I didn't really say everything I said.

Kim and I went and found 3 out of the 6 Banksy pieces in S.F. last Saturday. After that we stopped in Berkeley for dinner and watched Exit Through the Gift Shop which we both loved. It was hilarious. A wonderful documentary. Banksy is incredible. I know it's not necessarily legal what he does, but he really should get carte blanche to tag where ever he pleases. We are going back on Saturday to check out the other 3 works that we missed. Hopefully they will still be there unscathed.





I am planning on signing up for the CBEST (so I can substitute teach) on August 8th. Marked on the calender and everything. I feel I am making the right choice to go in the direction of teaching/working with kids.


Kim and I are planning a little art project(s)/sale. It's kind of (not that) top secret, but are hearts are in full gear...we just need to catch up. This excites us. I am guessing this is how she feels as well. More details soon.















Top 10 places I would like to visit:

10. Thailand
9. Australia
8. New York
7. London
6. Alaska
5. Greece
4. Italy
3. Ireland
2. New Zealand
1. Iceland (watching Sigur Ros' Heima sold me on this...)

Time will lead us to the same realm

Quest is right around the corner. 8 weeks full of all sorts of characters. It's always a blast to get to know these kids that are so incredibly unique. The picture a day thing will be fun for those 8 weeks. If you don't know what I'm talking about, it's a summer camp I work at...



This will be my fourth summer as a counselor and it's something I look forward to every year since I began.

I'm wrapping up reading Salem's Lot and Big Machine. Big Machine keeps building up and then letting me down. Over and over. It's kind of annoying, but I want to see how it ends. A little less than a 100 pages to go. Salem's Lot however has been building and tearing out throats along the way. I'm loving it.

I've been using my holga camera more which I enjoy. I just love the quality (or lack there of) and the colors.

I'm watching On Any Sunday...



...and they said that there was a scientific study (in 1971 mind you) that stated besides soccer, this sport exhausted the body the most or something. Kind of surprised me so here it is for you...but you could probably care less about that.

Banksy was in SF recently with touring with Exit Through the Gift Shop and he did 2 pieces in the mission district and china town. This excites me and I want to go see them (and that film) this weekend. Let's see if I can't make that happen.

Damn! Ice racing!?!? Nuckin' Futs! Sorry...On Any Sunday again. Even though it was made in the early '70's and the narration is almost accidentally comedic, but it's fun.















Top 10 artists I wish I could have seen before they died:

10. The Ramones
9. Michael Jackson
8. NWA
7. Jimi Hendrix
6. Joy Division
5. Johnny Cash
4. Queen
3. Nirvana
2. The Beatles
1. Elliot Smith

I love their love.

Walking through Berkeley with an 8 year old shouldn't have to be like playing a game of paperboy. Eyes constantly moving looking for the next obstacle. It usually isn't. Out of all the time I've spent in Berkeley, the homeless men and women have not been disruptive or offensive in any way shape or form. Occasionally there is the man walking about, shouting profanities, but other than that the people unfortunate enough to be homeless tend not to hound too much for spare change.

The other day, I was walking with an 8 year old girl and we turned the corner to a woman bent over, with her pants around her ankles, pissing on a garbage can. It took me an extra second to realize what was happening and what I should have done. I calmly said "Hold on a second" and turned us around walking back towards my car. As we were walking I was watching this girls reaction to what she had just seen. I'm sure it was utter confusion, so I asked her "Did you see that?" and she said she had. I told her she was crazy and sometimes there are crazy people around. At first I thought this whole situation was funny, and it is to some extent. Then a flurry of other emotions kicked down the door. Mainly sadness.

Kim and I saw Jonsi last night (35/360). It was an incredible show. It had a great stage set up that involved what looked like the side of a war torn building (instead of windows, there were video screens that appeared as windows) and a screen behind that. Also there were a few blocks of thin cloth where videos were projected as well. It was really a unique experience that doesn't happen very often at rock shows or music shows in general.
















