I bloodied my knuckles…
…while battling my mouse and its batteries just so I could post this picture. Appreciate:
…while battling my mouse and its batteries just so I could post this picture. Appreciate:
And if you’re hurting
I will replace the noise with silence instead
Flushing out your head
If you like it violent
We can play rough and tumble
Fall into bed
And I won’t breathe so you can recover
…and I’m back. I just spent the last five days of my 8 day break from Centre County at the New Media Consortium conference in Cleveland. Until I arrived, I really considered Cleveland to be a complete void. I mean, it’s the Midwest. There can’t possibly be anything there. However, the Crocker Park shopping center in West Lake (first stop) quickly changed my mind. I spent a ton of money on clothes and got to hit up Trader Joe’s…all on foot. Fantastic. The NMC closed down the Rock & Roll Hall of Fame for us to have a party, I attended a gallery opening at MOCA, hung out at B-Sides in Euclid Heights with Brandon and got to tour The Cleveland Institute of Art…where I’m applying for a job tomorrow. I mean, like any city, there are ghettos and littered streets…but it’s a city. And that equals wonderful in my book.
So…the conference itself was actually a lot of fun. I attended some interesting workshops and hands-on sessions. I learned that Aperture is one of the best programs Apple has released in a long time. Hannah and I won a gong for presenting about the Studio at “Five Minutes of Fame” and then schmoozed like fiends at the reception after. Met all kinds of interesting people from literally everywhere imaginable. Yep…good stuff. A+ Will Attend AGAIN.
Now I am home. I took about 145 trips up and down the stairs tonight, glared at my landlord, cleaned my car and my home and now I’m fighting off the sleep. It’s going to be a losing battle, that I can assure you.
…ever. It’s the mouse lemur and it’s native to one forest in Madagascar:
I watched a show about it today while I waited for my new stereo, the Cambridge SoundWorks 730 Radio (I got it in black.) So far, I’m quite happy with it. The sound is deep and full, much larger than you’d expect for its size…and better than a Bose, though not dramatically so. However, the $150 price difference seals it.
After the new toy arrived, I packed up Lola and myself and hit the road. I’m home from now until my conference on Tuesday. This weekend, I plan to:
…thank you, May, for being approximately as warm as February. Much appreciated, for sure.
What have I done tonight? A brief recap:
This is why I don’t post about my days very often.
So, I took Klaus back to the body shop today to have his peeling paint issue resolved. Upon arrival, I was anticipating the ‘little Mazda’ they told me that I’d be driving while the repairs took place. However, when my ride pulled up, I was greeted by this:
“I’m really sorry…we’re going to have to give you the Mercedes,” says the employee.
“Oh, no…it’s fine. Really,” I retorted.
*puzzled look*
“It’s really old…” he added as he handed me the keys.
“I know!”
You have no idea how excited I am to be driving this 1984 190E. Sure, the radio doesn’t work. And it’s slow. And creaks if you do anything. And cruise control is a cruel joke. It has amazing leather seats, though, and undeniable, timeless style. It screams class…or at least Eurotrash. Either way, I love it. I took it for a joyride tonight and had such a blast twisting through the back country roads, rear-driven tires squealing. The first time I’ve gone driving just to drive since gas topped $2/gallon. I’ve missed it.
Klaus will not make an impact on the environment this year! For $35, I purchased a TerraPass for him to wear, indicating that he’s a zero emissions vehicle. This required no modifications under the hood. Instead, my money paid for the TerraPass company to buy 8,000 lbs of carbon emissions out of trading. These emissions will be parked, as opposed to giving a corporation the right to buy them and pollute. In a round about way, TerraPass neutralizes my car’s effect on the environment. At the same time, the profit that TerraPass makes is turned around and re-invested into clean energy initiatives all over the country. Pretty slick. And, to go with my peace of mind, I get a cool decal:
For more information, you can visit TerraPass online. They are even offering 10% off coupons for your first purchase. Definitely worth a visit, even if it’s just to calculate your current emissions level.
I rented a ton of DVDs this weekend. Well, four. But that’s a lot for me. There was a strange foreign film, Russian Ark, an old favourite, Being John Malkovich, and a documentary, New York Doll…all good. But the best was Hans Weingartner’s The Edukators.
The basic premise of the movie is this: The Edukators, social activists, break into the homes of rich German executives, rearrange their belongings and leave them a warning: “Your Days of Plenty are Numbered.” That’s all well and good – and would make an entertaining enough plot – but what happens when one of their executive thieves comes home while they are at work? Kidnap him in a Volkswagen Van and drive him out to your uncle’s cabin, clearly. The story hits its stride as the ‘political prisoner’ attempts to break down The Edukators…and learns a lesson in the process.
Reasons to watch:
P.S. If you aren’t listening to “Pure Energy” by Information Society on a loop, you really should reconsider that decision. Or I’ve lost it. Either way. “I wanna know what you’re thinking…”
