...how could i possibly leave this lovely neighborhood? i mean, how many people can say they have a defunct bar called burt's & bummers club on their corner? nay, me thinks i can't leave now...but that doesn't excuse me from cleaning out all the crap i don't need anymore...i WILL find homes for all my stray CD's! i WILL get rid of half my wardrobe! REALLY, i WILL...the question of WHEN, however, is another matter entirely...



been listening to--

ghosts of the great highway--sun kil moon

put danger back in your life--folksongs for the afterlife

how i learned to write backwards--the aislers set

...and the search for the perfect space continues...



...but first, let’s take a break from ranting and raving and be thankful...last night, erik of LIFE AT SEA and chris invited us over for homemade sushi...teddy & i grabbed a six-pack of asahi beer at a mexican grocery (they didn’t have boxes of clementines) and headed over to their house, which is a couple miles west of where i live...we were greeted at the door by their two lovely and sweet enormous dogs ella and coltrane...



...it was a lovely evening...erik & chris are one of the sweetest, coolest couples i know...not that i know them well, but they're the type that make you feel at home so that you want to know them better...their friends mike & melissa & karen were there too, and it was all in all an enjoyable evening with other adults who weren't afraid to NOT act like adults sometimes...the boys jammed in the basement and crowned themself "the third snow" before the night was over...we played cranium, did karaoke, and played with the dogs...it's quite possible that this was the first time i was the only asian in the room when doing karaoke...oh, and the sushi was DELISHUS...



erik's kickass band LIFE AT SEA are headlining at the metro this tuesday night...$2 cover and $2 drinks (!!!)...can't beat that...oh, wait...yes, i can...OWEN (mike kinsella) will be opening up...show's at 8:30...hands down, this show is the steal of the month...



...so i went to see an apartment this morning...it's a 3 bedroom on chesnut right around the corner from ted & his brothers' apartment...it was huge...they had taken out the attic, so the ceilings were really high in the front room, which faces eckhardt park and has an unobstructed view of the loop...i really liked it...ted & i could fit ALL our friends in that apartment...



...but i don't know...teddy & i went to brunch @ kitsch'n on roscoe, and we talked about what i should do...and now i'm thinking about just staying where i am...good god, i'll probably grow old & grey in that same apt. cuz that's how much i HATE moving!!! maybe if i just threw all my shit out, it would be easier...which got us talking about how i can prepare for my move/nonmove...so my assignment for today is to make two piles of books...one for the ones i wanna keep, and the other for the ones i wanna take to myopic or the salvation army...it's not so easy for me to part with books though...i mean, who cares if i'll probably never learn enough french to read my french version of 'the little prince'...the words just look so much prettier in french...and don't EVEN suggest i throw out my shel silverstein...i'll pitch my faulkner before my silverstein...so it turns out making two piles is not as easy as it sounds...so i'm here at the art gallery kafe instead...ha ha...



...seriously, though, i'm gonna go now and start relinquishing my attachment to my material possessions...my heart will feel lighter and more free as a result, methinks...

...the search for an apartment continues...that loft i saw last week was AWESOME, but there were like 50 applicants ahead of me...*sigh*...tonight, i'm going to see a normal apartment not too far away from where i already live...i keep waffling between finding a roommate and getting my own place...i'm pretty spoiled having an entire apartment (as tiny as it may be) all to myself...well, we'll see...something's bound to open up...



been listening to--

now you know--doug martsch

brief history of the 20th century--gang of four

what came before after--sonic boom

excuses for travellers--mojave3

amplified heart--everything but the girl

summershine--VoL

peng!--stereolab

substance--joy division

michigan--sufjan stevens

rehearsals for departure--damien jurado

...where shall you take me? i don't understand, and i don't see...there are times when i think i see you leading the way...then just as quickly, i blink and you're gone...were you ever there at all? sometimes i wonder...you said that you'd never leave me...what exactly did you mean by that?



been listening to--

the photo album--dcfc

execution of all things--rilo kiley

kids in philly--marah

philadelphia songs--denison witmer

s/t--dressy bessy

little honda--yo la tengo

s/t--hidari mae

100 broken windows--idlewild

yankee hotel foxtrot--wilco

yesterday the ka2c's (kick ass korean american chicas) got together @ janet's to make soon doo boo (spicy tofu stew) and to continue planning our world domination...we now have a name (team doo!boo!) and a gameplan so we're good to go...oh, it's true...be afraid...be VERY AFRAID...it's so much fun to get together w/ those girls and cook korean food from a recipe off the internet not totally aware of what we're actually supposed to do...but as long as it all tastes good in the end, that's what counts...and when in doubt, just add more kimchee, that's what i say...



when i left janet's to pick up teddy from work, i got a voicemail from phil that johnny and mikey were coming out from the suburbs for the joan of arc show...luckily, teddy was in a good mood when i picked him up and it took no armwisting to convince him to go to the show...i knew he really missed john & mikey...he even called dave and we three all went over to the empty bottle together...it was great to see the boys all together...although i did miss my jozka...esp. since he & john & i went to the joan of arc show together last march @ the fireside...but i hear the mountain goats are coming to the bottle in a few weeks, so maybe joe will come out from ann arbor for that...





as for joan of arc, the photos from last night's show can be viewed right here...they've increased in number since i last saw them...last night's show had keys, viola and cello in addition to the usual suspects...the sound was different from what i expected...and i guess i should know by now NOT to EXPECT any more...i really dug the sound...which makes sense, since i really like the idea of mixing traditionally classical instruments w/ traditionally rock 'n' roll instruments...made me wanna run out and buy a cello...now THAT is one sexy instrument...they did a cover of i think a lungfish song (at least that's what teddy told me) that was really gorgeous and made me wanna write songs for strings...overall, i totally enjoyed the show, and i was glad phil reminded me of it...i don't claim to know much about music commentary...all i know is sometimes i hear music that touches a place inside me that's beyond words, and it's like a part of me recognizes an old friend or memory dressed up as a chord or melody or beat or any myriad of combinations of the aforementioned...it's quite a beautiful experience when it happens...anyways, that's how i felt during certain parts of the joan of arc set...



been listening to--

other animals--erase errata

gotham!--radio4

is there a signal coming through?--life at sea

team boo--mates of state

loveless--my bloody valentine

yours, mine and ours--pernice brothers

long knives drawn--rainer maria

give up--the postal service