I became insane with long intervals of horrible sanity. Edgar Allen Poe
The trouble with fighting for human freedom is that one spends most of one's time defending scoundrels. For it is against scoundrels that oppressive laws are first aimed, and oppression must be stopped at the beginning if it is to be stopped at all. - H. L. Mencken Many people would sooner die than think; In fact, they do so -Bertrand Russell What I have been telling you, from alpha to omega, what is the one great thing the sigil taught me — that everything in life is miraculous. For the sigil taught me that it rests within the power of each of us to awaken at will from a dragging nightmare of life made up of unimportant tasks and tedious useless little habits, to see life as it really is, and to rejoice in its exquisite wonderfulness. If the sigil were proved to be the top of a tomato-can, it would not alter that big fact, nor my fixed faith. No Harrowby, the common names we call things by do not matter — except to show how very dull we are ... -James Branch Cabell
January 23, 2016 - 12:55 p.m. I'm invited to a party that starts in 23 minutes that will take me almost an hour to get to, I have not eaten nor gotten dressed. Most importantly I haven't blogged. Last night I told Dan I'd be late. I knew exactly how I'd be this morning. Plato said "Know Thyself" I do. Others who know me get to avoid me. I don't have that option. As usual I had trouble getting myself out yesterday but I managed to do it to go see Bobtown at Spiral Sounds Concerts aka Gidge (soft G as in George) and Loyse's (Louise with a French accent) house. This is a home game, a favorite band that I'm very friendly with at the home of friends. It's in Jersey City but easy to get to. I got there in record time as I had no wait for the and then no wait for the PATH, no wait for the elevator at the PATH station, and no hesitation about where to make the turn onto their street. There's no street signs when you walk along the water. I always get off at Exchange Place so I can get the perfect view of Manhattan. Because I had such perfect timing I was the first one there. Because it's a home game it's OK if I'm early. I went in and help set up. I'm a parasite but a useful parasite. Yes, that's pretty much the definition of a symbiote but I prefer parasite. Don't burst my illusions. Total aside, I the last sentence I made a grammatical mistake I always make. I left off the comma after "yes." It's there now because Word put the blue squiggle under it and I inserted it. Why do I have so much trouble with that rule? It happens almost every time. The answer for once is not, "I'm an idiot." That's not that kind of idiot." Academic stuff I can do. A bunch of friends I was hoping would be there couldn't make it but I still knew plenty of people, Angel, Karen, Joe, and Lauren? Is that really it? There are others that I knew but not as well. And yes I apologize to the dear friend that I'm forgetting. That IS the kind of idiot I am. I was going to sit in the second row but changed my mind and moved up front. Neither is ideal for taking pictures with my phone. But I can see and hear better from the front. I gook a lot of pictures not that you are going to see them today. I might show the Instagram I posted as that did come out well. Can you tell what song they are playing? It is clearly Our Lady of Guadalupe. That song is always the best visual and I always forget to video it. Next time I will. I really need a video camera; I really need a still camera. OK I have a still camera that takes videos. I have to learn to use it. Guess who did the merch. No it was no Sarah Palin. Why did you guess that? I'm not that kind of idiot. Right, I did the merch because it's Bobtown, I'm there, and the merch does not sell itself. Someone was very impressed that I knew what albums the songs were on. I know that for bands I know far less well than Bobtown. She asked how many times I've seen them, I gave the only answer I know, "Almost every local show since I discovered them." They are on my don't miss list. I am thinking of making that a feature when I guess DJ with Brian on WFDU; an in depth exploration one of my favorite bands." My plan was to leave early but of course that didn't happen. I ended up going back to the PATH with Jen and Joe. Yes I finally remembered Joe's name. He is the sixth member of the four-piece band, the fill in bass player. Don't try and understand it, just accept. It's like religion. I finally got the navigation to Grove Street down. I usually go home that way as the timing works out. I needed to get the mental map not remember landmarks. That's how my mind works. We took different trains but waited at the same platform. Joe asked me what my favorite Bobtown song was. That's so hard. There are a lot of bands I can't do that for and Bobtown is one of them. Each album is different from the others and the songs are so diverse. I'm tempted to say Fosse Grim because it is the most different, it's ethereal and haunting, and sounds Scottish even though it's based on a Swedish legend. Oh and I love Bob Fosse. It has nothing to do with that. Some I dance to, some I find myself singing out of nowhere, Some get my mind racing. Magilla Lee won me over the first time I saw them at the DJ showcase at NERFA. I called it the "Magilla Gorilla": song of course. I once woke up singing Battle Creek, I had been dreaming it. Right now Stitch in Time is playing so it's my favorite. That's it, it's whatever I'm listening to at that moment. People asked me at the show which was my favorite album. It's between the Trouble I Wrought and the History of Ghosts but I can't choose between them. Do I want to move to the music or be moved by the music? But I can tell you what I love most about their songs in general. I don't get bored at them. The songs all evolve, it's not the same melody in the same arrangement over and over. So many songs by other people you hear 30 seconds and get everything you are going to get out of the song. Not Bobtown songs. If nothing else the arrangement changes. They also do that magic thing of having great music that I enjoy recorded while being so much fun live. They do choreography and schtick but it always comes across as spontaneous. I had a very late dinner when I got home. I just made macaroni and cheese. It's sad but I didn't like that as a kid but I'm getting to love it as someone approaching middle age, I intend on living to 120. I actually called myself middle-aged at 40. I know how old I am, I also know that I'm never old. No matter what my body looks like I'm still an elf child when the world was young looking at everything in wonder. Now I'm looking at things in hunger. Bacon, eggs, and a bagel seems like the right breakfast for a blizzard. I have to check conditions. I'm beginning to think I might not go out today. I will take a little walk around the neighborhood and take pictures but that might be it. It all depends if there's a travel advisory. I won't endanger or inconvenience others. Skipping Stone is on now so I guess that wins as my favorite Bobtown song, for the next 45 seconds or so. I signed the Pro-Truth Pledge: please hold me accountable.
Memories: Not that Horrid Song - May 29, 2018
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