For Maarten

Maarten said I should post on the ol' blog more often. So here is one just for him.

Today the Boyer's return from their trip to India.
It snowed a whole crap load in the last couple days. That has been kind of cool. Snow. I used to pray and pray for it. Now... I am almost indifferent. Maybe that will change once I get my ski gear back from Saskatoon.

School... I am still ultra busy. But also still committed and enjoying it.

I have started to take swimming lessons. I feel improvement slowly coming, and I think that in a couple weeks 100 meters non-stop should be pretty easy. It is fun to have something to learn and improve at.

I am currently reading 'Captain Corelli's Mandolin' it is destined to be in the top ten for the year.

Take care.

Nobel

Obama wins the Nobel Peace Prize? WHAT?! BARF! Vomit with big chunks of irony and globs of what look like a half digested big mac.

I dont follow who wins these prizes very closely, and I have heard of some dubious choices (and almost choices) in the past. But generally I assumed that those Nobel people had there heads on straight and were making an honest effort. Maybe I am just too trusting of Europeans...

When I heard the news it made me creep that much further into my protective cave of cynicism.

Until I saw this cartoon during my nightly stumble...

School and the Arts

These days I am ultra busy with school. I probably have been averaging about 60 hours a week between classes, labs, and studying. In university I probably did half of that in a busy week. But its alright... I am enjoying it. I feel really motivated and committed.

Having said that, I am really missing my life in Korea. While I would like to finish my program in Calgary, the option of finishing it online while I am back in Korea is appealing. I definitely feel that I could spend one more year there at least. More, if I had a job other than teaching English.

So... maybe ill go back to Korea in the winter. maybe not. I would guess there is a 25% chance of that happening. It depends a lot on where I will be able to live in the winter. If I can get away with little of no rent I will probably stay in Calgary.

I can apparently start the practicum part of my program after my first semester. So I might try to look for a job briefly before the winter semester starts. There is talk of there being a practicum placement in Central America. That would be amazing, and I am definitely going to apply for it, if its true. In general I think I will try to get my practicum in another country.

As for the winter... I will probably be keeping it low key. Probably not much skiing because of my super low budget. I am going to try to take in a lot more shows than I normally do. Gwynne Dyer is going to be speaking at Mac Hall on October 20 (I think), and the night before Harry Manx is playing. It would be pretty sweet to see both of those guys. I want to see see more theater too... any suggestions? Any partners in crime?

CD Exchange 2009 - My CD

An explanation on my CD…

I have spent an enormous amount of time working on this cd… 3 years in the thinking. I picked songs based on what I thought represented my musical tastes over the last few years, while trying somewhat to stay away from things that I thought other people might already be listening to.

Cover Art: a ripped off Bansky image.

1. The Books – An Animated Description of Mr. Maps

This is without a doubt one of the most memorable and most played songs of the last 3 years for me. I hope that it didn’t throw people off. Even if this song doesn’t do it for you, The Books are well worth a look. They are folktronica (is that a real genre?) experimental etc… and truly amazing in my opinion. I recommend The Lemon of Pink album if you do take my advice and investigate further – You really, really should.

2. 언니네 이발관 - 가장 보통의 존재 (I am not even sure how to translate this... the band I have no clue what it means. The song title is something like ‘the most usual existence’). In Korean it is pronounced On Ne Nae – Kajong botong we jonjae.

This is almost the sole representation of good rock/indie Korean music that I heard while I was in Seoul. It was played non-stop at any half way hip café in Seoul. I probably have heard it over 100 times in various cafes.

3. The Antlers - Kettering

Folk, post rock, indie rock… something like that. A last minute addition. Hospice is probably destined to be one of my favorite albums of the year.

4. Burial – Etched Headplate

This is from the Untrue album, which is probably one of my top 10 albums ever. It is dark but always compelling. I have it playing in the background often. I think Untrue was nominated for the Mercury Prize a couple years ago.

5. Portishead – The Rip

Apparently it was on someone’s cd last year? An amazing song. It gives me chills. The entire album is sweet and was probably one of my most played last year.

6. Cold War Kids – The Soloist in the Living Room

One of my more played songs last year. When I decided to keep the cd to 10 songs, this one probably would have gotten cut except that I felt like I needed some sort of ‘rock’ on the cd. It was almost solely on there for Spleen’s sake. Nonetheless, I love it… its got 300 plays (exactly) on my itunes.

