You're Supersonic...

Here's that zip file of my favorite songs by Modest Mouse, Red House Painters, and the Dismemberment Plan. It's a large file (43MB) but well worth the download, I promise. Enjoy!

-ed

Sufjan Stevens, 9/23/05, Cannery Ballroom

I'm pretty conflicted about this one. To say that I'd been eagerly awaiting this one is an understatement, and maybe I had my hopes set too high.

The line to get in was ridiculous, and we got there at 7:45 and it was stretched all the way to the parking lot. We had the misfortune of being in front of one of the most annoying people I have ever heard before, this small girl who decided she would share her opinion on everything to this poor guy she had just met. She was obviously very passionate about her views, but she kept talking about God and her version of liberalism and it was pretty obvious she was a product of ignorance. We tried our best to tune her out, but her voice was piercing. Unfortunately, that was just an inkling of the douche-factor of this crowd. We finally got in the doors around 8:45-9, a full hour after they were supposed to open, they said something about a security issue. I don't really know.

Anyways, we got in there, not terrribly far back from the stage, but we made the dumb mistake of standing near a pole. During the course of the night, I constantly got edged more towards to pole and by the time Sufjan got to the stage I was basically directly behind it, so I all I could see most of the time was the trumpet player and the hyper guitar player. Oh well. That was really my fault more than anything for putting myself in that position. But seriously, who designed this place with poles in front of the stage. LAME.

Ok, the rest of the crowd. Basically the douchiest crowd ever. I've been to shows with the ultimate douche-potential (Los Lobos, drunk bikers. Do I need say more?) and they were nowhere close to this. Ashley had more run ins with them than I did, having beer spilled on her yet again and getting booty danced on. At a Sufjan Stevens show. Now, I don't want to judge people (which of course I am about to do now,) but as Ashley said "I assumed people who listend to Sufjan were reasonable people." How wrong we were. They were loud and disruptive, and acted like it was a freaking destiny's child concert of something. The asshole next to me had his cell phone on speakerphone mode and kept talking to someone loudly and of course I could hear the other guy talking back. Also, I really, really hate people who try to move up in the crowd, halfway through the show. Look, I'm short, I usually don't have the best view, but I stick with the place I get when I arrive, because that's just the right thing to do. You have no right to push me to the side and cram in there because you got there late. I've never really been one to yell at people about this (even though secretly I always want to) but last night two people almost made me break my silence. Obviously no room to move in, this girl and her fat ass boyfriend bulldoze through me like they own the space. Argh.

So, the music. To be honest, it was really hard to concentrate on it because of the people around me and the amount of time we had to wait and stand. By the end, my knees had cramped up and my back was sore. But really, the music was amazing. He played "Decatur," my favorite song, which hadn't been showing up in his setlists recently, so I was happily surprised. And "Metropolis" was absoultly amazing live. There was enough variation from the record to keep me interested and not feel like I was listening to a cd. But the entire experience left me sort of unfulfilled. Maybe in hindsight I'll believe I enjoyed it more. Ok, I'm out.

-ed

HA.

*Japanese Smoking Ettiqute Sign.

-ed

Inspired by the Winfield!

Today when I was helping the Winfield out with her Honors website, she asked my what my 3 favorite bands are. I had just writen an essay extolling the brilliance of Modest Mouse at the Paxford Blog, so the number one was an easy pick. They are, in order, Modest Mouse, Red House Painters, and the Dismemberment Plan. So, being the nerd I am, I thought to myself, what are my 3 favorite songs by each band? List time!

Modest Mouse:
The Stars Are Projectors
Never Ending Math Equation
Heart Cooks Brain
Red House Painters:
Have You Forgotten?
Grace Cathedral Park
Byrd Joel
The Dismemberment Plan:
The City
The Ice of Boston
You Are Invited

I'll post a zip file of all of them sometime soon, so you too can hear the awesomeness.

-ed

So...

This might sort of seem dumb and lame to all those hardened music industry people, but today I finally had a childhood dream realized. My name is on the packaging of a professional CD recording. I mastered an album by a band called Eagle*Seagull who are on my friend Bryan's label, Paper Garden Records, and my name is in the credits on the sleeve. I know this doesn't sound all that cool, but ever since I decided that I wanted to pursue engineering, this is something I've looked foward to. I used to read the credits whenever I bought a cd and look at who engineered it, where they did it, and who mastered it and wish I could be there someday. All the rock stars want their names on the cover, all I've ever wanted is to be in the fine print. But yeah, I think it's really cool, and hopefully there are many more to come. So go buy the album and marvel at my name in silver ink.

-ed

Why, In Hindsight...

I miss San Antonio.

Thank you, Cary, I remember again why you're the best columnist in SA.

-ed

Pasta Jeopardy...

Answer: What is a strainer.

Question: What does Eric need to buy before he makes pasta again so he doesn't dump said pasta into the sink while trying to remove the water?

Yeah, that was embarrasing.

-ed

Weird...

There's something really, really familiar about part of the Mariah Carey song that I heard when I was working out this morning...and I can't place it. I thought it was a rip of that "Ignition" song by R. Kelly when I first heard it, now I can't seem to remember what exactly it was. It's only a few measures, but it's a phrase I've heard before....any ideas? If I can figure out what part of it it is, I'll let you know.

-ed

New Outlet!

So our Tuesday night group is off the ground now, and we've started a blog to publish what we've written for each meeting. The address is: http://paxford.blogspot.com

Check it out if your curious, this weeks topic was "People who we know, but don't know their names." Thus my three haikus about the fat kid I saw at a greek festival. Next week promises to be a bit more substantial. We're writing off the quote from Dead Poet's Society, "words and ideas can change the world." I'm keeping the link on the right side of the blog in case you ever want to visit it. The writers are: Ashley Strosnider, Shadndus Valentine, Ryan Stufflebam, Tara McDonough, Lauren Winfield, and myself.

-ed

BEST SHOWS ON TV...EVER

Tommy Lee Goes to College


Gene Simmons' Rock School


Hogan Knows Best

This has been a banner year for reality TV shows. It's near flawless, and could only be better if they had a show about Mr. T.

-ed

Sunday...

The only songs I have in my iTunes library with "Sunday" in the title are by Beck and Jimmy Eat World. This is depressing because I thought it would be cool to listen to all the songs I have with Sunday in them, on a Sunday, and it took a total of 8 minutes. So in a list of irrelevence, here are the songs I have, sorted by days of the week:

Sunday:
"Sunday Sun" - Beck
"A Sunday" - Jimmy Eat World

Monday:
"Blue Monday" - New Order

Tuesday:
NOTHING

Wednesday:
NOTHING

Thursday:
Everything by the band "Thursday"

Friday:
"Casual Friday" - Black Leotard Front
"Friday Night" - The Darkness
"Friday" - Sunny Day Real Estate

Saturday:
"Saturday" - Josh Rouse
"Saturday" - Yo La Tengo

So, yeah, the middle of the week seems to get no love from songwriters.

