boot. So here in a jumble - I give you a jumble of February recaps (in 2 part posts -dated for my Mom' Bday & our wonderful Leap year!)

Katsucon !!! : Well if you've never been to a geek convention - an anime convention rates somewhere between a war gaming convention and a comic book convention. Though I've never been to the holy grails of any of these I was missing part of the trifecta of geek Cons. SO on Saturday on a sunny Wintry day in mid February, I head off with Amanda and Denise (The Big "D" -right ) to the Omni Shoreham and ... get a .....ummm eye full (the she demon thing pictured below is typical).

Needless to say - I miss my anime - but mostly because there is so much stuff released now - and a majority is high priced junk - that you don't get good series anymore (like Gundam, Cowboy BeBop, Gunsmith Cats, Neon genesis, Macross etc.....). I did discover a few neat series - short lived as they are in Gunslinger Girls (eerily haunting and amazingly drawn), Afro Samurai (voiced by THE man - Sam Jackson) and saw a visually stunning & bizarre and supercool movie, that I *MUST* see again called Paprika.

I also picked up a few neat knickknack's, learned what Yaoi was, and saw an eye full of fun, sexy and plain - shouldn't be worn costumes...... The girls want to go to Otacon in August... I'll think about that one. More pictures are --->Here<---

Thankfully, to offset the geekness of Saturday, the next day was followed up by an impressive Belgian beer festival over at Max's on Broadway in Fell's Point neighborhood in Baltimore. Too many beers were tasted - and next year I need to retain (or get a copy of) the beer guide & our notes. They had in INSANE amount of those beers all on tap and even their standard tap list is impressive. We were also lucky to be with Max's regulars Kevin & Viraj(pictured above with Cat & Random dude) and scored, via Max's generosity a Deleruim Tremens glasses (right) - although I attempted to fight Viraj for the large Chimay glass, he took it home. But he deserved it - A big THANKs to those two fella for pointing this out!

Put this one on the calender for next year for sure!

It's Business time !

"When it's with me you only need two minutes because I'm so intense. Two minutes in heaven is better than one minute in heaven. You tell me you want some more. Well, I'm not surprised, but I am quite sleepy."

Somehow I thought of The first song I ever heard of The Flight of The Conchords (of which Jon introduced me to) as an appropriate intro to the Amazing Show that is The Sex Workers Art Show (SWAS) that has been traveling the country and was at the Rock & Roll Hotel last night.

Never had I seen such a LARGE packed house at that place. Packed in almost like sardines.

It had an almost a through the looking glass appeal when I first saw the adverts, a very definite curiosity. But then the show really manages to give the industry a voice, add a faces and a name to this anonymous and often exploited labor force but managed to maintain a light and highly entertaining mood. It was an eye opener to hear that the industry nets more than the 3 of 4 of the major sports combined (Football, Basketball & Hockey), and as Annie Oakley the shows Hostess/MC said that much like our burgers and food we like “prefer our products to remain anonymous.” , including sex......

There were 8 performers overall:

Kirk Read who grew up in small town, VA read/preformed his letter to Rick Hilton (heir to the Hilton Fortune maybe?) which included complaints such as no light colored comforters (stain too easily) and installing dimmers (allows for better mood lighting for his clientèle). But more poignant was his description of his night with his client - (not the dirty details - except for the comforter bit)

Dirty Martini was next who did a "patriotic" burlesque bit with a comment on America's love of money..... and basically where we can stick it (or in this case find it) - mouth, underwear, boobs and butt - Yep a string of nothing "butt" cash from there - hilarious AND disturbing!

The World Famous *BOB*, was easily the most endearing. A down to earth girl from a teeny town in Cali, she recounted how she fled in a Camaro with her gay hairdresser friend to L.A. to become a dime-a-dance girl, who then turned into a self-proclaimed “worst dominatrix ever” turned performance artist. Bob (she renamed herself after The Cure front man Robert Smith) performed an neat striptease to the theme from 2001: A Space Odyssey!

Erin Markey showed off her hilarious wit, as well as her pole dancing and singing chops, as she captivated us with the story of her journey from college grad to Chuck E. Cheese reject to an amateur stripper with the stage name “Bridget.”

