This, that, and some of the other.

Well, now, it's been an age and a day since I've posted. I don't know quite what my problem is other than writing a blog seems to smack of tiresome self-importance or a desire to inflict my le train train quotidien upon all and sundry which, frankly, makes for boring reading, viz.

6.45a - woke up
6.46a - hit "snooze" and dozed off
6.56a - jerked out of my pleasant doze by NPR recounting horrors in Darfur
6.57a - staggered out of room and into the lav, perform daily ablutions
7.3a - shrugged on clothing
7.9a - legged it out door, down stairs, and out of building to catch Metro.
7.11-8.3a - enjoyed terrors of daily Metro commute to office.
8.5a - 4.55p - work with its accompanying delights, joys, drudgeries, and irritants.
4.56p - 5.54p - further experiencing of Metro horrors on commute home.
5.55p - 6p - avoid strange homeless people and other human dregs that float about by my apartment building courtesy of the crisis centre next door.
6.1p - 6.3p - check to see if the ghettovator 900 is working, realize it isn't, stagger up five flights of stairs
6.5p -11p - home, dinner, dorking about, reading, bed.

Whee! What excitements!

Anyway, short version of what's going on:

Found out my dad has a really rare form of Non-Hodgkins Lymphoma that has a 90% survival rate. Although, the fact that they're already talking of survival rates in percentages bothers me considerably. Mom's upset, we're all upset. Waiting for Dad to see the oncologist and have more tests performed.

Did not bother to go see And One. Kind of regret it now. Still, I hate El Corazon and all ages shows. Worst Venue Evarrr! Why we, as adults, should be treated like dangerous and wild animals that need to be kept corralled is beyond me. You'd think that they'd keep the cretinous youths locked away from us and give us more space to roam about in since... surprise! We have jobs and aren't minors. God knows that coming into contact with teenaged boy sweat is not high on most sane adults lists of Important Things To Do. But, I digress.

I bought a new divan. Whee.

My thirtieth birthday is next Sunday se'nnight. I have no idea what the devil I want to do, really.

Anyway, on the off chance that you may be contemplating gifts. Don't, please. I really do not need anything.

Combichrist, Consumption, and Labor Day

Friday last, I staggered off to go see Combichrist with my friend Jesse. We decided to give the opening bands a miss as none were bands that I'd ever heard of before. While Dr. Echidna said that SITD could be clichéd but wasn't too ghastly, I wasn't exactly sold on the deal.

So, we got there at a quarter to ten. SITD had cancelled owing for some reason that I never heard, we missed Modulate, and arrived in time for Imperative Reaction. At the time, I noticed that Combichrist would take the stage at 10:45.

After entering El Corazon, I beelined for the lounge area as my tongue was hanging out for a drink. I should've known better than to order a whiskey and soda since what I was given bore about as much resemblance to one as a four-year-old's sidewalk chalk drawing does a Rembrandt. Anyway, while we stood in the line for our weak and overpriced beverages, I was bored to tears by the repetitive and uninspired music of IR.

As the Weltschmerz mounted with every passing second, I hurriedly drained my drink and legged it for the open spaces so I could have a puff, escape from the press of people, and kill the time until Combichrist came on stage. Eventually, I wandered back inside and ran into my friend Brett and his girlfriend Jennifer. We surveyed the all-ages crowd with something of a jaundiced eye and retreated to the lounge again.

I finally took up a position near the center area and was predisposed to enjoy the Combichrist show - how can you not love hot, rivet-head Norwegian boys? Unfortunately, the crowd intervened and ruined the show for me in short order.

This show, sadly, ranks as one of the worst I've ever seen and I thank all of the underaged fucktards for this.

Yes, you want to dance to Combichrist. I sympathize. However, in a venue the size of El Corazon, slam dancing is not quite appropriate. Shoving your way through the crowd repeatedly to visit friends is unacceptable.

Confidential to the dumpy short chick who thought it'd be awesome to thrash about like a gaffed salmon or someone with St. Vitus' Dance: Thank you for elbowing me in the thorax repeatedly and for stomping on my feet. You weigh about as much as a Belgian draft horse. And no, I was not kidding when I told you that, if you didn't stop stomping on me, I'd donkey punch you. I hope your dog dies.

Being forced to absorb twenty-year-old boy sweat is unacceptable, too. I think the final straw came when I got hit in the eye with about a cup of lukewarm water. I don't know whether it was thrown from the stage, from an audience member, or what. Nor do I really WANT to know.

Anyway, I legged it out of the venue when Andy said they were playing their last song - I couldn't handle any more and I wound up furiously chainsmoking and waiting patiently for Jesse, Brett, and Jennifer to exit the building so we could head up to the Mercury and get away from the under twenty-one crowd.

