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surgery

This I'm OK losing...Halfway through another week.  At work, we refer to this as “workweek thirty-one.”  Not sure about you guys, but all I can think about when I see that number is the fact that, somehow, we’ve made it more than halfway through the year of Our Lord two-thousand and nine.  Think about that; more than halfway.  It boggles.

Today I had a small cyst removed from my left leg.  I’ve had this thing since high school (when it was much smaller, about the size of a BB),  but in the last five years it’s grown a little too large for my comfort.  So, after talking to one reluctant surgeon (why remove it if it’s not causing me pain or suffering?) I found one who was willing (you wanna get cut?, OK) and went in today for the super-fast super-easy procedure.  The only thing is, with me, anything involving my own blood or “fleshwork” is always a trial.  Why?  Because, as manly as I consider myself to be… when I’m personally involved in the gore, it’s almost a sure bet I’m going to want to faint.

No joke.  It’s happened almost as often as I’ve been exposed to personal carnage, however controlled the environment.  It happened when I had an ingrown toenail cut out as a teenager; they had to go old-school that time and break out the smelling salts to bring me back out of the ether.  It happened when I split my head open diving into a too-shallow springs.  It even happens, to a much lesser degree, anytime I have to give blood (I can feel the symptoms coming on, but they never fully manifest).  Here’s how it goes down: First, I begin feel a bit “off,” disconnected.  Next, I begin sweating; just a sheen of perspiration to start but soon enough turning into full torrents of gym-worthy sweat.  Finally, I can actually feel the blood draining from my head and face – to the point where I eventually realize: “Uh-oh, this ain’t gonna end good unless I lie down fast.”

Anyway, I’m familiar enough with my reaction in these situations that I now warn the doctors in advance that I’m a lightweight.  Universally, they seem to appreciate the heads-up.  Today, the doc smiled and said, “Yeah, a typical man.  Males have a much harder time with it than do women, for whatever reason.”  Humph.

In the end though, I bravely maintained consciousness (mostly by choosing to not even watch the procedure, lest I see any messiness and completely lose it).  And, after about fifteen minutes of sweating and metered breathing while I felt my skin being tugged and heard tissue being snipped with scissors – it was all over.  I had to recline fully on the little doctor’s table and concentrate on not passing out.  I tried singing a song in my head to take my mind (and ears) of the hacking and snipping that was going on in my filleted leg.

OK, so I’m a wimp.  I just can’t handle it.  Goodnight.

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obama bought us a car

Bank error in our favor!Well guys, Friday was the day.  What day?  Why, the day that the Fed’s “Cash for Clunkers” auto-industry stimulus went into effect, of course.

If you’ve been reading my posts for the past few months, you know that Sharaun and I have been planning to take advantage of this incentive by way of scrapping the dilapidated Ford in exchange for a new car and the government’s $4,500.  The lead-up to the plan was somewhat frustrating, but, we successfully did our CARS deal on day-one this past Friday.  That’s right, we finally got a new vehicle.

The Ford is gone; and I mean gone.  Out of my head and out of our lives.  I left it sitting in front of the dealership right where I drove it up.  Gave the guy the guys and the fob and a quick warning that only one of the three doors worked so he’d have to climb in over the back seat to move the thing.  He looked at me as if I was joking, to which I said, simply, “Hey, it’s cash for clunkers, remember?”  And our clunker is now awaiting its wrecking-yard fate… after nine years of service and hundreds of thousands of miles.  I did give the old Ford a brief moment of thought whilst driving to ditch her, thanked her for her time with us.  After that though, not a look back.

In the end, for those who may be curious, the government’s plan was dead-easy to use.  We came prepared with everything the CARS website says you should bring: a year’s worth of proof of registration, a year’s worth of proof of insurance, and a clean title for the vehicle.  I knew our vehicle qualified, and I had long ago whittled down the list of prospective new vehicles which would qualify us for the maximum rebate amount ($4,500).