Lorelei Lee, a porn performer read from her fiction work (didn't catch the title)

Mistress Keva turned a could a been LNS'er into her submissive pony boy in a dominatrix show, and gave him a Cantonese name and made him whimper on command. She spoke of how she exploits Asian stereotypes and fetishes with her clients, pretending to say dirty things in Cantonese when actually she’s asking how much the yellow purse costs or Happy New Year. The finale of her act was - even though no nudity was involved, used a very life like prosthetic and was Quite Shocking, even to me!

Author Chris Kraus read a story about her days as a topless dancer in New York City. It felt out of touch with the rest of the show somehow. Something from another era.

The night ended with fireworks - literally - with the performance of Krylon Superstar (pictured above), who hammed it up with the audience then sang and danced to a patriotic anthem with the words “F*** Bush” taped to his chest. He finished with a "flourish" by placing a sparkler in his butt and lighting it to the shock and applause of the audience. LIKE OMG! once you have Anal Sparklers - how can you top that!

The evening was capped off by us actually getting to meet & talk to the World Famous *BOB* in person ("Bob like a girl, Jan like a guy" - direct quote from her on our introduction.) yeah even though Krylon was fun - we got to meet & talk to "her" - *BOB* is sooo down to earth. She is NYC, (and surprisingly had never been to DC before), and who knows - it could be well worth it to visit her burlesque show on my next trip up there!

Seen in DC... ..

A friend of mine saw the strangests of things in DC last night. Projected - Yes I said PROJECTED - onto the Washington Monument - facing the Lincoln Memorial, the words "HELL OR HIGH WATER".

I have tried finding out what this was art? demomstration? Can it be confirmed and not just a trick of my freinds eyes driving down Independence Avenue? Well, a bad mock up of what it might look like is included....

As for me, I'll continue the search for answers...

Update: My friend - a thoroughly Rotten Rabi, found the source: Greenpeace !

Here's the link; and what I presume is a picture of what it looked like, though I have no confirmation.

Is there a Doctor in the House?

Yes it is the last Hurrah of the Good Doctor Dremo's Taphouse. And although I only knew it for a short 4 years of its 14+ years long existance - it was still the best Dive bar in town.

It (and the Taco Hell next door) are being replaced by condo's. We don't know know the future fo the business (if they relocate) but it was fun while it lasted.


Thank you Dremos.

The Future Sure Looks Bright !

GO !

Too Much Light Makes the Baby Go Blind (TML for short) is an amazing set of ever rotating plays put together by a group from Chicago called the NeoFuturists. Based on my friend Stefanie's recommendation I went to see this after missing catching it during last summers Capital Fringe Festival ( I think i ended up seeing A Romeo & Juliette - suicide prevention play) . This is a neat perspective to convene VERY short plays into one hour - specifically 3- plays, one hour. For each performance the audience chooses the order and the Neo-Futurists create a non-illusory collage of the comic, tragic, political, personal and experimental all while embracing chance, change and possibly a little chaos.

Now as some have already made some notes on this (near bottom), I wont be overly repetitive. Other than a few of my favorites listed:

Moonlit Theatre Presents: Apollo 11 Lunar landing - Definitely "Moon" lit.... just imagine where the flag on the moon is planted...

The simple and eventually cancelled - United Airlines Flightplay 15

Night of the Wild Tortilla Throwers - where else can you throw tortillas anonymously BACK at the stage?

Ryan Walters: Bad Ass Bike Messenger - yeah I'm AM Inspired to be one... I think....

Baggage (the mini series) - Damn with the Writers Strike ! this is better than TV - when your baggage stars as the main character.

The enigmatic THE CHAIR play... What do you see it? What is it? NO it's not....

And because they don't deserve to go into obscurity - as what I see will probably be Nothing like what I would see in three months from now (due to them constantly removing old plays and adding new ones), honorable mentions are:

Veterans Day: July 4th Edition - a poignant yet (politically) neutral comment on a soldiers homecoming from Iraq.

Low Stakes/High Drama - all I could think of was of The Good, The Bad, and The Ugly as I saw this one a mile away - still couldnt help myself from laughing uncontrollably.

