a poem about everything

ughghghjkdlgfhskld;jf

2007-09-07T00:46:00.000-04:00

holy crap this week
seriously what is going on
i can't even explain it right now except maybe that the universe thinks i need to learn something. i can guess what - something about listening to my instincts? something about, uh, better communication? does the universe want me to get a cell phone? i don't know, but i haven't been this angry/frustrated/worried/tense in ages. and i am usually all those things on a minor level all the time anyway. which is actually probably what the universe is trying to teach me. to let all that just go, b/c there are better things to do with my energy. i guess.
my jaw hurts from the clenching

It's the end of all strain, it's the joy in your heart

2007-08-01T23:29:00.000-04:00

i am kind of obsessed with this song right now - aguas de marco - elis regina and tom jobin -
and the lyrics too!
ah so great

For good measure: cat blogging

2007-07-30T18:57:00.000-04:00

here is a short video of my cat, noam, in the wind of the fan on a hot summer day (he is not allowed to eat my dinner but he is still interested). i can't remember what the music is but it is weird how well it fits.

Mondays are the crazy days these days

2007-07-30T13:33:00.000-04:00

hi blog
hi guys
hi monday, which has happened again

so i was thinking and i was talking about blogging and how while i have enjoyed my blogging time on midnightpoutine.ca over the course of the last two years, i'm not sure if it's still for me. i'm thesis writing still (to be finished soon, this time for sure) and have this new radio show at ckut that i'm doing - Free Radicals: Science, Culture and Connection - freeradicalsradio.blogspot.com - and am doing/looking out for freelance writing/editing/communications work as well.

there is a certain pressure i feel with midnightpoutine.ca to always be focusing solidly on montreal activities/interests. i am just not that solidly focused these days. all i can be is someone living in montreal but not necessarily someone going to montreal events or places and thinking about blogging about them. i have also not been girl about town lately either. what do i have to blog about? more personal or esoteric things that readers of a montreal-focused blog may find not montreal-y enough or too, y'know, editorial.

so i'm going to reboot this blog. because i still like the name and because it's linked to gmail and because it probably features many embarrassing posts from the past that will teach me more about how we are all "always growing" and that life is a "learning process" and that i am "sometimes a bit of a douche."

anyway, but re: the title of this post - mondays are crazy times, i've realized, because i have the radio show at 11:30 am and the morning is spent gearing up for that and afterwards i have to gear down. i thought it'd be a good idea to re-introduce coffee on these mondays mornings. this works, but because last week was so freakin' hot in this town, i did not drink any caffeine at all! (it makes me v warm for some reason, even if it is iced caffeine.) and so this morning i had coffee and it wired the hell out of me. heart going too fast!

obviously it is making me productive though. double-edged sword.

year of the suave british spy

2007-01-05T11:28:00.000-05:00

holy geez i do not update blog v much
still write for midnightpoutine though, sometimes
still am trying to get thesis done
still am in a great band - we are 4-track recording even, so will have things to listen to on that site and wherever
still am me

Comets on Fire, Sala Rossa, Montreal, September 2006

2006-09-09T11:20:00.000-04:00

Watch the video

So this was an awesome show. My camera's sound remains utter crap, but the idea is that this gives an idea of what things were like, minus the crappy sound, of course.

gushing review here.

Chicks in a Cave - Horror Movie, I Love You

2006-08-09T12:04:00.001-04:00

I saw The Descent last night. I had gone to the good ol' Montreal F0rum for some comfy-seat, air-conditioned movie time, having not been to the movies in several weeks and feeling sad about that. So I went with a friend to see A Scanner Darkly, which I was prepared for, being kind of a fan of Waking Life and having heard from friends that this was pretty good - not action-packed, but interesting and neat to look at. And that was true. I left the theatre thinking about it, about why the animation (it makes sense though), and about how Keanu has gotten really good at picking the right roles. I did leave the movie feeling kind of stoned though, because the world is not in fact rotoscope animated. It looked weird.

I also left feeling I could watch another movie. This is what happens at multiplexes. I'm sorry, but it's just too easy. So we saw The Descent. And it rocked. So. Awesome. I wrote about it where else but on Midnight Poutine.