BTW, why do I suck at writing? I'm trying to come up with something for Tuesday night, and everything I've tried just doesn't seem good to me. I need decent subject matter.

-ed

Opa!



Blubberbelly Bluelips, I miss you.

-ed

The Disco Strikes Again!

The Disco Arts and Crafts Collective - It's a Scrapbook Party!

I'm using a file sharing site, so when you click on it, it takes you to an external site. Scroll down to the bottom, choose "free," and then wait for the link to show (@ 30 seconds), and then download!

-ed

I EFFING CALLED IT!

Mark Kozelek records album of Modest Mouse covers, via Pitchfork

Um, did I predict this in uh, April? YES.

Does this mean that I am peeing my pants in anticipation? Correct.

-ed

Werner, why aren't you wasted!?

So last night's C.S. Lewis/Shadowlands party was actually fun, despite the fact I fell asleep for the last 20 min or so. Out of it came the suggestion that we start our own Inklings type group, which I think would be great, but I'm not sure if anyone but Ashley and me are interested in it. Hopefully something will come from it.

The sound in space question was answered, and the correct answer is yes, the sound would be audible in the craft. Thank you, Ryan, Tara, and Dad.

Nearly done with the Eagle*Seagull album. Quite a learn as you go experience.

-ed

BIG POST!!

Ok, I will attempt to write about everything I've meant to write about in the past few days.

First off, a letter I just wrote my dad...

hey dad,
I'm reading a book, Out of the Silent Planet, by C.S. Lewis, and it's a science fiction book, writen before anyone had ventured into actual space. Anyways, there's something in there that I'm fairly sure isn't possible, and that is the main character hearing the sounds of meteroites hitting their space craft. Now, I base my disagreement with this solely on a Superman comic book that I read in middle school, where Superman is in space and realizes that he can breathe in a spacecraft because he can hear sound, and you can only hear sound in atmosphere. However, because the character in the book is inside a craft w/ breathable air, would the sound of something hitting the outside the walls be translated into sound inside the craft? Or would the sound just be non-existant?

Anyone have an answer for that one? If you can beat the physics teacher to the answer, I will give you a gold star.

Next, the topic of "Dirty Dancing"...

I finally saw enough of that movie to know that it is ok to make rash judgements on it. Now, inane dialogue and plot aside, my main problem with this movie is their choice of music. It is from my observations on the dress and automobiles in the movie that I can conclude that the movie is set sometime in the 1950's or 60's. The music director was placed in an interesting position of having period-correct music during the dancing scenes, and 80's music (when the movie was made) as the film's soundtrack. These two elements are allowed to coexist, as annoyingly as it is, and the separtation between the two is kept up until the end scene. I consider this to be an affront to anyone who knows anything about production quality and basically, music. The end song "I've had the time of my life" is obviously an 80's song, yet the characters are singing and dancing to it like it was a freaking Guy Lombardo hit. This is just wrong. It smacks of 1980's studio production. The snare is artificially huge. The duet is extremely 1980's. How did this happen? What a mistake.

ok, done for now.

-ed

Whoooooo!!

Well, we can't win in Mexico, but at least we can take care of business here.

Bring on Germany!

-ed

Dear San Antonio, I hate you.

Read this.

Now read my diatribe:

Dear Chip Haass,
You are a dumbass. I can say this because you were once my HS baseball coach, and you sucked at that too. So let's see, there are God knows how many people dying in New Orleans, and you are worried about getting the New Orleans Saints to play in the Alamodome. And there are business men who are going to PAY Benson money to move the Saints here. WHAT THE F**K. How about you use that money to get food and water to the people who need it instead of bringing a sub-par football team whose payroll could feed all those who need help. That just disgusts me. Mr. Haass, you suck at life.

-Eric Domkowski
Saint Mary's Hall, class of 2003.

Tradegy Brings Out The Worst...

Hey, here's a bright idea. Like, if I were in a city that just got destroyed by a huge hurricane and me and 10,000 other citizens were stuck with no place to go and then some people tried to help us by bussing us to Houston, you know what I would do?

TOTALLY GET A GUN AND START SHOOTING AT THE PEOPLE WHO ARE TRYING TO HELP.

And then I would get in fights with people. Brilliant. Utterly brilliant.

Then If I were NBC, I'd get world renowned social commentator Harry Connick Junior to give his words of wisdom, since you know, he's a genius and all. he calls New Orleans citizens "freakishly strong." I think we have the freakish part right, Harry.

-ed

Words I Can't Spell...

coming (Comming)
y'all (ya'll)
settings (cettings...ok, this is horrible, but I did that twice today)
receive (recieve)

The new DCFC album is pretty good. I haven't listened all the way through, but I like what I hear. Haters just need to accept it. And shiznit.

There will be a new track from Eric 'n Sam soon, be on the lookout.

-Eric

The Disco Knitter II: The Reckoning

Now with double-entendre vocals by the one and only Sam Dorgan! Soon to be released on a split 7"! Or something!

The Disco Knitter - Eric 'n Sam

click on it normally, and then click on the link on the next page to download it.

-ed

Espresso...

IS A SCAM. I paid $2.50 for essentially a shot glass amount of EXTREME coffee. I thought it was a joke at first, but Ashley confirmed it's legitimacy. It was harder to drink than any liquor I've ever tasted (Early Times, what?) , and I was still yawning. I know I'm addicted to caffine, but it still never keeps me awake. Except that one time I had so much I was shaking. But I still slept. Anyways, never order straight espresso, for you will regret it.

-ed

Dear Teachers...

I do not care about your life history. I do not care if you worked in a hotel in the 80's. Simply give me a syllabus and let me leave. Thanks.

-ed

Thanks...

to Sam for this one.

The Spinto Band - "Oh Mandy"

They're playing at the End tonight, $8.

-ed

Basically...

I live in an apartment soley so I can use a teapot.

My teapot doesn't look like this, but I wish it did.

-ed

Finally...

After camping out on Killjoy the futon last night, and waiting on foreign exchange students to leave (who came back to get what I'm going to assume was the alcohol they left, and who destroyed the upstairs bathroom, but eh, new shower for me and Gub), I'm finally enjoying life in Commons 1505. And it's not half bad.

-ed

Back to Belmont...

Tomorrow!

Cue Ickey Shuffle!

-ed

Dear World,

I shaved my beard and now am sporting a fauxhawk. I just thought you'd like to know.

Love, Eric


Have you ever been in a situation where you think that it should be a movie scene? Today I was driving back home through a backroad lined with corn fields, pouring rain, and Kid A was playing. It seemed like the lost scene to a redneck version of Garden State.

Cue Radiohead backlash.

Basically, I can't wait to be back in Nashville.

-ed

Pictures...

click for bigger images

-ed

This one's for you, Ashley...

