If you’re wondering what has happened to me please let me know what your thoughts are as they probably are more enlightening on the matter than are mine.
Seriously though, I’m halfway between juggling school and something that looks a lot like this:
Until then, enjoy your own Guinness.
Greetings
It’s September, and I resolve to start writing in this blog more often. I actually have to pay $16 to keep this running (:O), so I might as well write in it. I read a few blogs often: Warford, Peter, Turpin, and they are enjoyable, so it would be nice to participate in the small blogging community.
I always wonder, "why blog?", as it often seems trivial. However, I would like to develop my writing skills, so at this point I will come to the conclusion that I will write to improve my writing, if nothing else.
I have been starting school, and working with my band "Authentic Orange". It’s great to have a band again; as many of my friends can attest to, a band has a certain sense of family that is fairly warm. We’ll be playing another show somewhere (I forget where), on September 19th.
Scatterbrains
I recall Robert Shandera referring to me as "a scatterbrain, much like Paul". Now, whenever someone compares you to Paul Warford, you need to step back, assert that your feet are on solid ground, and then decide whether or not you want to go on living.
Robert has a point: I’m often introverted, which can lead to, shyness, I suppose. I am constantly assessing my position in the world and trying to alter my behavior to obtain better results in life. This isn’t an overly bad thing, it is just that I rely on it too much.
So, I resolve to try to pay more attention to what is going on on earth (in other words, pay more attention to my friends and their lives), and not beat myself up about trivial things that are out of my control.
And I resolve to shut up about all this.
Turpin, Herself
Sarah Turpin* is back in town, and we’re all going through the process of re-welcoming her into the social circle. I recall the same process when I returned to town, and it is at first refreshing but soon becomes commonplace. That’s all - I’ve nothing to say about the process other than the fact that I recognize it to be a fun experience, to return to reliable good friends.
*If you will navigate to Warford’s blog, you will find that he often links to random pictures on the internet trying to pass them off as Sarah Turpin herself. This is something that I will do. I am aware it is blatant plagerism, and I don’t much care.
We’ve had some excellent days here in cozy Newfoundland, and I have to admit that for once, I’m happy to be back.
I don’t mind Newfoundland, really. You have to admit, it’s a decent place to live. Once you get over the whole “I’ve lived here my whole life and the mere thought has me writing down names of my unborn children to kill”, it becomes tolerable.
Things seem to be slipping together in my life again. Slowly, but undoubtedly.
More on that later. For now it’s the nostalgic Third Eye Blind, and an assignment. Don’t expect much from this blog, ever, but especially not now, because I have to concentrate on school and I don’t have time for the likes of this nonsense. Not to mention the domain will probably be floating out in space any day now as I don’t have time to renew my account.
Joyful.
But anyway, for all you non-existent readers out there, how is your life going?
I’m off work.
It’s the weekend.
Well, I have Thursday and Friday off, and that’s as good as it gets.
You’ll have to just come to terms with the fact that I’m not really writing about anything significant. I might as well be writing for the homeless, and I’m not talking about encouraging activism for setting them up in cheap tacky housing units, I’m talking about absolutely zip.
And you may find that many bloggers do this quite frequently, and that’s where it makes me happy to say that I’m not a blogger. That’s right. I’m not a blogger. The likes of Tony Pierce produce quality material every day, or even dare I say mediocre material, either way, it’s stuff. I’ve got next to nothing. Daily. Just a scattered thought here and there that is easily volatile and about as reliable as the weather is this godforsaken land.
I like to think of Newfoundland as just, land. I wonder why more people don’t call it that, the land. It’s more land than rock, or so it should seem to anyone who sees it on a daily basis. It’s in the title for fuck’s sake. Let’s stop calling it the rock. It’s degrading. Stop thinking of it as an island, in general. If we want better treatment from the federal government maybe we should just give up this whole charade of being Newfoundland hubris. I don’t really care about it. How’s that? I don’t care much about Newfoundland. It’s ok I guess, but I wouldn’t go out of my way for it. Not say, over an ocean. I don’t blame the mainland one bit. We have to drop the attitude and start seeing ourselves for what we really are: a continent of spoiled land sinking towards the south.
Is this the first time I’ve used "fuck" in an entry? Probably not. But if you’ll look above you’ll clearly see I say "for fuck’s sake". This raises some important censorship concerns. I really don’t care about it though. It being my blog. About nothing.
One should wonder what is the point of all this excessive blogging. Surely some people have something decent to say? No. Not really. It’s mostly a waste of time. Just useless opinions that are justifiable only as far as they are absurd.
