Rain. Snow. Sleet. Heet.

Since the atmosphere can't make up its mind about whether to snow or now, I've gone without the umbrella. I thought that being a tall asian man was a good thing. How are the two related? Today, I developed paranoia about the metal tips of the umbrella frames grazing my eyes as people walked by. It's one of those things I didn't really notice at first. Now I'm constantly turning away when an umbrella comes my way. The point of this anecdote? Welcome to fwallinter.

The Arcade Fire album sounded a lot better today. I put this away a few weeks ago and have been bitching about it since. Yet I enjoyed the songs after the second track today. At the same time I had a really boring day, the weather has been shitty since Sunday night, and I can't fall asleep when I want to. Perhaps the album will suck the next time I hear it.

College Basketball has officially entered the fray as a gigantic time waster for me. Go Bay-dgers.

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Four Consecutive Saturdays

A lot of Chinese food. Much more turkey. 9% of the time was spent with my guitar, 1% of the time was spent realizing that I need a Piano, 2.5% of the time was devoted to auto repair, 2.5% of the time was spent in a suburban-sterile "Cribs" type house, 5% was spent with two Milwaukee friends with whom I spend 90% of my non-parent time with, 10% is spent feeling relaxed in the apartment, and 70% of my time was spent with the parents. Said parents like to spend 65% of their time shopping, 25% of their time dining out, and 15% of their time watching movies. To win the prize of getting to read the rest of this post, determine the exact percentage of time I spent in a goddamn mall.

- Work people showed up to my local birthday gathering. They drew the invisible line and kept to themselves the entire night. That's exactly how I drew it up.

- After celebrating the Wauwatosa version of the birthday gathering, I ran into an old friend. We were pretty tight during "Leftover Chinese '97!" but haven't spoken since early 2002. I couldn't tell if he was 'salty' about the way we abruptly dropped communication...but I was damn glad to see him. Seeing and old friend doing well makes the encounter a good thing.

- Friday night equaled this Miramax film. After this movie, I wasn't really questioning whether or not seeing a family movie with my parents on a Friday night was pathetic. The film was a lot better than I expected. The fine storytelling made a lot of people cry in the theater. Mr. 21 Jump street continues a streak of decent movies. Nothing in the movie creeped me out so I guess you could say it was effectively entertaining.

- This Warner Brothers Movie was seen two nights later. Oliver Stone continues to miss. Most of the main actors weren't believable enough. The fact that every scene was either oedipal or homoerotic wasn't enough to save this movie. The war scenes are pretty good, but I was extremely underwhelmed by this one.

- The new El-P album was accidentally left behind. The jazz enthusiasts of the world might like this album. This hit my 2004 top-10 list pretty fast. Curses for leaving this behind.

- My buddy Dan was housesitting a place on this lake. It was a wide open space, had fancy floors, a huge kitchen, whirlpool on a deck that overlooks the lake, spacious bedrooms, a cool dog, HDTV with caller ID ability, pictures of smiling kids on the walls, and from what I gather, a housewife who really likes to bake. Where do I sign up to get that life?

- Quote of the weekend: "By the time your dad was 26, he was in America and reached his dream."

- Thought-response of the weekend: "...and I'm in Brookfield, Wisconsin."

- Suburban Panhandler situation of the day: "Hi, I'm like from Bowling Green Kentucky, and I'm staying at a hotel down the street, and I'm fourteen dollars short on another night."

- Thought-Response to Suburban Panhandler: "Where's your Kentucky accent?"

- Entering your bedroom after a long weekend out of town to hear your upstairs neighbors bouncing springs is the new forgetting your DVD collection, Ms. Pac-Man, razor blade and vitamins at your parents house.

...and now, back to the grind.