Penn Yan - Intro: Old Mennonite Woman's Music Box, Part 1: Oh! - The Columbia Sponge Factory Experience (right click, "save as")

I'm sorry about the long intro, it was a case of very bad arranging and lack of talent on the violin that led to it's repetativeness.

-ed

A Haiku...

Natchez Trace drive fun

but stranded in redneck town

car battery sucks

-ed

Why knowing people in the mental health field is a good thing...

Hours of entertainment! Amy told me this recently, and it is just too good to keep to myself:

Seems like she has this patient who told her that someone took his "seed" and artificially inseminated thousands of women around the country, so therefore he has thousands of children. Which in itself is pretty funny. But it gets better. It has come to his attention that there is a plot to kill all these children, involving none other than the former Danny Tanner. Yes, Bob Sagat is trying to kill his kids. Amazing.

In other news, I think I'll go drive part of the Natchez Trace Parkway tomorrow, then head over to Davy Crockett SP in part of my Redneck Sightseeing Tour/Old Barn Photo Hunt Extravaganza 2005. I feel like I'm probably going to plow through my plans for this week too quickly, but eh. That's all I have to say about that.

Eh.

Back in Nashville in less than a week.

-ed

In Retrospect...

Things I Will Miss About Spontex:

Things That I Won't Miss About Spontex:

1. Steel toed boots
2. Weak fans that are supposed to cool a huge warehouse
3. Megan Miller
4. Bluettes
5. Wow! Scrubbers
6. The intellectually numbing ability of the entire complex
7. Spiders
8. Giant Malaysian Moths
9. FF-455
10. "Ronny Woody! 165! Ronny Woooooody!"
11. "Hey, you're the UPS guy, mail this (insert random object) to Pakmanistankazakstano."
12. "Whart?"

-ed

DONE WITH THE SPONGE.

Party 'til dawn!

-ed

One More Day...

Gracias, Dios.

Once more, with feeling!

-ed

Blisters...

inevitably, I will break them. For once I would like to have a blister and see what it does when you let it heal itself. I guess that's kinda gross, but oh well. In the name of science, I want to know, and because the one I have on my hand from getting burned with oil (let's hear it for the wonders of cooking fried shrimp in your own kitchen! And a hand for the splash the shrimp make when entering the oil!) hurts now that I accidently broke it this afternoon.

I finished the Penn Yan, NY song, just need to do a little mixing. Judging by the lack of comments about the San Antonio song, I guess it sucked. I dunno, I liked it. Sigh.

-ed

Countdown...

Only four more sponge days left. Rejoice.

-ed

The Alamo City...

San Antonio - Part 1: Porque Me Odias? Part 2: Meditations on the Railroad Tracks Near the San Juan Mission - The Columbia Sponge Factory Experience. (right click, "save as")

Read the story behind Part 2 here.

-ed

Feels like 2002...

I listened to The Get Up Kids and Sunny Day Real Estate today, and it was good.

The San Antonio song is finished, it shall be posted sometime soon. It tackles such diverse issues as infidelity and railroad tracks. It is awesome. Orlando is next. Better watch out, Walt.

-ed

Moment of Enlightenment...

Ok, there's this Antonio Banderas movie that I love called "The 13th Warrior" and basically he's this Arab guy who goes and fights with Vikings. It's awesome. But besides that, there's a scene near the beginning where he's sitting with the Vikings at night, and he can't understand their language. But he starts concentrating and abosorbing everything they do, and suddenly he understands them.

That happened to me yesterday at work.

I had to go around on top of a forklift driven by Buck "Whatthehelldidhesay" Bolton, a man who I have not understood a word out of his mouth the entire summer. After 15min of closely listening to Buck, I started to understand him. It was amazing. Our partnership proved fruitful, and I counted boxes upon boxes with joy.

End of story.

-ed

12 hours...

is too long to be spent in a sponge warehouse. It shall never happen again. One more week of Spontex shenanigans.

"Hey Farva, what's that resturaunt that you like to go to?"

"You mean Shenanigans?!"

-ed

Mexicans, Porque me odias?

My mexos didn't show up at the field today, so there was no soccer played. Sad times. I walked the dog instead. Not quite the same thing.

After tomorrow, only one more week of work. Hallelujah. Then begins the 1st Annual Old Barn Photography Tour of South Middle Tennessee. No joke. I've become obsessed with old, decaying, surrounded by trees barns that populate the countryside. I shall take leisurely drives around the area and take pictures of them. You may call it lame, I call it "finally, a vacation."

-ed

Praise Elohim...

My dog finally heeded nature's call today and relieved herself. After a week. I didn't know this was possible, but she did held it. She wouldn't go on our lawn, so I took her across the street, and bang, we're golden. Good girl.

Speaking of the God of Job,

Why, oh ominscient being, do all insects in Maury Co. decide that they need to die on top of the boxes in the Spontex warehouse? And, along with this, why are these said boxes prone to falling on me? I need an answer, seriously. Give me a sign. Like those things you give Mexican Catholics, you know, the leaky faucet that looks like Mary. Funny how no one else gets those, like the Orthodox Greeks. Or the Amish. Poor Amish.
Anyways, peace out homes.

-Eric

Ok, I need a new city to focus my attention on. Any suggestions? I've already started planning my San Antonio masterwork, so that's already taken care of. Working Title: San Ant

-ed

And Now, the #1 Hit Single...

"If You Think it's Hot Now, Just Wait Until August" by Suzanne Dugger
B-Side "WHART?!" by Suzanne Dugger (Ft. Megan "Suzette" Miller)

Created by Grant Pavey and Eric Domkowski inside of a very long, very hot 18 wheeler trailer.

The Rock Just Keeps on Coming!

Henderson, You Are Not My Friend - The Columbia Sponge Factory Experience
(right click, "Save As")

Disclaimer: I have been to Henderson, KY. It is actually a very nice town. This song takes artistic license with certain events that may or may not have happened in the town's premises.

-ed

For Your Listening Pleasure...

The King of Pallet Jacks, Part Uno - The Columbia Sponge Factory Experience (right click, "Save As")

Yes, I know it distorts in the first bar...I was tired and didn't want to play the whole thing over again. As for the references in the song:

Suzanne: Fat woman who works next to me...has an uncanny ability to eat all the ice cream sandwhiches that people bring and put in the break room freezer

David: Always has some sort of tabacco product in him (snuff, dip, cigarettes)

Megan: the other temp worker...I dislike her immensely.

The row no one dares to go: Aisle T

Ok, there we go. Hope you enjoy it. Ha!

-ed

My World is Shaken...

There is another Eric Domkowski out there. Some guy who lives in NY and is a cyclist. Which makes me think we're probably related somehow. I used to think I was the only one...sigh.

-ed

They buried her alive, one evening 1945...

Slowly buy surely, my basement is looking and feeling more like a home. I set up the old stereo system tonight, as well as an ad-hoc coffee table, which is an old chest my dad used in college. I also mandated that Molly is to live inside with me, so she's chilling next to me as a write this tonight.