Fame - How do you make a social commentary on Columbine or Virginia Tech... Well Done Neo-Futurists, Well Done

Night of the Flying Tortillas - They figured on an interactive play, they didnt think the Audience would interact back. Yes watch for a horror movie with a similar titlle ... maybe Attack of the Giant Tortillas!

And the Self explanatory: Pastie on My Dick (alas poor Ryan Walters who had to preform this, and kudos for the imaginative use of the OTHER Dick !)

CURTAIN

Epilogue: Apparently in the flyer that you get with the title of the plays (and numbers you must call out to have them performed) There are "neo-futurist facts for the day"

I always thought Virginia had the most personalized License plates - nope its Illinois
The National Mall is 1.4 times larger than Vatican City
There are an average of 165 cans of beer in a keg

and

Topless Saleswomen are legal in Liverpool England - but only in Tropical Fish Stores

Of Sights and Lights

Over the last weeks I got to experience a couple of very different visual mediums. Both have left a very different impression on me, so we will start with the oldest, kind of..... (The rest will follow shortly)

Though I just saw it barely a week before it closes - The Ansel Adams Exhibit at the Corcoran Museum was breathtaking! And this is despite the Annie Liebowitz exhibit being closed already. I was pretty much exhausted with just one gallery as it was. Seeing this exhibit was rejuvenating. Adams was one of my inspirations for photography, and although I have never seen much of the scenery that he is famous for photographing, I have fallen in love with it dearly.



What I had forgotten (and my friend reminded me of the term), is Adam's use of negative space. So many shadows and intricacies in what initially looks just like black areas. It truly gives his work depth.

The Corcoran had a few other neat surprises one of which was a interactive photography display. Basically there was a rotating projection on the wall that would display the photos taken barely a minute before by a camera set up in the room. What you get is almost a photo booth style display on the wall - with all types of people doing everything from funny to serious to normal. In someways it reminds me of (though not as deep as) the WDYDWYD project that I gave thought to this summer (and still do). Perhaps its the spontaneity of the installation that I like - I was goofy at first - but then somehow I got a neat inspiration, and got a "RAD" picture. Almost a series if you would say.

Finally I found one of my favorite pieces of classical American sculpture as part of the permanent exhibit: Hiram Powers, The Greek Slave. The Greek Slave is a piece that attempt to use classical lines to evoke in inner strenght of will. Even though this has been translated in many different ways, including for the abolitionist movement in the 1850's, I still think that this statue is pretty powerful.

This of course despite the obviousness of what very few sculptors have been able to do ever since the golden age of Greece. Most people don't notice it off hand but notice how most marble statues have some type of pedestal that the figures lean on? Even Augustus Caesar's Statue needed a little cherub for support (below, Right). The Greeks didn't do that (though most Greek statues that have survived are really Roman replicas) for example Hiram Powers - despite being acclaimed as one of the best in his age - still used that trick. My favorite sculpture work in the WORLD happens to be one that seems to defy that gravity. Just one look (for me) of the Winged Victory (also known as the Nike; below, left) of Samothrace and I was in deep love.




























She stands against the wind - defiant pose (her head is missing), and you can - almost feel the wind against her. Unfortunately she sits in the Louvre in Paris, and I still remember when I first came upon her: Up high on a dias at the top of a grand staircase, as if she was back on that prow of the ship she was meant to be upon; the shadows on her clothing, the wind whipping at her.... A sight that no picture can do justice. I would give my right arm or leg to own her.


It will be a while before I see her again.

HOT HOT Editors!

I say never! As you recall back in September I saw the Editors. It was my introduction to them - so I left the review to Club D. This time around having acclimated to them, gotten their music (2007's An End Has a Start), and now attending there show again - I will come every-single- time! Only next time I will plan ahead. The Editors had sold out!

Well people are discovering how good they are, because last September I was walked up day of the show, and bought tickets. This time - 5 days before they sold out. That left a handful of us scrambling for tickets. We managed to snag two off Craigslist (Thanks Stefanie!!) - and I got mine for face value at the venue! Lucky me! I have a feeling that the DCist tipped off DC with a good article on the Editors....