7. Born Ruffians – Red, Yellow, and Blue

The opening song and namesake of their debut album. This is a shit hot album and definitely worth a look. Indie Rock I guess is the genre. Definitely one of last years best for me.

8. Martha Wainwright – Lolita

Another one where it was tough to choose what song to put on. I really, really love Martha Wainwright. Consistently amazing. My favorite female singer.

9. Mulatu Astake - Nostalgia

This is probably my favorite song on my cd. It is beautiful. It is kind of melancholy but still upbeat. Few songs can absorb me like this one does.

10. Daniel Johnston & Yo La Tengo – Speeding Motorcycle

Daniel Johnston on the phone doing Speeding Motorcycle with Yo La Tengo in a radio studio? I think it is god damn genius. DJ is fucking amazing, and I don’t think there is anybody else that I listen to that can make me empathize and feel emotion through their music like DJ. It is a shame that I don’t have more of his music. If you don’t know the story of Daniel Johnston, do yourself a favor and check him out.

Other notables that didn’t make it for one reason or another:

The Dodos, Camera Obscura, Volcano Choir, Bibio, Bowerbirds, Shugo Takumaru, Blind Pilot, etc…

A good Bellamy Salute to you all

Just a ultra quick note to say hello. I am alive and concocting a friggin' sweet plan. A plan for what? For stuff. You'll see.

mainly it involves me starting a business with my dad, quitting my job fixing windshields, going to school in September enrolling in some sort of GIS course.

peace out.

book reviews coming post haste.

District 9 is a pretty sweet movie. I recommend not looking anything up about it before you go see it.

Free Documentaries

freedocumentaries.org is a pretty sweet site that links to streaming full length documentaries.

I would recommend these (which I am sure that I have already mentioned previously):

The Fog of War - Former secretary of Defense for the USA looks back on his career and some of the high level decisions he was involved in. It is definitely one of the best documentaries I have seen. I highly recommend it.

Why We Fight - Takes a look at the American military industrial complex. It shows how politicians and military companies often have a vested interest in fighting wars. It frequently makes reference to the prescient farewell speech of President Eisenhower in 1961.

This is an excerpt from the speech;
In the councils of government, we must guard against the acquisition of unwarranted influence, whether sought or unsought, by the military industrial complex. The potential for the disastrous rise of misplaced power exists and will persist. We must never let the weight of this combination endanger our liberties or democratic processes. We should take nothing for granted. Only an alert and knowledgeable citizenry can compel the proper meshing of the huge industrial and military machinery of defense with our peaceful methods and goals, so that security and liberty may prosper together.

This is another excerpt;
Another factor in maintaining balance involves the element of time. As we peer into society's future, we -- you and I, and our government -- must avoid the impulse to live only for today, plundering for our own ease and convenience the precious resources of tomorrow. We cannot mortgage the material assets of our grandchildren without risking the loss also of their political and spiritual heritage. We want democracy to survive for all generations to come, not to become the insolvent phantom of tomorrow.

Il pleut des cordes

It is absolutely pouring outside right now and I feel kind of trapped in the house. I am using the forced time inside to organize some of the files on my computer. I am finally getting around to loading some of the music I have sitting on my hard drive into itunes. Some of this stuff was downloaded so long ago that I don’t remember what it is. Some gems of the forgotten files include, Arkells, and Elbow. But the guy/band I have been listening to the most recently is Patrick Watson. PW is destined to be one of the year’s best.

I have been thinking that I don’t really think enough about most of the books I read. Almost immediately afterwards I just put the book down and move on to the next one. I often think about the ideas of the book while I am reading, but not usually after the book is done. I get into a situation a month or year later and the book will come up, but most of my thoughts from the book have seeped from my porous mind. So… I think I will start to write little critiques or reviews on what I read. Hopefully that will serve to coalesce my thoughts.

Robert McNarmara died today. He was the Secretary of Defense during the Vietnam War and held a lot of other high level positions throughout his career. There is an outstanding documentary on his experiences called Fog of War. You can watch it here.

Maarten has apparently got his blog up and rolling again. A fine source of music reviews and tips on how to pick up the fraulein.