Only had to work until 11:30am today, that was amazing. Read a lot in East of Eden and recorded the Columbia installment of The Hometown Musical Saga, which is actually a parody of Neutral Milk Hotel's "King of Carrot Flowers, Part 1"...I call it, "King of Pallet Jacks, Part Uno." I think it's hillarious, I wrote it in my head when I had to do inventory consolidation this morning, so no one is really going to understand all the phrases. It's Spontex Specific.

I was going to give blood, but the BLOODMOBILE wasn't at Lowes at 4pm because they had "problems." Obviously my blood isn't needed that badly.

Ok, awesome news of the week. I am the owner of not 1, but 2 violins. One of them is my great grandfather's, so it's around 100 years old, not in the greatest shape since it's been in an attic in New York for quite a few years, but my dad and I are reparing it. Bought some fine tuners, a bow, and strings today. Going to have to refinish the fingerboard. It'll take some work, but it'll be worth it. The other one is one he bought off one of his employees, and it's in a little better shape. I know nothing about violins, so I can't tell which is the better of the two, but I think for traditions sake I'll use my great grandfather's. I just think it's cool that they found it and now I get a chance to play it. And of course the whole playing it part will be a trip, but I think I can get the hang of it fairly quickly, since I play the mandolin already.

ok, enough for tonight. Oooh, tomorrow the revival of "Bucky's Saturday's" will begin. Time for some good Southern breakfast foods. Pass the grits!

-ed

The Second Intallment of the Home Town Saga: Maryville

"Maryville - Part I: Julia Ward Howe Visits Maryville College, Part II: Alcoa, Where People Are They Key, Part III: Go Big Orange! Hall For the Point After" - The Columbia Sponge Factory Experience.

(Right Click, "Save As" You know the drill.)

-ed

Two-timing son of a...

I got stood up for my guitar lesson today. Drove all the way out there, and no one was home. Either that or the kid hid in the house until I drove off. Left a note for them to call me, but nothing so far. Man, there goes my gas money for the week.

Played soccer with my Mexican's last night. Too much individual crap, they don't realize how to play as a team. It would be different if they were as good as Kevin, but they aren't at all, so it's frusterating for me when I'm open on the wings and all they want to do is dribble into traffic. Sigh.

Talked to Tara for a while tonight, definitely counting down the days until I see her again.

Oh yeah, Shandus, if you read this - The song will be up soon, still trying to figure out how to transfer it to this computer. Sorry for the wait.

I'm out!

-ed

Dear Dick Blick...

Thank you for ordering from Spontex. Reading your name just about made my day worth getting up for.

-ed

THE BEST PHRASE EVER...

It's a rocking horse good time!

(copyright Christina and Eric)

-ed

To The God of Abraham, Iaasac, and Moses...
And other people with long names...

Hey man, remember back in the good old days, when you were wrathful and smited people and stuff? Lot's wife, pillar of salt? Didn't that feel good? The Tower of Babel? Yeah, that was awesome.

Dude, what happend?

You got all PC on us with all this turn the other cheek and Good Samaratin junk, and you just haven't been the same. Maybe you had some bad experience or something, wanted to make a difference in the world, I understand, happens to the best of us. But now, YHWH, it's time to give that up. I need the old Elohim back, like before you got all warm and fuzzy and started wearing cardigans. People need to be smited, you and I both know it. These people are guilty of the worst possible sin, and they flaunt it in your face under the guise of "praise." Who are these people? The ones who write church songs, and because they run out of any good ideas, they do a key change. God, it's so bad. Like they can fool us with an ascending step key change at the end, please. You and I both know that church music is bad to begin with, and this convention is just making it worse. Lord, I have to be there on Sundays, so let's make it worth my time, ok? Start smiting and make this world a better place.

Kisses,
Eric Domkowski

P.S. About those contradictions in the old Bible, it's cool man, don't sweat it, I got your back.

BTW, totally moved into the new house. The basement rocks, pictures to come soon, along iwth the 2nd installment of the Home Town Musical Saga: Maryville, TN.

-ed

This is the last post ever from 1101 West 7th Street, Apt 13. Columbia, TN, 38401

And good riddence.

Things I Won't Miss:

1. That f$%&g stairway
2. Explaining that I live on a school campus
3. Chloe
4. Speed Bumps
5. Sharing a bathroom with my parents
6. The fact I lived in a former military school barracks.
7. The general un-punk attitude of my neighbors. (what does that even mean!?!)
8. Being afraid of pissing the neighbors off with my amps
9. Glenn and his disel truck EVERY MORNING OUTSIDE OF MY WINDOW
10. Every cop in the Columbia dept. who drove W. 7th St. non-stop, thwarting my attempts to go 40mph.

Yeah. Whoo. Moving all day tomorrow. Then perhaps studio time w/ Gary. It's going to be a loooooooooong day. Leave encouraging comments if you must.

-ed

Natural Rogaine...

My hair is growing back. I don't know what to do with it. I got used to the whole shaved head thing where I didn't have to do anything at all with it. Now there's actually real strands of hair. Any suggestions? Mullet? Emo do? The Wesley Snipes (circa 1991)?

-ed

Limited Time Offer!

Due to the rousing "success" of the Maquoketa theme song, I am offering to write a song about anyone's hometown. Just let me know if you want to take me up on the offer. It will probably be bad, and I will sing out of tune at least twice, but it will be yours and will give me something to do during the evening hours besides watch King of The Hill.

-ed

It was a close one...

As I was driving home from work today, I thought of all the redneck things I've done since I've lived in Columbia. You know, things like putting a fish hook in my hat, wearing Wrangler jeans, talking about trucks, working in a factory, and slowly developing a borderline Southern drawl. And then I thought of something that I haven't done yet. Drive around town shirtless, with the window down (this could also be accented by a confederate flag bandana). I fought the urge to do it, but who knows...if the mood strikes me...watch out, ladies.

-ed

Embarrasing song stuck in my head today: Shake That Thing - Sean Paul

The Maquoketa Theme Song...

I told Christina I would write a song about the guy taking her picture at wal-mart. She probably thought I was kidding. I don't kid about things like that, folks.

Maquoketa - The Columbia Sponge Factory Experience

Forgive the mp3 quality, I have to save space somehow. And the production value. I did it this afternoon, all in one sitting.

-ed

Indie Cred Like Whoa.

From Will Fleeson's going away party. Viva France.

Oh snap. Totally should be a mypace picture.


Mitch. Plastic cup with wine. Classic.


Roomate love.


White and Vike.

-ed

Is This Considered Sinning?

Today, in my e-mail junk mail, I got one with the subject line:

Want To Meet SEXY Christians???