The show started with Hot Hot Heat! a group I had kinda heard of... somewhere in my head... that was because it was actually In MY Music Library already ! So when their opener went on - I was WAIT I know them! (the song was a gift from my friend Ruthie - pictured in pink with Cat - who were both also at the concert) . Hot Hot Heat (or HHH!) was a great energy band and opened up with Dirty Mouth (of which I just found out their Elevator album was produced by Neko Case of new Pornographers fame, and are an influence of the Eidtors ) and other great singles such as Oh Godammit and Goodnight. This group has some great melodies with which lead singer Steve (who I got to met later at DC9) pumps the crowd up - great performance guys!

The Editors though were truly the star & headliners. With lead Tom Smith smooth vocal (Ive heard a zillion people compare him to Robert Smith, but I say he is his own. His strange presence makes the girls go wild, and just (I guess from an untrained ear) sounds smooth & distinct from the music. That he didn't look like he was strung out on something made thsi an crisp - on target performance. But almost never mentioned is guitarist Chris Urbanowicz.

Chris's work really gives that music a frantic, energetic pace despite the dark lyrics (allot of death themes on this album). Its really quite a mix, but good enough that it garnered the group a best British Group Nomination from the Brit Awards. My bet is that soon they'll be hitting the grammys also!

Included in their set at the 9:30 club was An End has a Start, Racing Rats , Smokers Outside the Hospital Doors, Weight of the World, and Munich amongst others (click on the song to preview it below - especially An End has a Start cause all his strange quirks and hand motions etc. in the way Smith acts in the video is very much like he is on stage). This was well worth going to and will be going again. Of note for the 9:30 Club, they finally have a Dogish Brewery beer that I absolutely love: Raison D'Etre !! BRILLIANT!!

An Awakening

An interesting way to begin the new year is to kind of reflect on yourself for a little (as if banging ones head on a door and almost giving yourself a concussion isnt a way to bang in the new year) . So it comes with a little bi of de-ja-vu that last sunday, on an unusually warm winter day, I took a bike ride.... What made it so unusual was I ended up at Haines Point, and The Awakening Statue.

Its been about a year & a half since I last saw it, and was just as impressed with it back then as now. So it is sad to find out that it was bought and bieng shipped to the National Harbor shortly. Kind of an eye opener. (pics here).

Which, as cheesy as sometimes as it sounds brings me to all these self help things you see around the bookshelves and so forth. In general these places & books charge alot for simple advice that in most cases dont "catch". Most of us, as adults, have a pretty ingrained personality & quirks. None of these things are going to transform you overnight unless it comes with a shocking life experience. It comes from within.

My sister many years ago, paid for me to go to "The Landmark Forum". Sure it was an eye opening experience (but then I also remember it for meeting this girl from greece that I was infatuated just as much). Sure it had a great message. But was it worth THREE days and a quarter grand spent?! No not really. And if I had done my homework on it.... I would have been somewhat disturbed at its origins. So in general I really do not trust those venues.

But yet the one book I have gone back to over the last four years - The Four Agreements - is just that type of book. Maybe though that I keep going back to it is a sign that it is different. I reread it in January each year - a simple book that puports to be "Toltec Wisdom". I pay no attention to that... ok maybe I do - because the 4 agreements are pretty basic (but hard to follow religiously):

1. Be Impeccable with your word - Speak with integrity. Say only what you mean. Avoid using the word to speak against yourself or to gossip about others. Use the power of your word in the direction of truth and love.


2. Don't take anything personally -Nothing others do is because of you. What others say and do is a projection of their own reality, their own dream. When you are immune to the opinions and actions of others, you won't be the victim of needless suffering.


3. Don't make assumptions - Find the courage to ask questions and to express what you really want. Communicate with others as clearly as you can to avoid misunderstandings, sadness, and drama. With just this one agreements, you can completely transform your life.


4. Always do your best - Your best is going to change from moment to moment; it will be different when you are healthy as opposed to sick. Under any circumstance, simply do your best, and you avoid self-judgment, self-abuse, and regret.

But the thing I always found most fascinating is the introduction of the Toltec mythology & the "Dream of Planet"

The Toltecs teach us that we are living in a dream and there is nothing really solid about that dream. We can say that the human body is made for perception, and the human mind is made to dream. We each dream our personal dream of "reality," and we all dream together to create the “dream of the planet." The function of the human dream is to prepare the new humans by "domesticating" them and making them part of the human organ, so that our evolution continues.

