RADIOHEAD - House of Cards

oracular?

Letterman vs. McCain : Round 1

Letterman's the best. I'm sure there'll be more to come.

WATCHMEN MOTION COMIC

(IS THAT THE VOICE OF SPACE GHOST?)

brilliant

Where we are headed.

I found this a while back when goggling space images. It's only a matter of time.

More Chuck

He asked who JJ was, and I told him my son. He asked how old he was; I said two. He winced.



Paige "accidentally" put gum between the pages of our first copy of CHOKE, so I purchased this one at the event for Chuck to sign for her. The inscription is a bit cryptic. I could be a reference to the plot, but I don't think so. Paige thinks it may be a reference to her pregnancy. I did tell him we were expecting. Could it have another meaning?





I saw a couple other inscriptions, and they were similar: Who smells like a real porn god; who has real porn star hair; who makes love look easy, sleazy. I prefer mine simply because I am a real man, and he poured a bit of Stetson cologne in the pages of the book.

Palahniuk Highlights

As #034 (Snuff reference) I was able to meet him before the event. I'm not sure who took this photo, but I found it and all others @ chuckpalahniuk.net. You can access this site by clicking "The Cult" in the links sidebar.



The auditorium was packed with over 500 people. I was sitting just out of view in the upper right of the frame, a couple rows back from the stage. The demographics were what you would expect: Primarily 20-30 year olds with tattoos and piercings abound. Much more hair was dyed black than blonde, and the bunch was lively.



He began the presentation by dispersing blow-up dolls for an inflation competition. He gave away autographed copies of KNOCKEMSTIFF by Donald Ray Pollock to the winners.



I'm glad I didn't catch one of these. I got on the new fangled way: EBAY.



He then settled in to share some stories and anecdotes. I call the one above Petey. I shot it on my digital camera, and it's only jumpy at the beginning, so bear with it a few seconds. He also read a short story, LOSER, that was an exclusive for the book tour. In it, an acid filled frat pledge is on The Price is Right and makes it to the showcase showdown. These things happen in the story, but that is not what the story is about. Like many of his other works, it is caustic commentary of societal obsession with image and materialism. I'm not including it here because I want to keep it as an experience for only those in attendence (and Paige). If he ever publishes the story, I'll post it.



Following a rather mundane Q & A, he closed by tossing signed autograph hounds to the audience. Unfortunately, I didn't get one of these.



Along with the blow up doll, the autograph hound is a prominent item in SNUFF. The other item is a cyanide pill. He couldn't really give those away, much less sign them.

FREAK ANGELS...

...is s free weekly web comic written by Warren Ellis. I won't go into the details, but it's one of the best ways to kill ten minutes each week.



The graphic above will automatically show the new content each week.

CHUCK PALAHNIUK...

...was in Atlanta on June 4. It was his first visit to the capital of the South since I've lived here: Over six years and seven books! He was promoting his new book, SNUFF, and spoke for about two hours.


It made sense, logistically, for me to arrive a couple (3) hours early for the event. It was a bit weird for me to be there that early, but I did get to meet Chuck.

He was quite approachable. He personalized 3 books: Snuff for me, Choke for Paige and Rant for J.J. I also asked him about his craft. I wanted to know if he wrote from notes, an outline, or pounded out his ideas freely as they occurred until the story was finished. He explained that he writes notes as things occur, stories are heard, and research is done. He then, on a rainy day, will type out these notes on his PC. Next he prints a hard copy of the notes and carries it around with him, so he doesn't have to be confined to his home. He further notes this copy, and once he feels he has a story together, he hammers out a draft. It was incredible to hear a talent like him explain this process. It really charged my batteries.

In the next two posts, I'll present some photos of the event I nabbed from chuckpalahkiuk.net and a video I shot of a story he told. I'll also post the personalized signings of his novels.

RADIOHEAD

We went to the show a couple months ago, but I made no post. I plan to make up for it in the following:

FIRST A FEW CHOICE CLIPS





NOW THE SET LIST

Set 1: All I Need, There There, Lucky, 15 Step, Where I End and You Begin, Nude, Pyramid Song, Optimistic, Weird Fishes, National Anthem, Idioteque, You and Whose Army?, Reckoner, Everything in Its Right Place, Bangers + Mash, Bodysnatchers, Videotape

Encore 1: Gloaming, Talk Show Host, Just, Faust Arp, How to Disappear

Encore 2: Paranoid Android, House of Cards

FINALLY...COMMENTS

The show was great, the atmosphere was great, the band was great. They were right on with most songs; though, Paranoid Android seemed a bit awkward. It had been FIVE YEARS since they toured. I truly hope it's not another 5; Thom will be 45!