Other than that, Friday night was enjoyable. Saturday, I woke up feeling a bit lungy and it has gone down hill from there to the point that I feel like I'm in the throes of a raging consumption or at the very least the Lesser Asiatic Death Cold. Fortunately for me, I'll be heading to Coeur d'Alene for Labour Day weekend to spend time with my family and friends.

Week-end Update

Tonight is Combichrist.

Whee!

I'll have a review up on Saturday depending on how late I get in from The Mercury. If you're lucky, you'll get some blurred photos like I got at VNV. [laughs]

I'm looking forward to seeing Mr. LaPlegua aka Ole Anders Olson as the man has about 205920459205920 projects happening...


Alt for norge!

Think the inconceivable, desire the untouchable...

Since I last posted:

1) I purchased and read Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows on the day which it was released;
2) I received a much needed (and much welcome) pay raise at work;
3) I've purchased my tickets for next week's Combichrist show and the Assemblage 23 show on 9 September 2007;

There has also been the usual run of le train train quotidien but none of it particularly interesting.

I've also fallen in love with the music of the German industrial/EBM band Seabound and must recommend it to those of my friends who appreciate such music. Dr. Echidna, naturally, needs no introduction to them.

I'm very excited about the upcoming Combichrist and A23 shows. Therefore, I shall give vent to an 'Aiiieeeeeee!!!'

AIIIEEEEE! [bounces up and down]

Oh, and my very lovely and exceptionally dear friend Sina will be coming to Seattle for her birthday next month. EEeeeeeeeee!! [more bouncing in seat]

At any rate, this concludes this update. I'm off to go watch the first episode of Firefly.

Wheeeee!!!

Just got home from the VNV Nation show at El Corazon with Babyland from LA as the opening band.

What an amazing show.

Babyland seemed to be pretty high energy - not quite my thing, though. Banging on empty oil barrels and pipes just doesn't really do it. So I wandered off, with my friend Dakota, to the side bar where it was quieter and got a beer. Besides, it was blessedly free of the underage crowd.

VNV Nation, though, kicked ass. As Ronan said tonight, 'Fuck yeah'.

Awesome set - I heard just about everything I wanted to hear. They opened with The Farthest Star off of their latest album Judgement.

Here's a partial set list for those who care:

Chrome
Beloved
Darkangel
Savior
Standing
Legion
Perpetual
Testament
Illusion
Nemesis

Anyway, the venue was packed to the gills and the show was sold out. This was evinced by the fact that it was about 438 degrees Kelvin in there. Ronan at one point asked the various crew people to hand out water - sadly, none ever got to my corner. Ah, well.

This was one of the best shows I've been to in a really fucking long time. I'm still totally amped from the energy of the crowd as well as that of Ronan and Mark. They really do a great fucking show.

I'm looking forward to the following upcoming shows:

Voltaire - 7/17
Combichrist - 8/24
KMFDM - 8/25
Assemblage 23 - 9/9

I'm still deciding if I want to go see Haujobb. Hm.

I'm tired, sweaty, and need to go shower as my hair feels crunchy and I don't want to wake up all covered in dried sweat. Ick.

Here are a few photos taken with the camera in my phone. My apologies for the quality, but you'll just have to cope.

You know what they say, 'Never mix, never worry!'

I've spent a good portion of this morning dealing with scheduling utilities to be disconnected at my current flat and reconnected at my new one. Entertainingly enough, my internet service provider is NOT going to be Comcast. Apparently, the move from 98144 to 98122 crosses a service boundary and puts me into Millennium Cable territory. I've never done business with them.

Curious, I rang up Chris to find out more information about them. Apparently I can just call the tech and have him come out and do the install - and pay him twenty dollars cash at the time. Now, having worked for a third party customer disservice center for both Qwest and Comcast, I was taken aback by this since we never, ever wanted the customer to give the techs money. However, Chris assured me that it was all legitimate and not a weird scam. He's going to get the number to me this evening so I can call him and set it up.

My transfer of service with Qwest went smoothly enough - same home telephone number, etc. I still need to call Seattle City Darkness and schedule the electricity (E! Electricity! When you're in the dark and you want to see, Electricity, E! Electricity!) to be connected. Thankfully, I'm going to be able to cancel my PSE service. I look forward to being shot of those fucksocks. You've no idea the amount of disdain I've stored up for them.

I made a really tasty curry last night - chicken, potato, bamboo shoots, mung bean sprouts, mushrooms, and onions in a nice yellow curry. Delish. I burnt my bottom lip testing a potato.
I also picked up some yummy gyoza and had those and cream puffs from the ever fabulous Yummy House Bakery.

I don't know what my problem is lately, but I've not been sleeping very well. Part of it is, without a doubt, due to my mattress. At one point I'm sure it was terribly comfortable. Now it is more like something that Torquemada would use to convince recalcitrant heretics to confess. Meh. I'm irked about having to move the blasted thing and then turn around and get rid of it. O well. Nothing I can do about that right now.

O well. That's it for now.