We sat down, signed one piece of  official NHTSA paperwork certifying our Ford qualified, and then did an optional CARS survey which was designed to determine if the program actually incentivized us to buy a new vehicle.  After that it was car buying as usual, with the trade paperwork showing a $4,500 value for our “trade in.”  Combined with the GM “friends and family” discount a buddy was so kind to enable us with, the year-end tax claim on the sales tax we paid, and GM’s 0% APR for the term of the loan – I don’t think we could have done better.

Thanks for our new ride, taxpayers.

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best of 2009.5

The tops.Happy Friday folks.  I know I’ve been ready for it.

Real quick before I get started, to update you.  The car deal is supposed to go down today (as you read this, Friday).  Still not 100% sure though, as the dealership that has the vehicle we want is the only one around here not offering “early” C4C deals.  Patience… I’m having issues with it.

Hard to believe it’s that time of year again, but we’re halfway through the 2009 and we’re at a good spot to critically cast our ears back over the last six months.

So then, presented here for you without further pretext, my picks for the best releases between January and now.  My ears only, so take the recommendations with a grain of your own aural salt.

And yes, I erred on the side of over-inclusion (makes the year-end choices easier with a larger midyear field).

Enjoy.

Wilco8. Wilco – Wilco

Yes, Virginia, they do still make plain-and-simple good music.  Just American heartland; just traditional sounds; breezy and making it sound easy.  With the good bits recalling Dylan or Harrison or some similarly poppy, maybe rooted in country, Americana… this record comes off to me less as a masterpiece and more as just a solid slice of consistently good music.  The band even takes the sunny stuff and flips it from time to time, getting the hackles up and bringing the gruff – but not to the detriment of the overall feeling.  An album you’ll want to listen to with the windows down and the sun on your face.

Most Serene Republic7. The Most Serene Republic – … and the Ever Expanding Universe

While not as immediately unstoppable as some of the MSR’s previous efforts (which have all, unfailingly, ranked here on previous blog toplists) – the Canuck collective’s latest release is nothing to turn away from.  Still layered and dense and thickly sung by many voices, it still seems a tad bit dialed back from the all-out cacophony of their earlier stuff, and might benefit from being a little less unapproachable this time around because of it.  For me, it may be that this band continues to do no wrong… but I liked this album from the first time I heard the first few seconds of the first song.  Good stuff here folks; good, exciting stuff.

Mew6. Mew – No More Stories/Are Told Today/I’m Sorry/They Washed Away//No More Stories/The World Is Grey/I’m Tired/Let’s Wash Away

Now that’s a title.  I’d never been into Mew before this record; never even really heard of them, to be honest.  Curiosity got this album onto my iPod; I had to grab it when it hit the top of the charts on the 100% legal pay-to-acquire-licensed music website I frequent.  Then, when I spun it for the first time and realized the first track is actually two completely different songs – one called “New Terrain” when you listen to it normally, and one called “Nervous” when you listen to it backwards… I knew this was going to be interesting.

Sure enough, the tunes here don’t disappoint.  Sometimes as simple as enjoyable as the clean hippy stuff that guys like the Band of Horses do, other times as dense and trippy as the most avante garde of the art set – there’s something here for the whole hipster crayonbox.  But more importantly, it’s a fun listen and would make for a good BBQ soundtrack come August.  If for nothing else, you might want to get it for the occasion…

Phoenix5. Phoenix- Wolfgang Amadeus Phoenix

Man, if “Love Like a Sunset” didn’t come in and break up the near-unflappable punch of this record, it might’ve jumped up a full spot in the rankings.  Phoenix has ranked for me before, and back then I wrote about them that, “Every summer deserves a summery album. Like a sweet, dripping ice-cream cone, It’s Never Been Like That plops perfect little circles of melted goodness all over your favorite Hawaiian shirt.” And, aside from that being a pretty decent descriptive sentence, the underlying statement works for Wolfgang… too.

I want to bring this album back in time with me when they invent the machine; use it as the soundtrack to the saccharine over-emotion of a tweenage bout of puppy-love.  The smiley songs could bounce along like a mirror image of my infatuation-fueled heartbeat as we held hand for the first time.  Does that make you want to hear it?  It should.