P.S.

We saw the show for free, sort of. I purchased three copies of the box set release of In Rainbows. I sold two on eBay for a $60 profit, and we used gift cards to pay the balance. As my friend Mason says, "Well that's like a sore peter;...you just can't beat it."

Goofy Video

Decisions, decisions

When your responsibility in this world becomes elevated beyond your own existence; decions must be made. I am willing to sacrifice a rockin' Clinic show for a Chuck Palahniuk event.



I'm so dramatic.

JUST WHAT THE WORLD NEEDS...

By specimenj at 2008-04-18

ANOTHER THAT SHARES MY GENETIC MATERIAL. THIS ONE LOOKS TO BE A THANKSGIVING TURKEY. THINGS ARE WELL SO FAR, AND I'LL KEEP THE READER UPDATED.

COMMUNICATING WITH YOUR RADIOHEAD

CHINESPIRATION

The upcoming Beijing olympics have spawned intense criticism (and rightfully so). When the Olympics were first announced to be in China a few years back, I saw a poster in a professor's office of the hands of a handcuffed person forming the bottom two of the traditional five Olympic rings. I could not find the poster I saw in their office, but I wanted to post a few conceptual drawings and photos that show the global discontent with Chinese policies. But really, will knocking the torch from the hands of a wheel chair bound participant help or hurt your cause. Let's think these things through next time.











As for a boycott; you can't. There's no way to prevent the purchase of Chinese products. There hasn't been a way around it for 30 years. We should simply continue to protest their policies while avoiding their products when we can.

More importantly, support all the participating athletes. They train their entire lives for this moment, and they deserve our apolitical endorsement. After all, what have you been doing for the last decade?

2 MILESTONES; 1 BLOG

In case you can't make out the score on the screen, it's 116,740!




ALSO: This is my 100th post. (Yeah!)

My Lawn Mowing Song

The White Stripes album, Icky Thump, came out last year just after we closed on our house, and I would always listen to it while mowing my lawn. Like a scent that triggers a memory, "Catch Hell Blues" will always be associated with pushing my Briggs and Stratton up the mountainous region I call a yard.



ALSO, this song in particular reminds me of hanging out in Jody's garage apartment in the mid 90s. It was the place to be in Waycrizzy, and if you leave out the slide that Jack White uses, it sounds like Jody's best work on the electric. Meg's rudimentary drumming even mimics Mason's perfectly.

This video stops before the best verses begin, so I recommend you purchase or illegally download the complete version. While you're at it, get their complete discography; it's worth it.

Pinnacle of Taxidermy

From the author of Transmetropolitan...

You are never going into space.

You will never own a jet pack.

Your car will never fly.

HIV will not be cured in your lifetime.

Cancer will not be cured in your lifetime.

The common cold will not be cured in your lifetime.

Don't these things bother you?

Suicide is the third biggest killer of teenagers in the United States.

In 1999 more people in America died from suicide than from homicide.

Do you think about this?

As anyone who ever read MyDeathSpace.com for any period of time know, the leading cause of death in America is automobile accident. This is generally interpolated into a number placed under the heading "accidental death." When the operation of cars is the leading cause of loss of life I'm not entirely sure how it comes under the term "accidental death." It wasn't a fucking accident, it was done by someone with a car. It's 2007 and we don't know how to operate cars without killing people. It's not a fucking accident if it was caused by someone getting into a one-ton metal bullet that cannot be operated with complete control at all times.

In Europe in 2004, 13000 kids – persons under the age of fourteen -- died due to poor water. It’s 2007 and the society does not yet understand how to operate water.

Are you thinking about this now?

People keep asking me what DOKTOR SLEEPLESS is about. This is what it's about.

Someone stole your future. Don't you ever wonder who?

- WARREN ELLIS

DIG DUG

This classic is one of my all-time favorites. I began feeding quarters into this machine while standing on a stool when I was around 8, and I still play it on my Game Boy Advanced. Last month, it occurred to me that I was approaching it the wrong way. This was one of the first big time coin-ops. Back then, points were the goal, not level advancement. This epiphany has drastically improved my Dig Dug experience.
For the last month, I’ve been consumed. I don’t know what score is high enough for me to be satiated, but my highest thus far is 99,670. I can’t seem to break the 100K barrier, but I challenge ANYONE to get as close as I have. I’m willing to put money as well as my reputation as a 5-tool-gamer on the line.