I’d like to go on the record for saying that Jonathon Bennett is probably one of the most ingenious and brilliant people ever to walk on the earth. And posts pictures of cows on his MSN. COWS! people. COWS! We can all learn something from J but what that is, is unbeknownst to any of us. Probably thought I was going to reveal something interesting there didn’t you? Nope. Nothing.
No. I have nothing, so I won’t update as often as you might like. I’m not modest, I’m just honest. If I have something to mention, you’ll hear. Just because I have a blog up, doesn’t mean I have to adhere to any general consensus declaring that I need to blog 24/7, everyday. It doesn’t matter people, it just doesn’t matter.
There will eventually be more interesting things on this site to check out, and maybe someday I will even update this more often! Until then, stop fretting. Just relax. It’s just a site. Designed to look like a blog, but not necessarily following the practice of perhaps the majority of blogs out there. It is more a place for you to get to check out some bigger things I’m working on anyway, such as my BOOK which apparently no one is reading anyway. (I’ve got two sugars, despite how that may sound.)
Notes: This is not an attack on anyone. I had no idea I was even going to bring it up. It’s just that lately few people are criticizing me for not posting anything on here.
Additional Note: I have no pants on.
Paul seems to be improving his bits. "Pat" opened, and he has been around the Victory for at least as long as Paul has. He had a good bit tonight where he mentioned he was a superhero in the St. John’s area and proclaimed that his super power was "telepathy", and just after announced, "You’re thinking I’m full of shit."
I really don’t have much to say these days. I’m working on things, but it could be a while yet before they make any substantial exposure. I suppose that I find myself in a position that most people are in: working towards something greater, enjoying free time, relaxing. You can expect more from me in the distant future but for now don’t expect much.
I will mention more of my projects later.
Also: Matt Good has gotten a bit predictable, excluding his political commentary.
And: I’ve been checking out some music videos for The Killers. Have you seen any of their videos? I recently watched some and found them to be pretty decent. Surprisingly, from listening to the music, the videos are about what I’d expect, in a good way.
Where have I been?
I have been busy.
I find myself constantly stopping by my blog to see if there is any new activity.
There never is.
Except now.
I have been very busy lately getting my foot in the door with the Guv’nor. For anyone who doesn’t live here, the Guv’nor is a hotel and pub somewhere in the middle of the very frosty St. John’s.
I admit I’d like to be writing in this Blog more, but I have been working on a lot of things lately that need attention, and the list is neverending, and it seems like I’m chipping away at it at a snail’s pace. However I think that things will get better, at much the same frequency that a snowball gets bigger and bigger as it rolls downhill.
As trivial as a blog may be to anyone besides its owner, occasionally I do have good ideas of things to write about in here. They accumulate slowly, however by the time I actually come close to bringing them to fruition, they never seem to come out quite as great as I’d thought they would. It may be that I’m not alone in this syndrome, unless many bloggers really prefer an “off the cuff” or “Jack Kerouac” approach. But surely such an approach would produce a mound of steaming thoughtless drival, ie. “I switched my toothpaste to Colgate today, and it seems to be fairly effective.”
But to those who take a more thoughtful approach (and I think I may be somewhere inbetween), I’m sure they occasionally suffer from a creative drought. Good ideas are worth something, they seem to build up with much of the same ferocity as say, a snowball rolling downhill (now why does that sound familiar?), with you mounted atop, and when you’re getting close to the bottom of the hill, you’ve got a huge snowball you can use as amunition for crashing into one of your friends.
Good things work like that, and I’ll give you an example. I recall speaking with Paul Warford, (yes ladies, the man himself), at some point in our hazy history. I remember him speaking about his stand-up, and saying that he had some ideas he was throwing around, including an awesome bit that he just couldn’t wait to try out. As our weekend of bay folly continued, the nature of the bit became revealed: something about Ritz crackers. Something as seemingly bland had to be exciting and hilarious, so I became anxious to see the act. About a week later, we’re at the act, and I’m recording it on a stool. Paul keeps prepping the audience for the bit on Ritz crackers (snowball picking up speed), and near the middle of the set he finally tries it out. He starts talking about Ritz crackers being 45% less fat, and I have no clue what he is getting on with. I’m trying to listen intently but I can’t, because I slipped and I’m falling off my stool while trying to catch as much as possible of the much-hyped act which was never being recorded in the first place because I pressed the wrong damn button.
