Tuesday, May 26, 2009
It has been a while
Apologies for the lack of stories and updates. I have been working on a lot of new writing and am gearing up for a trip to New Zealand beginning June 7. I will post new writings from life in Dallas and a recent trip to New Mexico shortly. Happy spring!
Tuesday, January 27, 2009
Iceland's as happy as Iceland can be
My heart goes out to the Icelandic people. It is a bittersweet situation because the people have effectively caused Parliament to call a snap election (yeah democracy!) but the credit crisis continues to cripple the economy. I know that few care about Iceland as much as I do, but as a destination for the casual traveler it has so much to offer. So if you are in a position to travel this year, go there! They need your money and you need a destination that won't break your bank. Where else could you go swimming outside (yes, all of the pools are outdoors) in thermal spas in the middle of winter? The countryside is breathtaking and you may even see the tiny horses! If you want to go somewhere that is savage and beautiful now is the time.
Wednesday, January 14, 2009
So give me coffee + t.v.
It is 6 degrees outside. I'm pretending like it is at least 50. I just heard from Chris at my record label this morning and the release will be pushed back until late February. In the meantime there is a lot of new stuff on the horizon! I need to listen to that new David Byrne/Eno album again...
Monday, January 12, 2009
Dinner With Madame President
Mary Therese Winifred Robinson (1990-1997) was the first female president of Ireland––remarkable for a nation that only decriminalized things like divorce and homosexuality in the 90s. She served for seven years and transformed Ireland into a progressive republic. She is a human rights advocate and resigned from the presidency after her first term to work as the High Commissioner for Human Rights of the United Nations and visited Tibet and South Africa, among other places. And then there was the time where she and I broke bread.
My brush with greatness isn’t as random as it sounds. I took an Irish history and society seminar as a university student and my professor said that President Mary Robinson might come and speak. How he managed that is a mystery. He may have not believed it himself––the former president of Ireland? In central Ohio? Give me a break!
Luckily, the anthropology department had the money to bring her to one of our classes for a Q & A and dinner at our village’s only four-star hotel. I can’t remember if she came for another speaking engagement too because it seemed like a lot of trouble for a world leader to end up in your little village.
The night before I thought of some questions to ask, but didn’t know where to start. I was still in shock that my professor asked me and other fellows in the sociology department to attend the dinner.
Our classroom was in the newest building on campus. The new car smell would hit you as soon as the sliding doors opened. Everyone from the class filed into our room and around the graphite conference table. After sweating for five minutes, she appeared.
Madame President was much taller than I had imagined, or maybe it was just because she had a few inches on my professor. He introduced her to our class and she proceeded to tell us about how life in Ireland has drastically been transformed in the past 15 years. There weren’t many questions. Everyone looked like they had something to say but were too afraid to say anything for fear of sounding like an idiot in front of a world leader. The class ended as quickly as it began and I heard sighs of relief as I went back to my building for a nap before the big dinner.
As night came I agonized over what to wear and ultimately settled on the smartest outfit I could muster in my scant wardrobe: khakis, a starched white shirt, black loafers and a dark green corduroy blazer that was given to me the Christmas before. I met a fellow classmate outside of my building for a ride to the hotel. We didn’t have anything to say to each other because of the mounting anxiety over how to act once we arrived. As she parked her Buick, our professor greeted us with his wife and we walked inside of the inn to meet the President. The university paid for her lodgings in the hotel and was already present as we were seated. I had no idea that she would sit next to me though!
My professor went around the table introducing the student fellows and other professors attending. There were around 10 of us in a side room, sequestered from the public. I looked up at my friend from class who was across the table. As Madame President began to talk, we sat perfectly still like we had rigor mortis. I left the corduroy sport coat on but the sweat began to bead. My eyes kept darting around the table and everyone else appeared to be more reserved than normal, but Madame President kept entertaining us with stories of tea with the Queen of England and her close friendship with Nelson Mandela. There were a lot of wide eyes and nods between sips of ice water. Then it was time to order.
The food was alright, though I expected more from a four-star hotel. Most of us ordered some variety of chicken including Madame President. There was more talk of distant travels and some of the professors chimed in with their own experiences doing field work in the Irish-speaking Gaeltachts or on the streets of Tehran. We students still sat paralyzed, nodding and laughing nervously like people do on a first date. No one had the audacity to order anything alcoholic, though the professors and Madame President had a nice looking Cabernet. She was enjoying herself a bit too much and grabbed my arm and swayed while I chatted with my anthropology professor. I just smiled and went with it.
Before the night drew to a close I was able to ask Madame President a bit about the Irish language and if it is on the rebound like Welsh. She said that she hoped for the best, looking lost in thought. Then we shook hands and I left because I wanted to walk back to my apartment. It drizzled, but I didn’t mind one bit.
My brush with greatness isn’t as random as it sounds. I took an Irish history and society seminar as a university student and my professor said that President Mary Robinson might come and speak. How he managed that is a mystery. He may have not believed it himself––the former president of Ireland? In central Ohio? Give me a break!
Luckily, the anthropology department had the money to bring her to one of our classes for a Q & A and dinner at our village’s only four-star hotel. I can’t remember if she came for another speaking engagement too because it seemed like a lot of trouble for a world leader to end up in your little village.
The night before I thought of some questions to ask, but didn’t know where to start. I was still in shock that my professor asked me and other fellows in the sociology department to attend the dinner.