So our upbringing is is deteremined by others (like Duh!) and society. And in this upbringing we make all these agreements taking on the view of our parents & society. Well - basically the need to unlearn all these thiings (our old agreements) and simplify to four. Its more complicated so I guess thats why theres a small book on it.

Maybe whenI finish that I can attemot to finish all the other books on my shelf sitting there unread; The History of Africa, Le Morte De Arthur, Collected works of Robert Frost, The Count of Monte Cristo..........

12 days , 12 things ....

So how many people actually know WHEN the 12 days of christmas are ? NO not before the "big day" but actually after. And of course there is always that song "th 12 days of Christmas" blah blah......

Well this year I actually decided for some strange odd reason, that I would keep track of what I "got" during those 12 days. Though by this point the initial bits are fuzzy in my mind - Here it goes:

Day One: One Great Xmas Day brunch thanks to Stefanie & her amazing Mom!

Day Two: Found out Sally had a blown head gasket, apparently a common problem with Subaru's from 1998-2002

Day Three: A Happy Hour with 3 Margaritas! (you're kidding me on the day AFTER Christmas? - well why not - it makes the work day seem easier)

Day Four: I found the approximate repair bill for Sally would be a 4 figure number ($2,000 !!!) . On the lucky side I found a Pro shop a few days later who can slash 40% off that price - the catch is He cant do it until early February)

Day Five: Off To Mutton Top!

Day Six: At least 6 of us went chopping wood! (See the theme) plus it released alot of stress doing it.

Day Seven: Seven Bottle Rockets! (Goodbye to 2007!)

Day Eight: Head wound free since January 2nd 2008!

What you may say? well some may recall an particualr biking accident circa Nov 2006. Well I went all of 2007 without hitting my head REALLY hard on anything - but 2 hours into 2008 - Lo and Behold - I get into an argument with a door latch and I loose - big time. Luckily I have freinds who know how to bandage me up, even if it is a little overenthusiastic!

Day Nine: Fuzziness sets in, a boring nine hour workday....

Day Ten: Played a Great Game of Imperial! (yes I am a geek)

Day Eleven: Saw 11 Shooting Stars (I stopped counting after that)

Day Twelve: A Twelfth Night celebration

This was the capstone of the 12 days - A good dinner where I tried to recreate my Paella recipe from late September. And though it was different - it was nevertheless tasty! Even better that it was shared with good friends (right).

It was all to celebrate - even if it wasnt per the standard method- Three Kings day, also known as The Epiphany. For my family this was the official end of the holidays. The tree came down the weekend after this, there would sometimes be a parade on this day also. But the family wold get together and we would have a good meal together - though it was often times at a restaurant. I remember my grandparents ordering Paella on this occasion more than a few times. SO thus was my impetus to have a dinner with my family of friends. And its perfect timing. Since the holidays are soooo full - one can never throw a holiday party anymore - so throw a small afffair for some afterwards - BRILLIANT!

In the immortal Hannibal Smith's word : "I love it when a plan comes together"

So three Huzzahs! for my wonderfull 2nd family who came out for a great evening (which is what counts)

So on that note I this time leave myself a few thing to remember for the next time I cook Paella

1. It always takes longer than I remember to cook - 45 - 60 min to cut & prep, alot the same amount of time for cooking

2. The Sofrito is the key to the color, dont scimp on the tomatoes, they need juicy pulp (out of season tomatoes dont work as well)

3. As I needed to be reminded - the Mussels are good if they close (if they stay open before they are cooked its bad, if they dont open when cooked they are bad)

4. Clams are not as vital, Scallops do a better substitute

5. Hoard up on Spanish Chorizo - its harder to find than I thought - and the dish misses something when not used

6. Big burner is better than 2 small burners of a regular stove - and a bigger P.I.T.A

7. Seafood is cheap at the DC Waterfront! Take advantage of it - especially cheap Mussels!

8. It always helps to have an amazing sous chef! (how could I forget that point!)

Thats all for now, i'll add if I remember more.