Top 10 sequels:
10. Back to the Future 2
9. Lethal Weapon 2
8. Indiana Jones and the Temple of Doom
7. Road Warrior
6. Lord of the Rings: Two Towers
5. Empire Strikes Back
4. Aliens
3. Terminator 2
2. Godfather 2
1. The Dark Knight

He who knows when he can fight and when he cannot, will be victorious.

I see lots of people are excited it's spring break. I'm not one of those people. It just means I have to work much more. That being the case, I did get to go walk around the bay in Berkeley, eat chili cheese fries, go to the Oakland zoo, and...well that's about it.

Ampersand is becoming more of a cat and less a kitten by the day. It's just the little things she does. They grow up so fast don't they? Oh time, so tricky. I wish I had more of it. More time for everything. Little bit here...little bit there.

More new music coming from Minus the Bear and The Dead Weather. Damn it! I can not wait. I find myself needing music more and more recently. Trusty companion! Truly my sidekick. Speaking of music, I'm going to see Jonsi next week which should be awesome. I've seen pictures of his stage set up and it looks like something new.
















Top 10 track 1's (this list is off the top of my head...)
10. "Hollow" - A Perfect Circle (Mer de Noms)
9. "All the Love in the World" - NIN (With Teeth)
8. "Sunday Morning" - Velvet Underground and Nico (self titled)
7. "Vicarious" - Tool (10,000 Days)
6. "Kid A" - Radiohead (Kid A)
5. "Dead Leaves and the Dirty Ground" - The White Stripes (White Blood Cells)
4. "Sink to the Beat" - Cursive (Burst and Bloom EP)
3. "Private Eye" - Alkaline Trio (From Here to Infirmary)
2. "What I've Always Wanted To Say" - Far (Tin Cans...)
1. "Burying Luck" - Minus the Bear (Planet of Ice)

six groups of five.

A new friend of mine I recently have gotten to know has gone back home to North Dakota. Unfortunately I didn't get to know him as well as I would have liked, but what I did get to know, I grew really fond of. His name was Raymond and if I had to guess I would say he is around 70 years old. In his time here, I drove him around town when he needed to get something. Whether it was a doodad from the hardware store or some milk for his Life cereal, we got to get to know each other on these short little outings. On top of that, we went to see some films he had wanted to see (Green Zone and Repo Men) and yesterday, his last day here, we went and saw Hot Tub Time Machine. It was just about as raunchy as I thought it was going to be, but we both laughed consistently through out the film. (I recommend it.)



While we were enjoying the movie, I was paying attention to what he found funny. I have to admit that it surprised me at which jokes he found down right hilarious, which were pretty much the dirtiest of jokes. Needless to say, I wish he was here more often because he made great company.

A bunch of albums were recently made available one way or another and I want to give each one a go. All of which I am very excited for. Deftones, Jonsi, Tunng, Against Me!, Broken Bells, and a new New Pornographers album is dropping soon. Needless to say I have more than enough new music. I also made Kim an awesome rumspringa mix with 50 songs that I can't stop listening to (featuring Jonsi doing an acoustic cover of MGMT's "Time To Pretend"). Wondercon is coming up this weekend which I'm not THAT excited for, but it's always fun. New Dark Tower graphic novel which I am excited to read so I will probably pick that up.

I finished reading Helter Skelter which was just insane. It's frightening to think that someone could misinterpret information in such a way and convince people to follow them. It's a fantastic read if you don't mind the bloody details. I started reading Salem's Lot, Big Machine, and Carter Beats The Devil. I'm about half way through with Salem's Lot and am really getting into it. For Stephen King's second novel, it's great. Big Machine sounded interesting and quoted John Carpenter's The Thing in the beginning of the book, so I thought I had found a winner, but thus far (about 80 pages in) it's mediocre. Carter Beats The Devil is the most recent book I've began so I'm only around page 25, but it's fantastic. I'm really enjoying it and looking forward to take that journey.















Top 10 T.V. shows:
10. Curb Your Enthusiasm
9. Sopranos
8. Dead Set
7. Flight of the Conchords
6. 24
5. The Shield
4. The Office (BBC+US)
3. Arrested Development
2. LOST
1. Six Feet Under

(I still really want to see The Wire, Mad Men, and Breaking Bad.)