We Start To Shrink

R.I.P. Captain

Damn, the Captain died suddenly today. Just sank to the bottom and stopped moving. He wasn't acting all that strangely before. Dad said he was about 7 years old, I read they can live up to 15 years old, who knows what happened. Things had been status quo pretty much since we got him last year, and the water conditions were ok when we tested it recently. The skipper and the other two little ones are still alive. Bummer, he was a cool fish. And heavy! In the pursuit of study in marine/aquatic biology, I've been around my fair share of dead fish, but still it was more than a little disturbing to dispose of his remains. He had a lot of character.

Presummer party

Had a little shindig the other day to ring in the summer. Beer, eats, shoes, poker, more beer... good times. Here's a few pictures:

omg omg omg omg

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Blair Died For Us While We Were Yet Sinners

US rejects all proposals on climate change

John Vidal, environment editor
Saturday May 26, 2007
The Guardian

The US has rejected any prospect of a deal on climate change at the G8 summit in Germany next month, according to a leaked document.

Despite Tony Blair's declaration on Thursday that Washington would sign up to "at least the beginnings" of action to cut carbon emissions, a note attached to a draft document circulated by Germany says the US is "fundamentally opposed" to the proposals.

The note, written in red ink, says the deal "runs counter to our overall position and crosses multiple 'red lines' in terms of what we simply cannot agree to".

Blue Sky Special

I picked up a couple of cds the other day, the new Wilco Sky Blue Sky and Stephen Marley's Mind Control. I've been listening to the Wilco for a couple of months now, but it actually only came out this week so I went and made our union respectable in the eyes of the lord and law. So worth it. I found the super big bang package that comes with an awesome DVD with summat like 8 live performances of new tracks. Plus I got an email today letting me know I could use the CD to download a track from their website, "The Thanks I Get." It was one of my favorites from Tweedy's Sunken Treasure live solo album. It's nice to hear a full band but I'm still pretty attached to the acoustic version.

Like I say, the live performances on the DVD are really nice, especially Nels Cline hammering out some great solos, each a little different from the album cuts, or when the three guitars come together on songs like "Impossible Germany" and others. It was a little weird listening to Tweedy talk about where he was coming from with this record and blah blah blah, when I've read him saying all the same soundbites in several other interviews. It's a little like seeing a comedian repeat bits. I'm not doubting his sincerity, but still I wonder whether you think up all your stories and explanations before you go out for the first interview, or is it more of a process where you figure out your feelings about your latest work over time?

The Stephen Marley album is also great; I heard a little bit of it in Planet K in San Antonio while we were killing time before the Tool show. Very easy to listen to. There's one track that's a little too rough'n'reggaton, just grates a little, but most of it is very chill with good backing beats, interesting cameos, sometimes with a little funk mixed in.

Shit, I'm Almost 30 Too. So What?

There’s a little media blitz going on right now about Star Wars’ 30 year anniversary, and it bothers me enough to set some thoughts down. Not one of the wistful nostalgic jerkoff news reports has mentioned what happened on the 20th anniversary: we all watched in horror as Greedo shot first, using some kind of technologically advanced laser gun that produced a beam brighter and greener than any other weapon in the galaxy. Confused but trying not to get distracted, we all hurried to the Falcon to get the hell off of this planet. But wait! Who is this slightly shimmering sluggy turd standing in front of our beloved ship, and why is it talking to Han, pretending to be real when it’s clearly a digital image superimposed upon reality? And is Han on peyote? He seems to be talking right back to this big video game character! Arrrghhhh…

And that was the beginning of the end. Two years later, he followed through on his shitty remakes with the first of three shitty prequels. Maybe the news is justified in celebrating the original version of New Hope – Lucas’ special effects innovations, his impact on film history (or at least money-making and licensing history), great. But I also want to hear just one news report about all the people (I know they’re out there) who think that Lucas yellowed his own legacy with all his later, crappier innovations, like Jar Jar, force nanites, Jake Lloyd and Hayden Christensen, and of course, Greedo shooting first. Fuck you Greedo, you draw slower than my gramma anyway. Bitch.

Friend, I'm Lonely Too

Oh my god! No way!

Tool 2006, er... 2007

Tool finally made good on their commitment to the AT&T Center in San Antonio last night, and I was in attendance. It was a damn good show. The highlights: frikkin laser beams, spotlit bass riffs, and the ridiculously amazing Danny Carey. Sick, sick, sick. Still, excepting the very impressive laser light/smoke effects, it was a little too much like their last local concert (Austin 2002). The stage arrangement was very similar (MJK in the back parallel to the Carey's massive drum set, with Justin Chancellor and Adam Jones in the front) and they had the same late-show dueling drummers bit, which is cool, but like 10,000 Days itself, I was honestly expecting more innovation. I guess if I was an artist that would be a dick thing for someone to say about something I worked hard on, but that's, uh... that's just a bummer, man.

Beforehand we ate at Pico de Gallo on Commerce & I-35. It was a pretty decent sit-down mexican restaurant. The carne guisada was ok but a little on the tough side. C.'s enchiladas rancheras were just ok too. The chips, salsa, and tortillas were very good. Then we met Macks and Stacks at the Lion and Rose Pub on Broadway. Nice brown pub. I had four different drafts, starting with a black and tan, then a Belhaven (Scottish - pretty decent ale). Next I ordered a Franziskaner, but I forgot their draught was a hefeweisse; I wasn't really in the mood for one but it turned out to be a nice detour. I finished up with my current all-time favorite beer, a Stella Artois. I definitely like ales, but downing all those various pils with meals in Germany really fixed my tastes on lagers. I used to think bud light was a clean taste, but now it tastes like fucking piss. Mexican beer is about as light as I can take; I like it best with spicy food and a little lime. My favorite ale right now is Rio Blanco Pale made by Real Ale out in Blanco. A really great taste and it's named after the goddamn Blanco River. Providence.

See You Next Fall

I'll ring in the new incarnation of Meanderings with the latest SGS viral video: