and so here i am, back to life...back to reality...



i am exhausted, sore, and somewhat numb in the head...cstone depleted what little resources i had left for continuing as a fully functional human being...in the end, though, if i did anything at all to promote the career of my favorite athenian, then it was all worth it...i have to say, doesn't bill look great in that suit? jake said bill found it at some thrift store, and it fit him like a glove for $25...



time spent w/ bill is time well-spent, i say...being around him always makes me want to be good and pure...more and more, when i see bill, in the back of my head, i'm thinking of my dad...little things, like the way he interacts w/ the lonely bartendress @ the hotel bar listening to her stories of what she wants to study and do with her life...little things, like the little encouraging words he addresses me with...these little things give me insight into how we should treat each other...



and i had a really good time w/ jake too this time...he is a really nice guy and can make me laugh with stories of bill or kenny from days of old...he's participating in a project called portico which is inspired by l'abri, which is based on the teachings of francis schaeffer...this got me thinking about schaeffer's writing...my dad had a lot of his books, and i'm sure i've stolen at least one of them...something in the way jake was describing stuff @ portico made me think i needed to look more into the writings of schaeffer...so that's my next project...today, i'll finish bridges w/ spirit by adam voith (of aerobooking & tni books)...then tomorrow i can start on whatever f. schaeffer book i can scrounge up...i might even go to the bookstore tonight...



it was fun hanging out w/ brandon from bloomington and debbie & erica from wildwood...i missed caleb & megan, but last year's cstone really can't be reproduced in its intensity and general mayhem...



i have continued my tradition of getting an oil change @ the speed lube in macomb, il during cstone...i think i remember the guys from last year...the scary part was when an off-duty speed lube employee came over w/ a photo to show his buddies as if it were a photo of a family pet or new car, and it was actually a photo of some heavy duty weaponry...the dude also had a confederate flag tattooed on his arm...



anyways...



been listening to--

need to bleed ep--bill mallonee & VoL

perfume letter--bill mallonee

'cross the big pond--VoL

blister soul--VoL

march 16-20,1992--uncle tupelo

no depression--uncle tupelo

summerteeth--wilco

execution of all things--rilo kiley

infinite keys--ester drang

recovered--denison witmer

the a-list--UHQ

highway 61 revisited--bob dylan

blonde on blonde--bob dylan

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

tim--the replacements

ok...detholz @ cornerstone photos are here. bill mallonee & the tiny silver hearts @ schubas photos are here...more to come later...i love bill & jake in suits!

i just got back from cornerstone and good riddance...if it weren't for bill & jake and now bo & brandon of the tiny silver hearts formerly known as the trophy wives formerly known as the vigilantes of love, i would not subject myself to 110 degrees w/ the heat index for a number of days in a row...



so much to tell...and i'm just exhausted...a few notes for now that i'll elaborate on later:



tuesday's schuba show w/ bill & the tiny silver hearts RAWKED!



bill's solo set @ cstone RAWKED!!!!



VoL RAWKED the gallery @ midnite thursday!!!!



bill & jake on the main stage in front of thousands and thousands of people and televised on a big giant huge screen playing double cure brought tears to my eyes...



and then there are the detholz!...wait till you see the pictures...the detholz! RAWKED the new band showcase on saturday!



UHQ has a new guitarist making it a 3 guitar band that sometimes has 2 guitars and a banjo...and the RAWK!!!!



i missed ester drang...



i missed demon hunter...



i missed ticklepenny corner...



i skipped pedro the lion...



to be continued...

well, jesse's stuck somewhere either in missouri or western illinois and can't swing by chicago before demon hunter's show midnite on wednesday at c-stone...i was so bummed when he called me yesterday to break the news to me...i mean, i spent hours on saturday plunging my bathtub drain and pouring various chemicals down that spout and sticking a long wire thingamajig called a snake (auger?) down that cavernous abyss and still not getting a satisfying enough of a tornado drainage...refer to my march 15th 05:27 post and you'll see that me and that drain have had a rocky relationship...all that muscle work for jesse...oh well...i'm happy to report that i am able to shower without ending up in calf-deep water...not only that, i did ANOTHER load of laundry! that's TWICE in ONE WEEK! that's a record...on the bright side, i don't have to figure out what to do w/ four heavy metal boys (feeding & storage)...



so before i forget....



friday night was the love poetry slam...very intimate with a few folks...sat outdoors @ aion...lovely weather...