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Twenty Six

By the Numbers:
26 - The age where I am now closer to thirty than twenty.
25 - My assumed age according to my parents since they're convinced that I was born in 1979.
24 - Hours a day my mind is preoccupied with either music, sex, or real estate.
23 - Least favorite/most depressing/worst age ever.
22 - Average number of days a month I take public transportation.
21 - Number of Rush albums I own on compact disc.
20 - Number of years since I put my mom's yellow Volvo in reverse and rolled it into a fence.
19 - Number of years I have known Nick.
18 - Number of years since seeing my first Milwaukee Bucks game.
17 - Approximate number of hours a day I am awake.
16 - The age I drove my parents' Benz around town on a regular basis.
15 - Years since Nintendo ruined my attention span.
14 - Years since my last piano lesson.
13 - Age that is halfway between now and 1978.
12 - Number of people in my nuclear family including sisters-in-laws and nieces.
11 - Number of years I've been a 'guitarist.'
10 - Number of years I've had a drivers license.
9 - My estimate of the number of people who probably don't like me.
8 - Number of states I have visited in the last two years.
7 - Number of apartments I've called home since I moved out of the folks house.
6 - Number of countries I have visited.
5 - Days since my last visit to Wisconsin.
4 - Number of pay-raises I've received at my job since I started 2.5 years ago.
3 - Number of former roommates who are now married (out of four possible).
2 - Number of ex-girlfriends I've collected since high school.
1 - Number of speeding tickets received, lawsuits involved, and scars that I have received as a result of falling over while fleeing a houseparty.

. . [~] . 0 (Grumble) Grumbles .

Listening Habit

In what is turning out to be a new and probably expensive hobby is the purchase of profesionally recorded and distributed music at the record store. Today's visit:
- MM..Food? : Can't get enough of these beats.
- Collecting the Kid by El-P : Although a collection of projects, I like what I hear so far.
- Diesel Truckers : Entertaining. A few songs are worth a few listens. Pleasant surprise.

In what continues to be a relatively free hobby, I found this in my collection:
- You're a Woman, I'm a Machine - Possibly overrated. They sound too familiar.

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Four For Five


Two in the morning. West Washington Avenue. Hand unsteady. Photoshop. This will hopefully be the last visit to Dane County for a while (4th visit in 5 weeks), I took this picture and woke up the next morning with a pounding headache. I tried my best to get a clear shot.

In getting used to living in cold apartments, I never really flinched when somebody would complain about the temperature. When I got home on a 60 degree day outside to a sweat inducing 80+ degrees inside, I flinched. Stocking hats indoors? No longer necessary.

During the course of my Friday evening, we walked by the place that Leftover Chinese-'98 called home. I heard loud music, so I suggested that we go inside. This offer was taken up and before I knew it, I was standing in my old hallway. There really wasn't a party going on, but people were hanging out. I'm not sure if the five of us were welcome, but seeing a bunch of dudes playing dice in my old bedroom made the interruption worth it.

The author of MBIMOTMOG was encountered in person. You will now find the link to this web site under 'Human American.'

My occasional affair with Ms. Pac-Man was rekindled anew with this gift. One of these days, I'll get see the fifth act. Pole position is deemed a waste of time.

M: "Hmm...Chicken and Rice. How not Ed."
E: "Wow..you're right."
It's good to have neighbors around to point out your consistencies.

Last night, I encountered two drunken trixies on a street corner. One was stumbling around on her cellphone and another sat on the curb with her head in her lap. They asked if the main street perpendicular to my car was Western Ave. I said yes. The trixies got back on their phones and wandered away. As I waited for my light to change, a squad car approached. As the squad approached, one of the drunken ladies slipped, fell, and didn't seem to miss a beat on her telephone conversation. The squad car stopped, turned the spotlight on, then turned their flashers on. The ladies didn't notice this was happening. I drove away. Welcome to detox, ladies.

4:12 am Saturday morning : Challenged to finish my beer issued by a 20-year-old college student.
4:12 am Sunday morning : Distracted from sleep as a result of my ceiling alarm clock.
4:12 am Monday Morning (to be determined) : Hopefully none of the above.