And bam, you hit a brick wall. Because kids can’t ride snowballs and that’s a dumb metaphor. Because you shouldn’t have trusted some idiot to record you with a video camera that wasn’t yours in the first place. Because you’re living a fantasy life. Because sometimes no matter how much work you put into something, there are always those damn brick walls.
Having roamed around Vancouver Airport for six hours with some fresh Vonnegut and Starbucks, a stop at A&W, and a recently purchased 50lb handbag as a requirement for unloading the overweight suitcases, I can seriously say I’m fucking happy to be back on the rock.
What was in the suitcases? My DESKTOP computer with 19" LCD monitor (600), a pile of clothes, and an 18 case of Kokanee I wanted to bring as Jon and Jan hooked me up with the nifty Kokanee case. Surprisingly, the desktop suffered NO damage. I originally brought the desktop all the way from NL to BC by plane & bus successfully, and when I had my digital piano shipped Air Canada broke off one of the keys.
But regardless of all that, I’m back. I have been for about a week. I’ve been consuming a lot of Tim’s, as there is no such thing as Tim’s in Whistler - either environmental laws, or quaint little shops not wanting it. Feel free to hit me up for a coffee.
I’m at the start of something new once again. There will be a lot to do while here in town. I can’t deny that I’m happy to be back, and I don’t feel the same angst towards St. John’s as I did the last time I was here. Maybe because I’ve seen worse, and it actually is a great place to live. First step will be getting a job…and I’m working on that. I think I will be able to get something good.
There will be a lot to discuss as I gear up into a routine for the next few years. I just wanted to quickly give a shout out to a few people. Firstly, to all my friends in St. John’s - It’s great to be back. Hope to see more of you over the next couple of years. To family - thanks for having me and making this possible, I certainly would not be here if I did not have an awesome family.
And finally, to a couple that has provided me with much inspiration. Without them the last couple of years would not have happened, and as splendid and insane and terrible as these past few years have been, I would not change a thing.
(Well, perhaps a few things.)
I just finished wiping off the desk. It was an explosion of flavor. The desk. I spilled cheap pineappple slices from the 7-11 all over the desk and now my hands are sticky. And that might explain typos such as, oh, say, misspelling pineapple.
Sticky fingers.
I just licked my finger in attempt to combat the stickiness. That didn’t make it better. Why would I think that would make it better? Why did it sting my tongue? Have you ever done this? Have you ever licked your fingers after eating a nice sharply sweet pineapple? It stings doesn’t it? Am I losing it?
Speaking of the 7-11, that’s right, we have that here. It’s not just an imaginary place on The Simpsons. When The Simpsons movie came out, the 7-11 stocked the shelves with Squishiis and Buzz soda. They didn’t look appealing at all, but I tried a Squishii. It sucked. I don’t live in The Simpsons universe, and that’s a good thing because none of this merchandise is appealing at all.
Update: I just drank some 5 alive and it felt like trying to break into a wasp nest. It stung. I think something’s wrong. I’m going to go call the doctor now.
I’ve just sat down with a Kokanee - courtesy of Jon - and I’m having some bacon, eggs, toast. This is breakfast, but it is in fact 8:39am, so that means that for me it is more like supper, or, depending on the day, dinner.
Or, it could actually be breakfast on some days. I don’t know. Night Audit seriously fucks with your system. Right now, I’m in a weird phase. I’m waiting to get back to NL. I’m discussing music created with GarageBand with Butler, and it has got me excited about getting back to get some tracks together with the boys. I’ve yet to put together anything substantial with a group yet, besides Moral Less Right, however that was just a demo. Not a bad demo, but only about 6 tracks.
Despite the fact that I shouldn’t, a combination of Kokanee and U2 will probably cause me to drop down to Starbucks and purchase something that will propel me into the wee hours of the afternoon. And then I will sleep poorly, and I will get up just before work, and make it to work where I will proceed to do nothing for the rest of the night. That’s Night Audit. I can’t say I don’t like it…
So I’ve spent all I’m going to spend on Burnt’s first book. I’ve distributed several copies to friends. Roughly, the total amount that I’ve spent on this first book has been $1500. That’s a lot of money. But it stops here. I won’t be spending any more money on the series, besides buying the subsequent books for myself when the come out. I did want to buy all my friends a copy, but obviously that is not feasible.
Things are really changing around here, and I just got back. I’m getting a job at the Sundial for about $15.80, or something. I’m waiting to hear back from them. At Resort Quest, they are doing work on the lobby, and it is now a disaster zone instead of a hotel lobby entrance.
Anyway, this is just going to be a short one. I’m going to take off and get that coffee. Feel free to message me if you’d like to discuss anything.