And I was shocked, because everyone knows Christians aren't sexy. In fact, some can be downright impotence inducing. If we're talking about the sexiest religion, hands down it's gotta be Hinduism. Lots of skin. Crazy positions. Can we say "Kama Sutra?" Yeah...I'm not falling for that sexy Christian stuff. You gotta do better than that, internet.

-ed

Great Day!

You know, as far as "Columbia" days go.

School, work, blah. They came and went. Then I got home and I had an amazing letter from Tara (a real one. I'm becoming a fan of real, handwritten letters), then I went and played soccer with some Mexican immigrants at the Columbia State field. So much fun, it was just like playing back home. No one spoke English and I got to say "chinga tu madre" and they knew what I meant. Beautiful. So besides these huge blisters on my feet which are going to absolutely kill me tomorrow at work, I feel great. Whooo.

-ed

The Return of Randomness...

Things that are prevalent in Southern culture that I just don't understand:

1. "Git-R-Done" - wtf. Did I miss something?
2. Cameros
3. NASCAR
4. Confederate flags, along with the claim "It's not about racism". Uh...yeah...crap.
5. Moustaches
6. Staunch Conservatism (with emphasis placed on "God's Will")
7. Big Trucks
8. White males in FUBU-esque stuff (I feel like such an old man, but it seems so fake)

New Regular Feature! Black Metal Band of the Week! Random!

Vilkates

-ed

New music from the long forgotten Firewheel Project...

Seriously. I wrote a song so that Kyle can pimp it out to TV commercial people. Here it is. Enjoy:

The Disco Knitter

-ed

Hint: copy link location, paste in browser, hit enter. I don't know why geocities is so lame when it comes to linking mp3's, but the pasting method works.

In a moment of utter Yuppie-tude...

I now own one of those headset things for cell phones. Well, I didn't actually buy it. My mom got a new phone, and that came free. So I took it. I still haven't used it, despite having 2 phone calls that lasted in excess of 30 min and could have benefited from the hands free approach. Someday.

Ok, time for pictures of my dog and her new, LAME haircut.

Notice the lack of hair and body devoid of any furiness. Poor girl.

-ed

Obligatory Boring Saturday Night Post...

Sigh.

-ed

P.S. Next time, pictures of my newly shorn dog. I lead an uber-exciting summer life.

601 days without an accident= Steak Cookout for all Spontex employees!

Seriously. Sponge making is dangerous as hell. This is quite an accomplishment. I plan on cleaning them out, I'm eating at least 3 steaks and stuffing about 5 in a bag and taking them home and feeding them to Molly.

Stolen from Jersey's MySpace blog:
Is 17 (Eric) the sexiest person alive?: Yes, in that little man sort of way! hahaha! Love you wee.

-ed

Official Time I Was in Pajama Pants and Swore to Never Leave the House Until Morning:

4:52pm.

I bought a bitchin' couch at Goodwill for my basement. It matches nothing at all, I love it.

This is the dog that lives next door in my apartment building. It barks all the time. I hate it. I try to get it to jump off the balcony and therefore hanging itself on its own leash. It hasn't done it yet, but there's still time.

Chloe, who bears an uncanny resemblence to:


That dragon thing from The Neverending Story. Can't really tell if from that, though.

Gotta go back to work tomorrow. I'm really hoping I just didn't dream the whole "Monday + Tuesday" off thing. I have this whole scenario worked out in my head where I walk in and Megan goes "Where were you yesterday?" and Kent's all like shaking his head and crap, and I go "My dad had to go the the emergency room and I'm was the only one who could take him," which of course is a total lie, but they wouldn't know that. It really helps that I don't know the phone number at that place. Tomorrow, I think I'll write letters during Accounting 2. I wrote out Taylor's practice song during today's class. It should work...in theory. Thank you, Mrs. Zaccagni.

-ed

Independence Day (in which we declared ourself free from the taxes of King George)...

Is tomorrow. And tomorrow, at Wal-Mart, you can get your picture taken with Uncle Sam-Mule. Yet, despite this, the redneck assholes who live here have been setting off fireworks since June 25th. Just couldn't wait, could we, Jed? I hope you blow a hole in your Camero with an extra large bottle rocket.

-ed

Fat, dumb, and smoking is no way to go through life.

Ancient Polish Proverb

Dedicated to my female co-workers.

-ed

Correction...

I have been informed that it is actually "Minkus" not "Meekus" by the esteemed David Lanza.

NEWS FLASH:
Spontex makes sponges for Hill Country Fare. Throw your hands up for the best store brand EVER!

-ed

TGIF...

I just saw Meekus on TV! Remember? From Boy Meets World? Meekus!! The nerd! He was on some show on the WB (which I flipped past, then stopped to watch the wonder that is Meekus). Ah, Meekus.

-ed

Conversation of the Week...
And it's only Monday

Refering to Kyle and my boss at the Curb, Bill Scheddin:

KyleD901: bills is tight like that
ericdomk: what a pimp...we should throw a party for him
KyleD901: dude... doing it
KyleD901: end of next semester... bill party
KyleD901: i'll buy the booze
ericdomk: shit kicking bill-fest
KyleD901: with CEC money
KyleD901: lolKyleD901: he will enjoy that
KyleD901: shitkicking Bill-fest... still laughing about that one
ericdomk: hand out flyers...no one will understand but the HSM's
KyleD901: nah dude we will stick a picture of his face on the keg
ericdomk: HAHA...yes
KyleD901: and make him do a keg stand

-ed

The Spurs 2005 Championship: A Dedication

To the player that inspires me to this day, and the original Steve Kerr, Andrew Gaze

Sorry, I can't find one of him in a Spurs uniform. Figures.

I remember sitting in the upper levels in the ALAMODOME (God bless it) with the drunks screaming "SHOOT IT GAZE!" whenever he would touch the ball. He was supposed to be the Michael Jordan of Australia and he was like 40 years old when he played for the Spurs. I think he deserves an honorary ring. Without him, we would have never ventured into the foreign player market. A true trailblazer. I miss him. Shoot it, Gaze.

-ed

Dear Suzanne,

I know you took my tape gun. I saw you do this. I saw you walk over to my desk and trade my amazing one for your piece of crap tape gun that always gets tangled. So far I've said nothing. But if I see your fat fingers waddle over to my desk again and take my tape gun, there will be consequences. Thank you.

-Eric "Rich Kid" Domkowski

The Most Awesome Flea Market in the World...
Is in Louisville, KY. True story.

Eric vs. Byron: The Short-Lived Epic Battle.

My neck really hurts today, the above being the culprit of it's stiffness. But going to FLOYDS KNOBS, IN to see Gub and the Eichen-family was a load of fun, especially the bowling game in which Amanda "Comanda" Perkins coined the term "playing unplugged" when she barely rolled the ball down the lane. And I totally smoked her in swimming too, therefore relieving me of my duties as "Worlds Slowest Swimmer." And I saw the Knobs. And a giant dinosaur.