...and to think I'm ocassioanly wonder if my life is becoming routine...

. . [~] . 0 (Grumble) Grumbles .

Additions

I'm sick of my library and need to infuse some music...

Venomous Villain - I discovered MF Doom this week. Good shit.

Danny the Dog - In the process of discovering MF Doom, I discovered Massive Attack and picked up this release. It's the soundtrack to a movie that hasn't been released yet. This "trip-hop" music is pretty dark...but good. I'm giving an actual album a listen before writing this off.

Van Halen Tribute - With the exception of one track, this was a complete waste of time. Stream 'Unchained' That's the highlight.

E&A - Eyedea and Abilities latest release. I need to give this a few more listens, but I've liked what I've heard so far. I like hip-hop that features the DJ is as much as the emcee. Hearing the dialogue between the two in this one is a refreshing change from all the noise I constantly listen to.

That's about it.

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New, New Random Theory

Legitimacy Crisis - Modern capitalist societies are undergoing a legitimacy crisis whereby support for both government and economy is systematically eroded. Habermas's account of the impending legitimation or legitimacy crisis includes all forms of social relationships, both political and economics, and argues that the failure of existing institutions to meet the ethical criteria which would justify their acceptance is leading to a general crisis.

It's a modern therory created sometime in the 20th century. I won't interpret it...I had to sort this one out in my head. You do the same.

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Flip!

Courtesy of PBS (and Netflix), this NOVA documentary* has taught me that the Earth's magnetic field is either in the middle of a reversal or a slow death. The scientists tell us that North becomes South every 200,000 years or so. If the field reverses itself in the next few centuries, the Earth will expose itself to direct impact of solar radiation. This could mean bad things like a rise in cancer rates, but you may get to see Aurora Borealis over Las Vegas.

Lest we remember that God created earth 5,000 years ago and none of the scientific evidence presented in almost every documentary about the Earth is valid?

I just want to see a compass point south...and I think I'm may seek a NOVA t-shirt.

Neil Patrick Harris was on tonight's edition of Celebrity Poker. Celebrity?

[* - Leftover Chinese's "Double Dribble" DVD of the week]

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Run, Kid, Run

Frances and I were walking towards the train station when we caught up to a young, stringy, nerdy lookin' high-school aged gent hauling an oversized backpack to the station. When we got close to him, he turned his head slighty towards us then proceeded to speed up. Fran and I looked at each other and without a word the game was on. We sped up to the kid, cased our conversation and waited. The kid picked up his pace again and almost started running. We caught up to the kid for a third time. He tried to run away until he was caught behind a couple walking slow. It was just like real driving.

. . [~] . 0 (Grumble) Grumbles .

No Wrest for the Wicked

That title means nothing. Spending an entire weekend in town means I get to go to sleep tonight feeling more worn out than usual. Fun.

- Sensing a need to change the scene a bit, I took Friday night and ventured to the downtown scene for a bit. The highlight was taking the CTA on a weekend night. I saw two(2) drunk kids vomiting on the platforms and on the way into downtown, I watched a guy my age confront a high school-aged punk because the kid had a skinhead/nazi punk band painted on his jacket. It would have been funny to see violence, but my stop came up. I wonder how that panned out.

- I skipped their show on Friday, but I picked up their album. If you like side-projects with songs that sound exactly like the artist's main band (Broken Social Scene), you'll like this one.

- Rest in Peace, Old Dirty Bastard.

- Last night featured a circular route of 3.5 miles of walking: from my house to a show back to a houseparty by my house. I witnessed the fitness almost every day this week. I should be that guy who always wears a gym suit.

- Yuppie populated bars are still overrated in my book. The drinks are expensive and you have to tip a guy for handing you paper towels. I watched my friend tell a story to an audience of trixies the entire saga of how he hooked up with a random 31-year-old psycho. Later in the night, he told me that he wanted to 'get with' one the listeners. I'm not sure how his night ended up, but I guess telling women about past sexual transgressions can score you points...Somehow.

