More Terrifying Sounds of the Nothing

Give yourself ten points if you caught the movie reference right off the bat.

So I'm trying to work through getting used to the sound of nothing, the absence of sound at all. I sat for 15 minutes last night. I can't say that I've progressed to actually *thinking* of nothing. This is actually very, very difficult to do. And every time that I've *ever* gotten to the point of thinking of nothing, I've congratulated myself for thinking of nothing, thereby banishing the moment of thinking of nothing.

To that end, I've ordered a few books to help myself think more on thinking of nothing. That, and I'm going to the Zen Bhuddism center on some undetermined Saturday in the near future to get some help in the art of thinking of nothing.

I'm also contemplating re-starting kendo. I've gone to the dojo here, and I remember being a little unimpressed by their kata practice, and a little put-off by how "traditional" their dojo was. However, I'm reconsidering the very strict adherence to traditional etiquette not because I think this type of dogmatism is unilaterally "good", but because I think I need some reinforcement in humility. Somewhere along the way of becoming exceedingly good at what I do, I've lost a large part of my ability to be humble, and recognize leadership and wisdom when they present themselves to me. I think kendo, in this type of environment, can help me to rediscover humility.

That, plus I plan on just swinging a shinai by myself for a good year. Rote movement will help me with my thinking of nothingness quest, as well as workout my body at the same time. Eventually, the screaming will help with my aggression, and maybe I can become a more peaceful, yet still ecstatically exuberant me.

The Terrifying Sound of Silence

I've decided that I'm totally terrified of silence. I spent a lot of last night, thinking about the amount of time I spend occupying my brain, to stop it from thinking too much. I spend nearly every waking minute doing something. I'm either listening t music, playing music, reading, watching tv. I don't ever sit. And be still.


So last night, I tried being still. I stayed still for 15 minutes. And it was hard. I was like a kid who couldn't sit still in class. Either that, or I was really afraid of the dark.

EDIT
Yah, so additionally, I'm going to give up music and instant messaging at work next week. We'll see how long it lasts.

Holy Shit - The Lucksmiths - Part III

Seriously. I have *barely* stopped giggling since I left work. And I'm back to giggling. You know, I've been lying to all of you. I'm really 14 years old.

My favorite word for the month is impugn.

I wish that Labor Day was two months away.
I like Vietnamese food.
The collarbone area on a woman is easily one of the sexiest parts of a body.
The area right near the hipbone on a man or woman nearly rivals the collarbone area that I've mentioned above.

Just about anything made out of lychee tastes good.

I think I want to marry the Lucksmiths. I'm fairly certain that I can't move my feet. They've turned into a single block of sugar. It's remarkably warm.

Holy Shit - The Lucksmiths Part II

If they get any twee-er, I will probably die of gigglement. They will find my body slumped over in my overly-expensive office chair, totally encased in sugar. BWAHAHAHAHAA!


I’m struck speechless by the nape of your neck
But your requests and suggestions have a similar effect
A litany of prettiness and pettiness too
I reckon every second second we come up with something new

I tried to write an opera for us
But I didn’t get that far
’Cause trying to sum you up in song
Is like catching sunlight in a jar

Sunlight In A Jar - The Lucksmiths - Warmer Corners

Wishes Come True

Well I had too much to drink
So I headed for the sink
When I saw that you were already there
Seeing double makes me blink
But it gave me time to think
That we sure do make a wonderful pair

'Cause earlier that evening
When I was only seeing
One of everything that came to view
I thought wouldn't it be nice
If I could only see you twice
Now ain't it grand when wishes come true?


One of these days I'll get 'round to re-recording this song with my buddy. I realize now that the original recording that we did had the wrong beat, which is one of the reasons that it never meshed. It really needs a "train" beat, to match its country-ish sound. Still, I think it's one of the better songs that we've ever recorded.

I need:
1) A small jazz-style kit. Well, it doesn't necessarily have to be a jazz-style kit. But I'd prefer the bass drum not to be larger than 18".
2) Mics. For the type of kit that I'm talking about, I need a bass mic, two (or three) mounted mics for the floor tom, the rack tom, and the snare, and an additional "overhead" mic.
3) Some type of mixing board and recording software.

I'm a little mystified on how this should happen. My buddy is trying to convince me to purchase a $20 tascam 4-track. I'm not even sure that I can get the cassette tapes that it needs. I don't know enough about how recording software and hardware have advanced in the 10 years that have passed since we did the original recording in college.

That being said, I'm also working on three or four new foolishly stupid crushed out horrible pop songs. I'm trying not to let my inner editor kill my will to live. I'm noticing a marked difference in my overall guitar ability, as well, in the positive direction, but I really should have paid more attention in my music theory classes. More later....