Now, must prepare for Spurs game. Spurs must win. Spurs shall win. Please.

-ed

Why yes, I would like a back massage, thank you...

Today, on the way home after I taught the guitar lesson, I waved at every car I passed. No one waved back. I hope they were thinking, "Do I know that guy?" and got confused. But I still expected people to be friendlier. Geez.

My back really, really hurts. Let's hear it for all the backorders coming in on one day and only one UPS Liason there to handle it. (I'm calling myself that after watching a "That 70's Show" episode where Eric gets a job at the dog food factory as the 'Coupon Liason,' which actually means he puts coupons in bags of dog food).

Probably going to be in IN this weekend, visiting Gub and hurting myself water skiing. I can't get away from pain.

-ed

Tomorrow...

I teach my first guitar lesson. Needless to say, I am freaked out. I've never taught lessons before, and I'm not quite sure how to go about it. Tomorrow's lesson will revolve almost exclusively around the parts of the guitar and guitar maitenence. But I probably should give him something to practice. Crap! Taylor Chaney, I am deeply sorry that you have me as a teacher.

-ed

Bang

-ed

Spurs v. Pistons
This is for bragging rights in the break room at work.

8:03pm - Alanis Morisette sings the National Anthem. Once a slutty Canadian, always a slutty Canadian. Way to blow that one, INS.

8:10pm - I submit that Will Smith quit being relevent to music circa 1999. Let's look at the facts: He almost certainly peaked when he was with DJ Jazzy Jeff, and everyone liked his comeback with "Getting Jiggy Wit It" because he was a movie start by then. Now, it's like if we need a rapper, let's bring in Will Smith. White people like him too.

8:14pm - Gregg Popovich lookes like he hates freedom. I miss San Antonio.

8:15pm - Tony Massenburg??

8:32pm - You know who would give us a kick in the ass right now? Vinny Del Negro.

8:40pm - Dammit, I need some tea.

8:50pm - GLENN ROBINSON WITH A DUNK!! I DIDN'T KNOW HE COULD EVEN WALK!

8:53pm - Down 17-20, but we've pulled back. Right now would be the perfect time for a Sean Elliott Taco C commerical.

9:01pm - After listening to Hubie Brown (or Borebie Brown, I am wont to call him), I can only wish for Jay Howard and Body Soultions to come across my speakers.

9:10pm - Tim Duncan? Paging Tim Duncan, get on the court.

9:15pm - I'm tired. Enough of this.

Episode Eleven....
In which our hero discovers that his new neighbors have a horrible vanity license plate.

I stole my first sponge from work today!!

Shh! Don't tell Kent!

Molly and The Sponge.

Dishes made clean, thanks to Spontex and The Sponge

I really want a pair of the sweet gloves that are black and blue and have a cotton inner layer. That's my next mission.

-ed

Yea! Rich, Chocolately Ovaltine!

To whomever left me the message on my cell phone that was simply a playing of "Come on! Feel the Illinoise" (which, as you might know, is my favorite song right now): I love you.

Today, the girl I work with (and loathe), Megan, says,
"Are you trying to be a Mini Knight?"
Me: "What?"
Megan: "You know, those guys who ride the horses and buggies, with the long beards"
Me: "Oh, you mean a Mennonite, I thought you said a Mini Knight."
Megan: "Yeah, that's it."
Me: "No."

I really dislike her. I sometimes feel sorry for her (which is bad because I shouldn't be judging her) but then she goes, unprovoked, "I'm a bitch, got a problem?" and I realize that she just wants attention and thinks that if she acts tough she will get that attention. She loves to call me an idiot when I do something incorrectly (despite the fact she won't get off her ass to show me how it's done in the first place), and she acts like she's so smart when she shows me how to do something on the UPS computer program (which she has used for a year...me, uh, 2 weeks). It's really exasperating. When I can work by myself, I get things done quickly. But when I have to work with her, it's tough to be motivated due to her constant badgering and laziness. Sigh. I'm sure she complains about me too, and sometimes it would be justified (like when I turned off the computer waaay to early, lol), but I just wish she could be nice for once.

-ed

Back to Work...

I'm torn. I was bored enough to shave off my hair these past three days when I didn't have to work, and I was really looking forward to having something to do when I got back to work, and then I go back, and I remember again why I never want to see sponges again. Why can't I have a job that I enjoy? It's not that the one I have now is terrible, it's just that it doesn't get me excited in the morning to go. And I want to do something that makes me want to be there. Oh well. I'm only 20, and a music business major. I need to get used to these things. You know...disapointment.

-ed

Boredom is a terrible, terrible thing...

Scenario: A bored 20 year old male, left to his own devices for an entire week in a town where he knows basically no one, finds a box in his bathroom called "Barber in a Box." He opens it. He makes a grave mistake. He now looks like this:

Ok, now for a picture of my newly painted room!

-ed

Is It Bad...

That I find televangelists to pretty much be the funniest thing on TV these days? I can't help but laugh, especially when the Southern Pentacostal woman starts screaming at an unseen audience. She definitely rivals the old man who sits at the desk with a green curtain in the background and spouts out barely veiled racisim. She just said "and I asxed him." HAHAHAHA.

Of course, I can't really judge. Tara told me that I'm getting a Southern accent, which is probably the worst news of the week. Sigh. I can't help it, it surrounds me. I'm just trying to survive.

-ed

Lesson of The Day...

Olive oil is not the same as vegatable oil. Please come and taste my brownies if you are not convinced.

But other than that it was a succesful day of living on my own. Nothing died, the apartment wasn't set on fire, and I watched part of the Godfather II. Let's hope it carries over to today.

-ed

After Listening to Chicago's Greatest Hits...

I can safely say that the opening chords of "25 or 6 to 4" are the most rocking that band ever got. And I still don't know what that title even means.

(Props to Christina for figuring it out: "well, when you multiply 6 and 4, you get 24. and that's one less than 25. so it's like, "should i stay awake for 24 hours, or go that extra hour and make it 25?". Tomorrow, I will eat a crepe in your honor.)

I'm off work tomorrow, basically because there's not enough to do. I have this feeling I'll be fired soon. Oh well. It's not because I'm doing a bad job. If I were Kent, I'd fire me too. What's the point of paying me to just sit around and do Megan's work for her when she can obviously do it herself. Maybe the orders will pick up soon, who knows.

Spurs won last night! whoo! NBA Finals! I wish I was in SA for that.

-ed

You Know You Work in A Redneck Town When...
A lesson in being quiet...

This truck driver comes up to us today and goes, "Hey ya'll, I'm gonna be on CMT tonight!" and I go "What for? Were you at some concert?" and he replies "Hell no, I was at this machine gun convention in Kentucky and they interviewed me!"

Like, right there, I wanted to run away and hide.

God forbid that I ever voice my opinions on gun control here, I would probably get shot by these people and their God-given right to bear arms. But really, I'm just amazed that they have machine gun conventions, though I probably shouldn't be.