Oneness means identifying the source of your vitriol

2006-08-05T10:46:00.000-04:00

Saturday morning rant.

aka what happens when i'm woken up at 6:41 a.m. on the weekend and it's not my fault at all except maybe that i chose to live on a main street in a big city but STILL.

aka who's to blaaaame???

at least the street is really really quiet right now. so much so that i can hear the dork owners/managers of the crappy cafe across the street telling someone off. fun!

dear everyone this morning: what the hell is UP with you??

Vetiver, July 26, 2006 at Sala Rossa, Montreal

2006-08-03T01:45:00.000-04:00

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I really like this band. Sweet sweet summertime hippie country that doesn't annoy me but makes me want to hang out and contemplate happiness. I am going to remember that in winter. More about this show on www.midnightpoutine.ca.

Cottages, I Love That You Exist

2006-07-19T17:34:00.000-04:00

Whew, so I went away this weekend. It was LOVELY. I needed it like nothing else. So nice to get out of the city and be in NATURE. I wrote about it here: midnight poutine.

And here is a video of an awesome storm, with musical accompaniment. The rest of the wkend was SUNNY and HOT, do not be fooled.

I will not yet post the hilarious video Charlotte took of me swimming. But witness my white feet (no longer so white after all the sunshine) and the lake I will be dreaming about all winter long.

World Cup Ban on Cars, Horns, Whistles, Crappy Music

2006-07-09T23:29:00.000-04:00

HOLY CRAP QUIT IT ALREADY OUT THERE

I live on a main one-way thoroughfare. And that's fine. It's not really that bad, usually just a bit loud at evening rush hour. But this, THIS has been going on since five and shows no signs of letting up. WE UNDERSTAND - ITALY WON THE WORLD CUP. I also love World Cup. I also cheered for Italy and perhaps "love" them but maybe not quite as much as you obviously do if your horn honking is how I am to measure your love. Yes, wow, your horns are so loud and your whistles mighty in the name of Italia. But it is almost midnight on a Sunday. And though I stay up late usually anyway, I do not usually feel like headbutting in the chest everyone in a car with a horn on my street.

I wrote more about the game and then a postscript about my later feelings about the celebrations on midnight poutine, btw.

Right now, can't think, barely type, too much loudness. It comes in waves, with the traffic lights. It's going to go on forever maybe. Forever.

2006-07-09T20:39:00.000-04:00

Italy win, World Cup 2006, Montreal

Watch the video

witness the madness of Italian-Cdn soccer fans and their horn-honking, flag-waving selves...

oh man, what a day, no no no, WHAT A GAME. WHAT A WORLD CUP. I kind of can't believe it's over. What will I do? I will take advantage of the bunches of other ways to watch soccer in this town, that's what I'll do. Awesome.

But yaaay, Italy! Oh, they weren't my first choice, not my second either, but ya gotta cheer for someone - and I'd watched all the Italy games and had grown to love them. They may be a bunch of drama boys but they fought hard against France, who didn't exactly make it an easy game. Damn, France was tough and impressive.

I love soccer.

The post-game sushi and ice cream was also very very good and necessary.

uh, time flies, like, y'know, soccer, uh, players over the backs of other soccer players

2006-07-06T00:59:00.000-04:00

yeah yeah, it's been days, weeks even, since i've written anything anywhere (except ilx, of course...). and why? why? i'm blaming soccer. and substances. but waaay more blame on soccer, b/c my substance use always has been pretty freakin minor and only major in its uniqueness, its spaced-out, well-timed moments. much like the world cup. where greatness is seen throughout, but true greatness comes only in certain games, in certain moments.

and then there is the sadness. and the revenge. i'm talking about argentina losing to germany. and i'm talking about italy beating germany. aw yeah. this is maybe how it has to work. and today i found myself finally getting to cheer for france, which was alright.

and the final? should be a good game - what it's all about, really. i have to go with italy. i realize that if they win, the neighbourhood will erupt, the street i live on will be closed from before my house all the way to little italy and probably further, and horns will be honked well into the night. but i can deal with that. it will be the last night out WORLD CUP and it should be good.

and then what? i am weighing my soccer options.
also: the many other things i'm to do with my time/self/ideas. lots of things.

i had a good band practice tonight. we now have charlotte back in mtl - yaay - so we are a three-person band now. AWESOME. plus we are now extra loud. um.