- Last's week aquarium purchase wiped out my native population. So much for that one.

- You get buy broccoli crowns at normal broccoli price if you use the self-checkout line at Jewel. Get your moneys worth until they check up on you. I mean...it's an honest mistake, right?

- The football Badgers lost, the football Packers won, and the Bucks won a game and lost a game. Everything offsets this weekend. End result = indifference.

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Bloc

.can't post.can't think of anything to write.perhaps I get back into guitar and bass shape.riding a bike at night is addicting.impulse purchased a bag of gummy bears.body sore.do what I haven't done in years.mock self for using stream of consciousness.sit and practice new things.flag football gets people hurt.bed costs me an extra 30 minutes of half-sleep every morning.physical activity every day since monday.way vivid a dream this morning.stream of consciousness getting too calculated.take a vitamin.chicago drivers are crazy happily share the road.personal tennis history discussion.orange juice or beer.heavy breakfast light dinner.home game growing.blog comments acknowledged.'concept' episode of Frasier viewed.much sleep extra drowzy.can post.

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Elevator Action

Twenty minutes left in workday on Floor 5 ---> Board Elevator ---> Lobby ---> Transfer Elevator ---> Floor 46 ---> Transfer Elevator ---> Floor 40 ---> Get package I accidently had sent to the wrong floor ---> Return to Elevator ---> Floor 46 ---> Transfer Elevator ---> Lobby ---> Transfer Elevator ---> Return to Floor 5 with Ten Minutes left in workday.

Woah.

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Running in Place

Treadmills may be a good way to get physical exercise, but they sure aren't helpful for the mental side. Most of the enjoyment I derive from running around this neighborhood is watching the scenery move around. Twenty-five minutes of running in one place is no different than standing motionless for twenty-five minutes in one place with nothing to do. My eyes were either focused on the ticking timer, focused straight ahead in a blank daze, focused on the ticking timer, or focused straight ahead in a blank daze. I didn't feel any more relaxed after the run. I better get used to this fast.

During The Golden Child*, there's a scene where Eddie Murphy sneaks into a house populated by a biker gang. One would think that a scene like this creates the feeling that our protagonist is in danger. That is not the case if the bikers are sitting around while watching a Ratt video. Did real bikers even listen to Ratt back then?

[Leftover Chinese's "I feel asleep" film of the week]

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Bi-weekly chess meetings started tonight. Stop by if you want to shake us down for lunch money. Stop by if you want a game of chess. Stop by if you want a chance to enjoy Levitra-sponsored pizza. Just kidding about that last one. I'm only getting one Levitra-sponsored pizza. Allow me to explain: A pharmaceutical company greased my dad for prescriptions with handmade pizzas. In turn, he gave that pizza to me and went back to prescribing the same medicine he's been dispensing for years...and I got to share it on chess night. People complain about the high price of medicine in America...and I just lived one of many reasons why they should complain.

As for the actual game of chess, check these images of chess teams past and present. One of the following images made me laugh:
-One
-Two
-Three
-Four

Tonight I won my first match and lost another one. That means my record this year is 1-6. Total classic 16.666667% action.

Unrelated to chess: Have you ever seen a picture of yourself and random ladies taken during a blurry night and barely remember who those women were? I think I saw one of these such random people tonight...and I think she saw me, but I don't think she recognized me. At least I hope she didn't. Since I had no idea at the time why I recognized the face, I would have been dead at 'hello.'

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Full Weekend

I won't come away from this weekend well rested, yet I insist on staying up until 1am on a school night. Many different things occurred this weekend...I learned stuff.

Friday afternoon conversation at work:
L: "What are you doing this weekend?"
E: "I'm going up to Madison."
L: "Again?"
E: "What are you doing this weekend?"
L: "Not going to Madison for the third consecutive weekend."
E: "You're keeping track?"