Sometimes I wonder how I ever make it to work in the morning. Toda,y I swear, my legs didn't work until at least 7am.

I'm off to sleep.

-ed

Now...

I know I'm a music nerd. I go through songs and bands like a fat kid eats cake. But holy crap this new Sufjan Stevens album is going to be freaking amazing. Probably even better than Greetings From Michigan.

"Come on! Feel the Illinoise! -Part I: The World's Columbian Exposition -Part II: Carl Sandburg Visits Me in a Dream" is simply one of the most beautiful songs I have ever heard. Long winded title and all, I cannot stop listening to it. I repeated it at least 10 times on the way to and from Decatur, and I listen to it every morning before I go to work. I fear I will probably wear it out, but God, I hope not. It's amazing. Everyone I know should buy this, or I will buy it for you.

Also, today, I am playing soccer with a guy who played for the Trinidad National Team and 2 guys from England who coach the MLS camps here. I am going to get my ass kicked. It'll be great.

-ed
-ed

I Hate Vanity License Plates...

And today I followed a guy home who had "THEKANG" on his plates. WTF. I'm pretty sure he meant "The King" but said with a Southern accent. I wanted to rear end him so terribly bad.

I saw a bunch of bunnies for sale on the way to work this morning, and I laughed. Those who know my history with rabbits will laugh too.

-ed

Should I Be Surprised...

That the fat girl I work with has Ho-Ho flavored lip gloss? You know, the little cake thing made by Hostess? It's authenticity was confirmed by Suzanne, the grossly overweight fork lift driver, who I firmly believe has eaten or smelled many, many Ho-Ho's in her life.

The driver of the Old Dominion Freight truck, Elton, is this late 60'sish fat guy who just says the most random and hillarious stuff, so in a semi-regular feature, I bring you Elton's Words of Wisdom, uncensored and uncut.

Elton's Wisdom for the Day:
"That shit we smoked in the 70's, that was good shit. I'd take 3 hits and I'd be outta my head. I had this budy once, took two hits, woke up in a park with ducks shitting on him."

-ed

Coffee and Sunflower Seeds...
are my lifeblood

List of Random Stuff

1. Number of times "Revolution Blues" by Neil Young was playing when I entered a McDonald's parking lot: 2
2. Number of times Tara's mother attempted (unsuccesfully) to tell me why Tara chose Belmont: 2
3. Number of blind horses that ran into me: 1
4. Number of huge metal crosses I encountered: 2
   
5. Worst Driver Award: The woman in the Econoline van who tailed me for 5 miles outside of Paducah, KY when I was going 80mph and no one was around for miles.
6. Time I was most likely to die (Tied with Gayest Moment) : Singing along to a Gwen Stefani song in Effingham, Il, pulling into a gas station next to a guy with a Confederate flag in his window (I could have sworn Illinois was part of the Union...)
7. Word said the most on my ride back: "idiot"
8. Bocce ball means "little balls" ball
   

Dear United States Government,
Before I take a trip to Decatur, Illinois again, I would like you to fix a few things:

1. Please find a better name for "Land Between The Lakes State Park"
2. I-24 turns to crap as soon as I hit the KY state line. Please spend some money and make road driveable.
3. Please get rid of that huge metal cross in Effingham, Ill that scared me to death when it rose like a monster over the horizon.
4. Please make a nationwide declaration that the speed limit is 70, not 65 like KY and Il seem to think it is.
5. Please make an law declaring that when you have to slow down, it is not a "speed zone." There is nothing speedy about slowing down from 65 to 45mph.
6. And finally, please make the terrain of Illinois more interesting. Adding hills would be nice. And trees. That'd be cool too.

Thanks,
Eric Domkowski

All in all, a great trip. Tired me out like no other, but I wouldn't trade it for anything.

-ed

Useless Information!

Ok, so since I have a nearly 7 hour drive ahead of me on Saturday, I made 3 mix cd's to help me enjoy the ride. So, for posterity's sake, here are the playlists, each with it's own classic title:

1. Decatur Drive: THE ROCK
1. Silence Kit - Pavement 2. Going Up The Country- Canned Heat 3. My Coco - Stellastar* 4. The Rest Will Follow - Trail of Dead 5. Teenage Riot - Sonic Youth 6. Rebellion (Lies) - The Arcade Fire 7. Like Eating Glass - Bloc Party 8. Romantic Rights - Death From Above 1979 9. The Best of Jill Hives - Guided By Voices 10. Heated Pool and Bar - John Vanderslice 11. Movement - LCD Soundsystem 12. January 1979 - mewithoutyou 13. Abel - The National 14. Bridges and Squares - Ted Leo and the Pharmacists 15. Hotcha Girls - Ugly Casanova 16. The Hardest Button to Button - The White Stripes 17. Arc Arsenal - At The Drive-In 18. Change Your Mind - The Killers 19. Good Morning Aztlan - Los Lobos 20. I Love the Valley OH - Xiu Xiu.

2. Decatur Drive: THE MIDWEST (which basically are bands from the midwest, or bands that I think should be if they're not already. Someone will probably correct me. Advance Warning: Don't Care.)
1. The Great Salt Lake - Band of Horses 2. Never Meant - American Football 3. Without Panasos - The Anniversary 4. Girl Is On My Mind - The Black Keys 5. The Recluse - Cursive 6. With God On Our Side - Bob Dylan 7. All Harm - Early Day Miners 8. Burned Bridges - The Get Up Kids 9. The Dark Don't Hide It - Magnolia Electric Co. 10. Terrified - Norfolk and Western 11. Tear Stained Eye - Son Volt 12. Via Chicago - Wilco 13. Come On! Feel the Illinoise! - Sufjan Stevens 14. The Last Days of Disco - Yo La Tengo 15. Tampa To Tulsa - The Jayhawks 16. Transcontinental - Pedro The Lion 17. Michigan - Red House Painters

3. Decatur Drive: THE DANCE
1. Fever (Adam Freeland Extended Mix) - Adam Freeland and Sarah Vaughan 2. Heartbeat (Phones Maximo Remix) - Annie 3. Still Missing (Royksopp Remix) - Beck 4. Close To Me (Closet Remix) - The Cure 5. Got It Twisted Sister (The Rapture Vs. Mobb Deep) - Dopplebanger 6. What You Waiting For? (Jacques Lu Cont Thin White Duke Mix) - Gwen Stefani 7. No Not Now (Hot Hot Dub mix) - Hot Hot Heat vs FakeID 8. My My Metrocard - Le Tigre 9. Bucky Done Gun - M.I.A. 10. Money Folder (Four Tet Remix) - Madvillain 11. Tears of Octopus (Adam Sparkles Remix) - Man Man 12. In My Arms - Mylo 13. It's For You - Out Hud 14. Remind Me (Someone Else's Mix Edit) - Royksopp 15. Someone Like You (Fast Track Vocal Mix) - Superdiscount 16. Random - Lady Sovereign

-ed

Televangelists...