Today in World Cup Football

2006-06-21T09:30:00.000-04:00

Portugal v Mexico is going to be a GOOD GAME, I'm pretty sure. And with Portugese fans being the craziest, I should probably go watch at Olympico (and cheer for Mexico, mwah. no, i have no affiliations that way, i just want to watch a good game, to be honest). But what I'm really into, what I'm revved up for, is the Holland-Argentina match this afternoon. omg.
GO ARGENTINA!!
But yeah, I woke up early and did some work. I feel pretty good about this day so far.

The World Cup Routine

2006-06-21T09:02:00.000-04:00

So World Cup Football/Soccer has been going on for well over a week now and though at its outset I told myself to limit my viewing to one game a day, I must not've told myself sternly enough (I am not so good at stern) because, holy crap, I have watched every game. Or, more honestly, at least a respectable part of every game.

The internet has helped me here. I love the internet and, obv, the people who use it to its extremes and how it is meant to be used. I thank these people and their technological know-how. As a (grad-y) student, I don't have a set schedule. Oh, I have things to do, work to work on and finish, appointments to keep, but there's always a way to work those around the World Cup schedule. Yes, this is what's happened to me, let it be no surprise.

So anyway, my team is ARGENTINA and has been since before the whole thing started (so don't think i'm jumping on any bandwagons here) - thought was put into this. Well, a bit of thought. I don't really watch soccer very often, but I did some reading up. And after World Cup is over, I think I might need to choose a club, y'know, have games to watch throughout the year. All other sports-viewing interests may be sacrificed. Except winter olympics. (okay, i don't really watch any other sports. sometimes hockey, yeah, that's true.)

ANYWAY, a good thing about this schedule is that I go running at the gym in btwn games or at the end of the day - and wouldn't you know it but I'm running better and better and faster and up more hills. Abs are beginning to show. Inspired by soccer! I haven't been faking any injuries or falling down and practicing my grimace-face though. If you want to play soccer with me, I promise I will do this though.

I'm serious about the soccer playing - let me know! I'm so IN.

world cup, you will not destroy me!

2006-06-12T23:30:00.000-04:00

world cup watching is a 9-5 job, people. i'm probably going to do it again tomorrow, but after that, i have to put the brakes on, okay.

i mean, today i watched the second half of the australia-japan game, had monday-morning-mom phone call, then showered, then watched USA-CzechR, then gathered up gym stuff, went to gym, hoofed it over to cafe olympico for italy-ghana game. Then bought, y'know, food at store b/c i figure i might as well get provisions now while i still have some of my faculties intact, or i'll be well on my way to a steady diet of cafe-au-lait and rotisserie chicken sandwiches. (of course, they are perhaps the BEST cafe-au-laits and chicken sandwiches around, but let's not argue. point being: i need vegetables. and i am caffeine-free. and dairy-free. i'm okay with this, let's not argue.)

so the plan is to go easy on wednesday and thursday. pick one game to watch. and leave the house and do work somewhere where there is no soccer game on. like, y'know, a LIBRARY. it is the only way to accomplish things that are not Watching World Cup. Because I'd like to fool myself into thinking that's an accomplishment. even if it is sorta. and it only happens once every four years! do you see how it's gotten into my brains?

so yes, onwards.
tomorrow: go south korea!

World Cup 2006 BEGINS...

2006-06-10T15:20:00.000-04:00

I feel like I'm not going to get a lot done in the next month. No, no, no, that's the wrong way to think. I will get ALL SORTS OF STUFF done this more. It will just include watching a lot of high-quality soccer... I can't help it, I love World Cup.

Right now I'm watching it at home on a rainy day (why, rain? why?), but yesterday I caught the first game (Germany v Costa Rica - 4-2) at a cafe near my house. I got there with time to spare, so got a drink and a seat in direct view of the big screen. (I was just writing about this on Midnight Poutine too, as it got me thinking about the uniqueness of watching World Cup in Montreal, where there are fans for EVERY team, I'm certain.)