Ben Kweller

I really like Ben Kweller. I have his second album, On My Way, and I really like it. I can't say that he's a great singer, but there's something compelling about his voice, as off-key as it may sound. His I Need You Back track is so quintessentially power-pop, it'll make you want to jump around and waggle your head like a maniac.

In other music news, I'll be seeing The Clientele, in their US tour. I haven't given everything of theirs that I own three listens yet, but I'm getting there. They are a lot more stoner-or-shoegazery pop than I'm used to, but they're quickly becoming a favorite for me.

The Lucksmiths

I might have mentioned once or thrice that my new favorite band is The Lucksmiths. A delightful boy trio from Australia - I've recently gotten their Naturaliste album. It's not new. But then again, I generally don't get albums until years later. It's just because I'm not hip, and I need to be spoon fed music by other people.

My best friend gave me The Lucksmiths when I was visiting him in the Spring. I just never got around to listening to it. Every album I ever buy (or receive) gets three FULL listens. Start to finish, three times, before it either goes into heavy rotation, or dies a melancholy and lonely death on my CD rack.

The Lucksmiths took ONE listen. I listened to the first track of that record 50 times in seven days. At least, that's what my iPod told me. I'm a little embarrassed to admit it, but it's a *great* song.

And interestingly, the drummer is the singer. He's got a slightly sad voice, and a teeny lilt of an accent. And he's cute. They are so clever with their songwriting. And while I generally cringe from the "twee" moniker that they've been given in some circles, I can say that the overall feeling is indeed quite twee. They're masterful at all of their instruments, and the production quality is stellar.

I haven't listened to anything as good since The Mayflies, USA. And I have to admit that I like The Lucksmits better. I leave you with a bit of What You'll Miss.

In the morning it felt like the world had stopped
And clenched like a giant fist up tight
But then you noticed the dust still dropped
And danced through the bedroom windowlight

It's the woodsmoke smell of winter
It's the sad things that you'll miss
It's the woodsmoke smell of winter
And the sad things like this
Let it all come down like fog on a cold field
Let it all come down like frost on a lawn
Let it all come down like leaves in a teacup
Let it all come down like trees in a storm

Stressed!

Because I'm copying eingy. Your Stress Level is: 64%

You are prone to stress, and you're probably even pretty stressed right now. Life's problems seem to pile up on you, and this often makes you feel depressed and burned out. Learn to take time to relax and enjoy life, even if things are stressful. It's the only wa you'll get through the bad times.

How Stressed Are You?

Langley Schools Music Project

I know I've waxed poetic about The Langley Schools Music Project, but I have to do it again. I've had to pick it up again, and it arrived in the mail today.

From the liner notes:
"This is beauty. This is truth. This is music that touches the heart in a way no other music ever has, or ever could."

I swear, I've listened to this album in its entirety at least a hundred times. I nearly burst into tears listening to a very, very stripped down version of God Only Knows. Again, it's one of those albums that you either love or hate. It doesn't grow on you. Of course, I love it. Everytime I listen to it, I feel like it's taken a giant sledgehammer to my soul, and then painstakingly glued me back together. I might not be better than new, but I've got more character.

The off-tune saloon style piano and the gym make it sound like they recorded this album in the bat cave. Imagine, if you will, the bat cave, full of children on a Saturday, singing songs that they might not have intellectually understood, but felt in their cores. Gah. I can't say anything else about it that doesn't make me sound like a crazy person.

The Weather

In other news, the weather is really making me irritable. The fog dampens my spirit and engulfs me in a gloom that is sometimes too thick for me to see through. Throw in a little bit of Chris Bell and Elliot Smith, and you've got a recipe for disaster. The silver lining in all of this is The Langley Schools Music Project, which will arrive tomorrow, along with The Clientele. A day later, two more CDs.

The Rules

For the most part, I'm keeping this blog as anonymous as possible. No specific talk about work or friends. Why? Because people google people too much, myself included. I mean, not vanity searches, although I admit I probably run a vanity search every six months or so.


Anyway, keep your names to yourselves. You already know who the people attached to me are, if you're here. If you don't, too bad. I hope you don't cry yourself to sleep tonight.

First. Evar.

Okay, so I've decided to move away from my old super-secret blog format. Here it is.

I've spent a lot of time with a new crush of mine, but I think I've just been relegated to "friend" status. In fact, I'm pretty sure I've just been relegated to "friend" status. Surprisingly, I'm only slightly crushed.

That is all. For now.