I went back to the alma mater for some football viewing. Four stories of Luxury boxes above the bleachers (not pictured) sure change the atmosphere of a stadium. It didn't feel like I was at the stadium I used to stumble in on Saturday mornings. This was the first game I ever saw outside of the student section. Everybody pays attention to the game in the 'old-people seats.'


Badgers. You couldn't get away with this anywhere else in the city.


Obligatory sunset shot.


Seas of red.

- Yes, yes, the football game was free, I won ten bucks in the pool, ate steer-burgers purchased by the ticket owners, watched the game sober, smoked a victory cigar with three elder statesmen, and discovered Big 10 Pub after-game parties. The drive back was not as eventful.

- In searching for the Bucks vs. Cavs game on AM radio during my journey back from Madison, I couldn't get a clear signal in the state of Wisconsin but I eventually found the game...on Cleveland's broadcast. Ohio is three states away from Wisconsin. How does one not get a clear broadcast in the home state of the team?

- Regency House Party on PBS was viewed last night. The concept sort of blew my mind. They supposedly take 10 single people and force them to live a life typical of the 1800's. All of the social rules apply from high society at that time. The women have 'chaperones' who decide which gentleman shall be paired up with her lady. Cigarettes weren't common at the time, so the men sniff tobacco snuff. I can't tell if this is a reality show...it seems way too staged. PBS is one some other shit.

- Not ten minutes after I unleashed two male guppies into aquarium were they chasing the ladies around (four females to two males). There's going to be a lot of sex going on my apartment in the near future. All of it will be confined to a 29 gallon brothel. Awesome?

- Mark Mallman puts on one hell of a show and is the master of stage presence. That's all you need to know.

- I was sore all weekend long.

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Time Warp

I left work at five on the dot and got home at quarter after six. It didn't seem like my commute was fifteen minutes longer than usual. I must have fallen asleep for a while because I woke up thinking that I was close to my stop. Instead, I was only halfway home. It didn't feel like a boring seventy-five minute trek. There must have been a time warp somewhere along the way...yeah, that's the ticket.

I should show this movie* to my father. Upon seeing this, he would say something like: "Nooo...that movie is not true." Then he'll try to re-enact an exchange between doctors and patients in 'real life.' The man likes his fast food. Yet, he's an immigrant. He should get to enjoy all that America can offer whenever he likes. I'll give him the benefit of the doubt on that one. Anyway, it was a good documentary; seemingly exaggerated at times, but well done.

The corporate headshots showed up today. Mine is slightly cheesier than my senior picture. They really try to make your face glow on these things and I look suprisingly clean and corporate. I wonder if they'll use my shot if they try to display cultural diversity on an employee pamphlet or job fair ad. That would be hilarious and sad.

[* Leftover Chinese's "Uh oh, the truck have started to move" film of the week]

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Are We in a New Era, or Did This Era Get an Extension?

Thunderstorm in November. Hmmm...I don't recall hearing thunder last month. It seems fitting that it happens now. Everybody in the big city seemed to be in a daze today. I didn't expect to see dissapointment from a few people at the office. I wrote off the whole show as a conservative place to be. Yet even the obvious Republicans weren't as excited as I expected. Something is going on here...

Getting back into the gym today was a trip. Showing up during a peak time means sensory overload. I saw a lot of machines, saw way too many people, dealt with too many personal trainers (one), and was constantly subjected to poppy dance music. Um...the goal is to make this place a routine thing, eh?

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Whore More Years

America doesn't like the president, yet America is too scared to make a change. The state of Ohio can blame the president for much of its economic strife...yet they'll still give a 'yea' to the man. I said this in 2000 and I'll say it again: America is not electing a man...they're electing a machine...and for some reason the machine works for 'them.' Politics and logic, you let me down again.

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