Our classroom was in the newest building on campus. The new car smell would hit you as soon as the sliding doors opened. Everyone from the class filed into our room and around the graphite conference table. After sweating for five minutes, she appeared.
Madame President was much taller than I had imagined, or maybe it was just because she had a few inches on my professor. He introduced her to our class and she proceeded to tell us about how life in Ireland has drastically been transformed in the past 15 years. There weren’t many questions. Everyone looked like they had something to say but were too afraid to say anything for fear of sounding like an idiot in front of a world leader. The class ended as quickly as it began and I heard sighs of relief as I went back to my building for a nap before the big dinner.
As night came I agonized over what to wear and ultimately settled on the smartest outfit I could muster in my scant wardrobe: khakis, a starched white shirt, black loafers and a dark green corduroy blazer that was given to me the Christmas before. I met a fellow classmate outside of my building for a ride to the hotel. We didn’t have anything to say to each other because of the mounting anxiety over how to act once we arrived. As she parked her Buick, our professor greeted us with his wife and we walked inside of the inn to meet the President. The university paid for her lodgings in the hotel and was already present as we were seated. I had no idea that she would sit next to me though!
My professor went around the table introducing the student fellows and other professors attending. There were around 10 of us in a side room, sequestered from the public. I looked up at my friend from class who was across the table. As Madame President began to talk, we sat perfectly still like we had rigor mortis. I left the corduroy sport coat on but the sweat began to bead. My eyes kept darting around the table and everyone else appeared to be more reserved than normal, but Madame President kept entertaining us with stories of tea with the Queen of England and her close friendship with Nelson Mandela. There were a lot of wide eyes and nods between sips of ice water. Then it was time to order.
The food was alright, though I expected more from a four-star hotel. Most of us ordered some variety of chicken including Madame President. There was more talk of distant travels and some of the professors chimed in with their own experiences doing field work in the Irish-speaking Gaeltachts or on the streets of Tehran. We students still sat paralyzed, nodding and laughing nervously like people do on a first date. No one had the audacity to order anything alcoholic, though the professors and Madame President had a nice looking Cabernet. She was enjoying herself a bit too much and grabbed my arm and swayed while I chatted with my anthropology professor. I just smiled and went with it.
Before the night drew to a close I was able to ask Madame President a bit about the Irish language and if it is on the rebound like Welsh. She said that she hoped for the best, looking lost in thought. Then we shook hands and I left because I wanted to walk back to my apartment. It drizzled, but I didn’t mind one bit.
A little something...
...to get us through the winter friends! First Eno/David Byrne album since 1981s "My Life in the Bush of Ghosts" is a miracle. "Everything That Happens Will Happen Today." It is very pop, but weird pop in a way that only these two could conjure. Listen, listen!
Thursday, January 8, 2009
Yuppy Flu
Happy 2009 all! Several stories are almost complete and will be up on this site soon. Life has started to get a bit hectic because I am getting ready to relocate to Dallas for a little while, so that is where I will be basing all music and writing from for the better part of the year. If you ever make it down, message me and you will have a place to stay while you are in town! I think a visit to Good Records is a must for anyone. Jamie got me Joy Division's "Closer" and Fugazi's "The Argument" on vinyl for xmas from there. Be jealous! ;)
I am obsessed with Land of Talk's album, "Some Are Lakes." Check it out.
The artwork is nearly finalized for "Good Morning, Hummingbird!" and we are looking at a late January or early February release date for that here in North America as well as in pockets of Sweden, Germany and Japan. Fun fun fun! Possible tour dates to follow this year.
Even though the new album will have its wider release soon, I have another album's worth of material that I am molding. I don't see a release this year for it, maybe in 2010. We shall see!
Jamie and I have decided to go backpacking in Mexico sometime after I move and get a new job since airfare to Mexico City is so low from Dallas. Yeah Aztec ruins!
Until next time!
(Lot of links! I just realized!)
I am obsessed with Land of Talk's album, "Some Are Lakes." Check it out.
The artwork is nearly finalized for "Good Morning, Hummingbird!" and we are looking at a late January or early February release date for that here in North America as well as in pockets of Sweden, Germany and Japan. Fun fun fun! Possible tour dates to follow this year.
Even though the new album will have its wider release soon, I have another album's worth of material that I am molding. I don't see a release this year for it, maybe in 2010. We shall see!
Jamie and I have decided to go backpacking in Mexico sometime after I move and get a new job since airfare to Mexico City is so low from Dallas. Yeah Aztec ruins!
Until next time!
(Lot of links! I just realized!)
Monday, December 22, 2008
The man in the jar
I still cannot finish this new song and it is driving me nuts. Work was slow today because most people have begun their holiday break. It was two above zero on the way downtown and the only thing keeping me together was my iPod. The office was bare and once again I felt caged, or like a dude in a jar. But it's alright. There's tomorrow and then my holiday begins and continues until January 6. It will be a frantic first month of the year because I am planning a move that has been almost a year in the making. I will be heading south and looking for new work. I am still considering the Peace Corps as well and teaching. We'll see what happens. The most important thing is that I will be able to see my girlfriend everyday. It will be so great to be done with long distance love! I will post a new short story that I have been chipping away at when it is done, but if it isn't up until next year then I wish everyone a happy holiday season!
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