Oh, the excitement. I was reminded of 2002 and the fervour, the getting up waaay too early to watch games before work (I was living in Vancouver), the drinking of too much coffee in Cafe Roma on Commericial, the mayhem of the Korean cultural centre during the second round, the post-game karaoke drunkeness and, okay, that doesn't have much to do with soccer, but at the same time it does.

World Cup soccer kind of becomes a focal point of life for a month. I'm not sure how it works that way, but it does. I mean, I enjoy sports, I like exercise, but I don't watch a lot of sports on tv (okay, none) and I don't keep up with sports news or anything. I'm all about the high-quality sports, I will admit my elitism. e.g., I also love the Olympics, especially the winter ones.

So who am I going to root for this time around?? I'm still deciding, but for some reason I'm feeling it for Argentina. I know there are reasons why not to back this team, I know it'll get heated, but I like 'em this time around. But I'm also into S Korea, for sure. hmm. And I have a friend, Deb, who's spent a lot of time there and dances a mean tango, so perhaps that's part of my "reasoning." We. Shall. See.

So while I love the sport itself - the skill, the athleticism, the playing field, the GAME - I also love that it's about the WORLD, and that while countries are competing, they're still all together in one place, and so are so many of the fans. I am a giant cheeseball, it's freakin' true, yeah yeah.

back to the game. see you at olympico/green room/socialclub/random cafes/my house/d'internet/etc.

Plastic Crimewave Sound at Casa del Popolo, Montreal

2006-06-06T00:38:00.000-04:00

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Plastic Crimewave Sound - I'm not even sure if these guys are my thing, but I liked the show. And they had lots of awesome album art and other things for sale, which, along with the awesome album art of the Mammatus album, made for a pretty great merch table layout.

But yeah, I think they're what blew my ears out, in the end, (as they came on after the other two bands), even though I'd half-assed plugged said ears (to future me: always remember earplugs. you are not 19. you are not even 24. toilet paper is not an earplug.)

Residual Echoes at Casa del Popolo, Montreal

2006-06-06T00:23:00.000-04:00

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Residual Echoes: also pretty freakin' awesome, also from Santa Cruz (area), California, just as Mammatus is. also: loud. yes!

(video posting is robbing me of words. no, no, sleep deprivation is robbing me of words. so more words, at some point. in future.)

Mammatus at Casa del Popolo, June 4, 2006

2006-06-05T23:58:00.000-04:00

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whoa.

heavy. awesome.

mammatus.

loud show, so the sound's fairly distorted, but hey, gives an idea. i could have listened to them for another hour at least.

and, on top of it all, they're great guys. i totally want to go camping in the middle of nowhere and listen to this. right now.

Jack Rose (with Glenn Jones) at Casa del Popolo, Montreal

2006-06-04T12:18:00.000-04:00

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More of the Jack Rose show at Casa, this time with Glenn Jones playing too.

Jack Rose at Casa del Popolo, Montreal (6-string & lap guitar)

2006-06-04T12:13:00.000-04:00

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Jack Rose switches guitars, continues awesomeness.

Jack Rose at Casa del Popolo, Montreal (12-string)

2006-06-04T12:03:00.000-04:00

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So, despite being super tired last night, I knew I had to go see Jack Rose, and that that would pick me up and make me feel good. Of course, it did. Because Jack Rose is awesome and I love him something fierce. Listening to his albums is great enough, but listening live is fairly meditative - lulling yet very awake/alive.

He didn't talk too much this time - at Terrastock he told a few good stories. Here he told one rambly story about prog rock, not being liked by a certain prog band (well, who knows), and how the only thing prog about him is his guitar stand.

The last three songs brought Glenn Jones (of Cul de Sac) up to play with him - awesome.

Josephine Foster at Sala Rossa, Montreal

2006-06-04T11:23:00.001-04:00

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Josephine Foster's voice control kind of astounds me and she's got this awesome dreamy quality about her when she sings. really lovely to see her for the first time in a quiet, chill setting.

Diane Cluck at Sala Rossa, Montreal

2006-06-04T11:23:00.000-04:00

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Diane Cluck, based in New York/Brooklyn, played an amazing set on June 2 in the mood-lighting of Montreal's Sala Rossa.