Grizzly Bear4. Grizzly Bear – Veckatimest

OK so here we go with the Grizzly Bear thing…  I talked about how the Mew album would be good for a summertime BBQ.  Let’s get it straight up-front, this record would be better suited for a summertime opium party.  Lounging around on satin pillows letting lethargy drive an academic listening.  It’s no secret that “Two Weeks” buoys the record from a broad-appeal perspective, or that the rest of the tracks dazzle more through subtlety than fireworks – but there’s a wall-to-wall beauty of perfectionist production here that demands intent listening throughout; even after things seem to “slow down” off the high that is “Two Weeks.”  And yes, I’ll admit that I just plain don’t like “Dory” at all… but that’s no reason to shun this sparkly, sometimes slow, quiet beast.  With each perfectly placed strum or beat or whisper, it proves it deserves the spot.

Decemberists3. The Decemberists – The Hazards of Love

What can I say about this record that won’t make you automatically write it off as just some pretentious concept album?  Oh, that’s right: nothing.  That’s because this, moreso than any loosely cohesive so-called “concept” record of the last few years, is indeed a supremely pretentious album-length story-arc.  A shamelessly complex tale starring a multi-character cast built on the foundation of Meloy’s trademark wordy, arcane songwriting.  Through a hefty dose of “thou” and “wilt” and “irascible,” you’re treated to a classic tragedy involving a maiden, a shape-shifting animal-man, a wicked forest queen, and… uh… yeah…

And, as much as that whole mess above might turn you off (and believe me, Sharaun could barely bring herself to listen to this thing after I’d ranted and raved about the story and concept), the music on here is just piss-pants brilliant.  Thematically tight, brilliantly instrumented, and entertaining throughout, you’ll want to hear the album if only to dismiss it as trying-too-hard smarmy art-rock.

Wild Beasts2. Wild Beasts – Two Dancers

I currently can’t get enough of this music.  I don’t even know how to describe it to you, but a flood of adjectives come to mind and I figured that might be as good as I’m gonna be able to do.  Seductive; slippery; effeminate; growling; dirty; taunting; young; full of sex.  Yeah, these plucky harmonics, sparse woodblock percussion, and the should-be-offputting-but’s-instead-entrancing female/male range of the lead singer – it’s all somehow evocative of all those things (and then some).  It’s not going to be Top 40; and it’s not really typical for what I dig, but I’ve fallen head over heels in love with the sound.  And, besides, when you can have a lyric that goes, “This is a booty call; my boot, my boot, my boot, my boot up your asshole,” you know you’ve got a classic on your hands.

Animal Collective1. Animal Collective – Merriweather Post Pavilion

Nothing, not even a whole other top-ten list, could bridge the gap between this record and the previous entrants.  It’s in a whole other league.  So I’ll sound like all the other indie fawners and say that I really do think this is what it sounds like to hear rock music evolving.  And, though haters will say it’s innovation akin to “selling out,” it’s nonetheless the kind of approachable envelope-pushing that can bend the ear of the casual listener.

Kids singing songs about their new families and the joy of having children; the carefree escapism of walking around a city at night; the merits of simply staying in bed: themes that seem almost tailor-made for the me of now.  With unmistakeably Beach Boy styled harmonies and arpeggio-drenched, mechanical bassline-driven thumpers that get you moving, there’s nothing on this record not to like (OK, you could argue about the lengthy fade on “Daily Routine”).

If you missed it; get it.  There won’t be another record like this in 2009 and you owe it to rock and roll to just peek in on it and see how things have been moving along since Bill Haley.  Get it.

And there we go.  Start to finish in one evening, post-gym, with no pre-planning or sketched out ideas.  Atypical for a “best of” deal, but I think it worked well to knock through it all at once (with the help of the iPod to make some split-second decisions on list landing zones).  Hope you enjoyed it or, if you’re not a music person, safely ignored it.

Have a good weekend; until Monday, I love you internet friends.  Nite.

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portland was good to me tonight…

Waiting is death.It’s 1am and a man shuffles unsure down an empty city street.