saturday, teddy & i went to the burbs to help his grandma move...we were there until late afternoon...by evening back in the city, we were pretty exhausted...we went to hi ricky's for dinner and walked over to get me high but ethan wasn't spinning so we left...the detholz were playing @ martyr's but i was too tired for a show...



sunday, teddy worked and i went to see him during his lunch break...it was when i pulled into the trader joes parking lot that i got jesse's call with the bad news...i could've cried, i was so bummed...partly cuz i was so sore from plunging to the point that i had stigmataesque sores on my palms...oh well...



teddy took my little red hottie to midas cuz the brakes have been squeaking louder than a bevy of teenage girls at a nsync concert...and i gotta maneuver that thing through mobs and mobs of pedestrians @ cstone this week, which means stop-n-go, stop-n-go, and i don't think my motorized teenage fan club will be very much appreciated...you literally need ear plugs it's so loud...or WAS loud...the good old boys who fixed my flat tire for free back in december (refer to my december 8th post) at midas by the fireside fixed my brakes and now my little red hottie is as quiet as...uh...a mouse? no...mice squeak...uh...quiet as a corn flake...there...how's that...no, corn flakes crunch...uh...quiet as...oh whatever...let's move on...



teddy & i biked down to the lake down by diversey harbor today after work...the hardest part of the whole ride was carrying my bike up and down the damn stairs at my apartment...the view of the western horizon at dusk from the lakeside rocks was spectacular...'god's sky' teddy called it...the colors reflected in the big fluffy cottoncandy clouds with the rays shooting through at various angles just like a painting...you expected to hear a choir singing the hallelujah chorus and a snowwhite dove to fly down with an olive branch in its beak...lovely...



i got to level 12 and 129 lines and like >91,000 points on tetris today...that's a record for me...



so bill mallonee & the tiny silver hearts (formerly known as either the vigilantes of love or the trophy wives) are playing tomorrow @ schubas...in case you don't know, bill mallonee is very, very important to me...i get teary-eyed when i think about how much he means to me...he is one of the most talented (and prolific) songwriters i know...and he is so passionate...reminds me of my dad...(sniff sniff)...annie quick is opening up for him and so is my buddy derek becker in the security council, his latest band...it should be a RAWKIN' SHOW!! oh yeah....



and then it's on to c-stone on wednesday...you can't stop the ROCK DUDE!!!!



been listening to--

hootenanny--the replacements

tim--the replacements

the execution of all things--rilo kiley

V.O.L.--VoL

somebody bring out the champagne...i have succeeded in riding the metra everyday this week! that's 300 less miles for my car...which i will make up in one way to cornerstone...nevertheless, this train thing is gonna save so much on wear and tear on my car...and considering i'm driving to new york for josh's wedding in october, i need to avoid driving as much as possible...



well, my life becomes a crazy mess officially as of...right now...the monthly poetry slam @ aion will be a love poetry slam...that's tonight @ 7pm...tomorrow morning, grandma d's moving...the detholz are playing sat night @ martyr's...i've never been there...actually, no, that's not true...i've been there before...w/ josh & connolly...but josh didn't have his driver's license on him and so we had to go to a coffeeshop instead of the rockabillyshow...then i dunno when jesse's getting here...the demon hunter tour officially ends on sat. in kansas city...so the earliest would be sunday night...which means i'll probably spend sunday frantically cleaning and, depending on who all is coming, trying to figure out how to fit 4 rockers in my apartment besides myself...i guess i'm gonna have to sleep in my folding hammock/cot...which is what i did when ryan, jesse & tillman crashed at my place on their way from new york to seattle...if it ends up just being jesse, then it's nice and simple...ah well, we'll make do somehow...



i'm on vacation from work starting next tuesday so i can spend some time w/ jesse before cstone...then it's the bill mallonee & the silver hearts & annie quick & derek & the security council @ schubas tues night! i can't wait for that show!!!! i can't wait to hear bill w/ his new band...i've been listening to VoL all day now...and then it's off to cstone on wednesday! 4 days of rock 'n' roll! woohoo! i wish ryan were gonna be there...and caleb...and megan...and mikey b...and teddy...*sigh*...last year's cstone is pretty much plastered to the hallowed halls of my memories...



been listening to--

summershine--VoL

audible sigh--VoL

to the roof of the sky--VoL

V.O.L.--VoL

killing floor--VoL

perfume letter--bill mallonee

disintegration--the cure