So, I wake up early every day (around 7:30-8am), and while I drink my coffee, I watch TV. Now, as we don't have cable TV, I'm stuck with whatever is on the standard channels. Luckily for me, we have 4 out of 13 stations devoted to religion (and another 3 for the wonders of Home Shopping). This means I have my choice of televangelists to watch each morning. These guys seriously make me laugh so hard. They range from little kids shows to a guy who answers letters adressing topics as:

"What happened to the other races during Noah's flood?"
'Well, John in Deluth, it says God made Noah take 2 of every 'flesh.' So that means all other races were part of that. Thank the Lord the white man was there to save them."

But by far, my favorite guy is Benny Hinn.

http://www.faithcenteredresources.com/images/benny-hinn-website.jpg">

This guy is amazing. He wears white suits (or today, since he was in Nigiria, a white dashiki) and says God speaks directly to him. He has this weird accent, and I think he's from Israel, so it's even more hillarious. He's one of those guys who pushes people and says they are healed and grabs people and says that their cancer is gone. Today, he told this story about how this woman's daughter isn't in Hell, because God told him so. This guy totally reminds me of that John Edwards psychic weirdo, because he's so vague and creepy. Anyways he makes me laugh really hard, and I need that in the morning.

Did you know Tony Danza has a talk show? Wow. I'll be glad to be working and not have to watch this stuff.

-ed

World, Rejoice: Part II

For I am employed! The Randstad woman called me up today and said they had an opening at this factory for someone to fill orders, so I jumped on it. Turns out I'm working at Spontex, a company that makes sponges.

Ok, laugh....go! Alright, laugh time is up.

She told me I needed to get steel toed boots, so I went to Wal-Mart and bought some, along with some bitchin' Wranglers, which are by far the most uncomfortable jeans I've ever worn, but I think I'll fit in. I also found my camo bandana, which will be used somehow. I figure I should jump in head first and assume the roll of redneck for this job. I'm already afraid they'll see my earrings and think I'm gay, so if I wear the Wanglers, it should throw them off the trail a bit.

It shouldn't be that bad of a job, the woman said there will probably be a lot of downtime. I just hope it lasts for a while, and that I can keep it up when I start classes at Columbia State CC.

And! And! I'm going to Tara's this weekend! Good week all around!

-ed

Another Boring Day...

I'm on the call list at Randstad for "Light Industrial Work," which basically means I'll be doing factory assembly line crap, so whoo hoo. Right now any job is a good job. Hopefully they'll call soon.

I've seen so many things where I'm like, "I can do that!" such as sign painting and holding a sign declaring a business to be "GOING OUT OF BUSINESS! MUST LIQUDATE!" I need to get connections in this town. I even took Christina's advice and looked on thefacebook.com for people in Columbia. I didn't know anyone except Stacey. And for a moment I felt lonely, which is odd, because as an only child I'm used to being alone. I've missed being with people, but I've never felt like I was lonely, like there was no one to connect with. But here, I go for days with the only people I talk face to face with being my parents. Then I talked with Jordan online this afternoon, and that was great because even though we're hundreds of miles away, it still felt like there was a connection still, a person to talk with.

Anyways, that's way more emotional than I usually get. My deepest apologies.

I might see Tara this weekend! Woot! Let's hope it all works out.

-ed

Record of the Week - Daydream Nation - Sonic Youth

What Hell...

Sonics 101, Spurs 89

-ed

Random Thoughts...

• The longer I live here, the more inbred people start to look.
• There is nothing more that makes me not want to get married than the vocal delivery of "Going To The Chapel of Love," that oldies song with the line (delivered like a drunk, unhappy housewife) "Gee I really love you and we're going to get married."
• Despite my best attempts to sleep in today, I still woke up at 7am. I defiantly laid in bed until 8am when my mom came in and made me get up.
• The Debussy record I bought at Goodwill for $.75 is amazing for 1) including Clair de Lune, La Mer, and Arabesque #1 and 2) having that amazing Japanese print that I want so badly on the cover.
• I have this feeling my iPod will never get fixed.
• I miss people I truly know more than I could have ever imagined.

-ed

The Saga Continues...

Today, in the parking lot of Lowes, I saw a kid (probably around 9 years old) get out of a car and proceed to pee in full view of everyone.

I stood there, not knowing what to do or think. Then I realized I was in Columbia, and it all sort of made sense.

The good news is that we finished sheet-rocking my room, so now all we need to do is cover the seams and I can start painting. I'll try to post pictures of the progress.

-ed

What's Wrong with Evangelical Christianity, Part 1.

As many of you know, I grew up in the Church of Christ, a very conservative denomination. We don't have musical instruments in worship, women have basically no say in anything, and we are the people that voted for Bush soley because "he's a Christian." Now I don't consider myself a member of the Church of Christ anymore due to many various things, but something happened today that jogged my memory as to one of the first reasons I became dissillusioned with the church. (Now before I go off on this, please realize I do consider myself a Christian, I'm just not comfortable with a lot of the mentalities that are aligned with it).

We used to have this thing called "Leadership Training For Christ," where you would spend half a year or so learing everything you could about a book of the Bible, and then you would go and compete against other kids from around Texas in such things as a trivia bowl, drama, singing, art, and other things. You would get awarded different medals (gold, silver, bronze) for your efforts, but if you really sucked, you got nothing at all. I realized pretty quickly that something was wrong with this. CHRISTIANITY IS NOT A COMPETITION. Just because I drew a pretty picture doesn't make me a better Christian than the guy who submitted one with a stick figure. I'm sure people would say that it's just good to get kids into Christianity, let them learn about it. That's well and fine, I can honestly say that I know a good deal more about straight Biblical things than many of my friends who still go to church, but to turn it into a competition is horribly wrong.

I was reminded of this when I turned on the TV this morning and it was on one of the 4 religous stations that we get (out of 13 possible channels), and they had a quiz show for little kids about Old Testament things (I also think it was from the 80's). There were two teams, and when the final score was announced, the camera fixed on the losing side and you could see the utter disapointment on their faces (talk about conservative guilt..."look at you, you know nothing!") and it got worse when the guy announced the other team got a watch. The little girl, probably around 10 years old, looked like she was going to cry.

If we continue to turn Christianity into a competition for the younger generation, it would do us well to actually sit down and think about what the message of Christianity is. It's most definitely not a ranked list of the saved.

-ed

How Do I Know I'm In Columbia?
(Besides the accents and the general punk-rock attitude of the citizens)

Because when I turn on the radio in my shower on Friday night, instead of nice oldies music, I hear reports of NASCAR races, complete with reports from the pits.

Still no word on a job, but I'm hoping something happens soon. I'll probably go out looking again on Monday, because tomorrow will be spent working on the house.

Reminder to myself: Buy more jazz records.

-ed