Staring into the sterile glow of his phone, trying to reckon his direction from where he is, he resorts to asking a scruffy looking fellow for help. Eventually this man, still dressed for success in his workplace clothes, ambles aboard a westbound train (the last one of the night, the lines are all shutting down) and settles into a seat. He pulls his knees in on himself, a purposed outward show of youth through flexibility, and puts the new Mew album on his iPod for the ride home.

His head lolls as the train clucks and clicks and clacks down the track… and he thinks to himself, “Portland was good to me tonight… Portland was good to me tonight.”

Well folks, as you read this, the details of the federal government’s auto industry stimulus package, called CARS, are set to be communicated to dealerships tomorrow. As you may know, Sharaun and I have been awaiting this day – as we’re ready to take advantage of the legislation by dumping our old Ford in favor of a new ride. You can read more about how we’re personally planning to use the program in my original entry, and then about my experience earlier this month talking to our local dealers about it in this entry.

Back a couple weeks ago, most dealers were either in a fog about the plan (not entirely unexpected, as they had no hard details from the Fed) or were completely unaware of it. At each dealer I visited, I was the most knowledgeable about the plan, and had to speak carefully to avoid sounding smarmy and patronizing when explaining it to them. After a few days of fruitless negotiations, however, I realized that I was just chomping too hard at the bit – and that only patience would resolve my issues. Put simply: I would have to wait for the July 24 date on which the government promised to send the program’s logistics to dealerships. So, I hunkered down and watched the lot inventories online in hopes that the vehicles we are after stuck around.

Then, on Monday evening, a shimmer: The local Ford dealership called me while I was in Oregon to relay good news. They’d got “all the details” on the Cash For Clunkers program “ahead of other dealerships” and were “doing the deals now.” In fact, they said, they’d already done nine, count ‘em, nine, deals under the program. Impressive, I said… and after some chit-chat, I told them I’d give them a ring when I was back in town. Unfortunately for Ford, Sharaun and I have pretty much decided on a non-Ford vehicle. However, I was able to use that Ford cold-call as a nice datapoint with the other dealers. I made the calls, and here’s what I learned…

I called the GMC place and they are by-the-book. No deals until the 24th, said the sales manager. Not until they’d got the communication from the Fed explaining what they have to do in order to make a deal comply with the legislation. In fact, he went as far as to say that, even when the “magical” details are received on the 24th, that it may take time for the dealer to get the mechanics of the system implemented. In my mind, this is the most logical dealer position, and makes the most rational sense.

I called the Chevy place and they landed somewhere between Ford’s salesmanship and GMC’s transparency, saying that they were indeed doing C4C deals now, but that they were doing them “outside” the governments program. They explained this as basically giving buyers trade-in cash equal to what they would qualify for under C4C (using the governments qualifying criteria site) and then hanging onto the trade-ins to submit for the federal program when they got the details. I’m certain that’s what Ford is doing too, although I think they are misrepresenting themselves as having “insider info” and thus a leg-up on their competition.

Right now it’s down to a battle between the Chevy place and the GMC place. At this point, I’m really hoping that we can make a deal this weekend. I’m hoping that the C4C details are easy enough that the dealers can make deals on them ASAP. If that’s the case, then, for us, it’s the perfect storm of car-buying conditions: The C4C rebate, Obama’s new-car stimulus sales-tax writeoff, GM’s 0% APR, and the “friends and family” employee pricing hookup from a Godsend GM-employed friend. So, this weekend is the prime weekend… this weekend is where I’ve reset my expectations around… you think it’s gonna work?

Wish us luck.

It’s 1am and a man shuffles unsure down an empty city street. Staring into the sterile glow of his phone, trying to reckon his direction from where he is, he resorts to asking a scruffy looking fellow for help. Eventually this man, still dressed for success in his workplace clothes, ambles aboard a westbound train (the last one of the night, the lines are all shutting down) and settles into a seat. He pulls his knees in on himself, feeling young and carefree, and puts the new Mew album on his iPod for the ride home. His head lolls as the train clucks and clicks and clacks down the track… and thinks to himself, “Portland was good to me tonight… Portland was good to me tonight.”
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busted with spots of boon

Feast.Monday evening and I’m writing from my folks’ place up in Oregon.