A Cold Shower

No despite having had problems with the water heater staying lit at the house, this has nothing to do with water, but more to do with the Quantrid Meteor Showers (an approximated view of something similar is pictured, left). And it just happens that, it was Father Universe (in contrast to Mother Nature I guess) gave us New Years Eve Fireworks, even if on his/her own time schedule. So that left no choice but an INSTANT Mini- Road Trip !

Usually I am used to the Perseid Meteor Shower having seen them once or twice while living in Miami. Its a great place for stargazing, because you can always go deep enough into the Everglades, away from the light pollution, as long as you dont mind fighting off the Mi-go sized mosquitoes.

Either way Jon, Mary, Dave, Reagan (the star of almost every picture) & Me piled into the car at the incredulous hour of 11:30 to see this shower that I had never seen (you need to be in the northern lattitudes). Our first bit of bad-luck was missing our Sheetz stop over (to get hot chocolate/coffee) heading out to Bluemont, VA near the Ravens Rock hike area we did. Our second was not finding the spot that we were told was perfect for the shower viewing.

But as intrepid as we were, we managed to find a spot by a field and set up our bundles of attempted warmth. Now mind you, it was approximately 17 DEGREES OUT! We could have used that liquidy warmth like the Miami Dolphins need a new Coach & Quaterback! Still we persevered we spotted lots of Shooting Stars (met my goal of at least 11 personally) plus tons of constellations, The star Polaris, Orion, some Sattelites, a few Planes, and Mighty Mars bright as ever in the sky.

Sure I almost froze my toes off huddled on a un-inflated airmattress with the others, but it was well worth it, especially since I didnt have to fight off those Mi-Go's.......

Banging in the New Year

I have realized that I am not as engrossing as some of my other friends in writing, especially when one has a gift of gab, and often find myself slow on posting up stuff. So here I am with suddenly a zillion things to ramble about, 3-4 days later sharing my New Years celebration.

My good friend Jamie and her beau organized yet another amazing cabin trip like the Tulip Tree cabin or Myron Glaser. This time we went to much ballyhooed Mutton Top Cabin which was very near Morris Cabin. Needless to say despite shoving 9 people and 7 "dogs" into the cabin, it was a phenomenal and novel way to spend New Years eve. Avoid large crowds, avoid drunk drivers, and still be with some (sadly not all) of your great friends.

The days were spent chopping wood, chillin by the fire (some went hiking), spending time with firends - the night cooking, playing games, and ... chillin by the fire. We ate well too... so much for roughing it.

A few rebellious cabin-goers defied the no dress up pact (darn that was smart of them) and thus Jon & Alexandra promptly got declared King & Queen of the ball (oddly King didnt get to be King). Its hard to just put a narrative to the weekend, but here are a few cherished memories:

An AMAZING Sunset over the cabin & Valley

Wacthing the cold front moving over us, a thick line of clouds passing over and revealing brilliant stars overhead.

Waking up in the morning looking into the valley with just the hill tops visible as a blanket of low clouds/fog cover everything else - breathtaking!

Chopping the big 20 foot log of a tree and hauling another 25 foot fallen from the tangled vines & brambles for the bonfire.

Who would ever think you could have Pho at a rustic cabin! Thanks to Linny, we did, and made my stomach very happy.

Regretting a cool waterfall hike, yet I wouldnt have had my Tree experience if I had gone.

Hanging around the bonfire with Glog, Icewine & shooting off cheesy bottle rockets!
Stars Stars Stars!

Playing Bag of Nouns on Team Short Bus (since we were apparently soooo horrible we could be compared to ... well....). Bag O nouns is played by each player on a team writing 5 nouns on 5 slips of paper. Then in alternating order each team needs to guess as many words drawn from a bag/hat etc, which need to be guessed by the teams in 3 consecutives rounds via Taboo like fashion first, then bu using only one word, and the third round only in charades. Some interesting words people came up with:


Va-jay-jay, female pee funnel, Darren Biggs, Rickets, Buffalo Nickel, 3 different states, Jalopy, F-1 Racing, Quattro (think "Menage a Trois" +1, but in Latin), Grape Ape, and various other sundry & mundane words, of which I should seriously challenge!

Seriously this was a good way to cap off the Good Times in 07, and a Bang up way to ring in the New year (more on that later!)