One bright spot about having them way up north is getting to stay with them when work takes me up to the local sawmill up here.  Didn’t bring Sharaun and Keaton along this time as the visit is a quick one and wasn’t a good candidate for a weekend-buildout.

Yesterday you may have seen a spurious blog posted here for a few hours.  And, today, you may see the usable bits of that mistakenly published entry recycled here.  See, I schedule all my entries to auto-post at midnight on the day I intend to publish them.  Sometimes, if I’m fairly far along with a draft, to the point where I’m pretty certain I’ll be able to put the polish on it and make it a real entry, I’ll go ahead and schedule the midnight posting.  Occasionally, even being fairly well developed, I may not ever get to the polish and then subsequently forget about the scheduling.  Such was yesterday.

Sorry about that.

Today was the meeting that was the main motivator for me coming to Oregon this time around.  And, luckily, I scheduled other worthwhile activities tomorrow to coincide with the trip… because… today’s meeting, while having a couple worthwhile moments, was by and large a bust.  Well, I should qualify: Considering the sawmill-funded trip as a sawmill shareholder, today was a bust; considering the trip as an opportunity to do what “marketing” types do, today was a boon for “building rapport” with the customers.  I’ll leave it up to the shirts to tell me which of the two honors my salary more.

As I write, I’m listening to a record I “discovered” last Friday called Two Dancers by a British band called the Wild Beasts.  Not my typical kind of album, but I’ve become completely addicted to it.  It slinks and swaggers and the singer’s voice is high and odd… the combination works perfectly though.  The record isn’t out for a few weeks yet, but you can preview some of the leaked tracks over at the Hype Machine‘s aggregator.  I would recommend it, were I you.  Yeah, been digging on that and the new Mew record… finally some new stuff to listen to…

Oh man I’m sleepy.  Nothing much more to write today anyway.  I’m just going to call this a night and talk to you guys tomorrow.

Love ya, goodnight.

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just more pictures

Happy Friday internet.

Just pictures today; was all I could do to get these up before crashing.  Not enough sleep this week.  So then, continuing the scanned-hisoty exposé… enjoy:

[nggallery id=31]

Goodnight.

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sights and sounds

Seeing and hearing.Thursday, huh?  Great.  I guess that’s almost Friday.  Right?

10:30pm and I’m just now sitting down.  Fresh back from our standing Wednesday night gig and sleepless since last night’s 1am return from the Coldplay show… it’s a wonder I’m even attempting to knock out an entry tonight.  But, I wanted to get some more flashback photos posted and I captured a hilarious bit of audio on the drive home that I just had to edit and share.  So then, without any unnecessary flourish, those two things.

First up, here’s another batch of vintage images from our recent photo scanning masterplan.  Some good ones in this bunch, but I’m still finding it hard to choose from the 1,500 we had scanned.  I’ve got another batch queued and almost ready and hope to get to them this week.  Yes, for me this is kind of a big deal… Enjoy:

[nggallery id=30]

Lastly, before I go I wanted to share a little audio clip I took tonight in the car on the way home.  It’s Keaton singing.  She sings a lot, actually… and mostly songs which have been drummed into her brain from the radio’s ten-song playlist.  Tonight, she was singing the Ting Tings’ song, “That’s Not My Name.”  Bordering on novelty, the track is actually pretty dang catchy… and I even find myself singing along with it when it comes on in Sharaun’s car (which is our only car, at the moment… so it’s been often).  Anyway, I just loved the way she sings it.  Check it out, I even edited out the road noise for ya:

[audio:notmyname.mp3]
I mean… they call me huhh…

Did you guys hear how she totally stopped and restarted the song so she could pronounce the word “her” with a strong British accent?  Listen to  it again.  She sings it all American as “her” and then restarts and sings it as “huhh.”  Now that’s some attention to detail; a little music lover just like me.

Goodnight.