even from Frisco, still my Homaha

Posted on August 6, 2008 by Tito

Okay, maybe the only time I’ve heard the term “Homaha” is in a facebook group, but a few links from the interwebs caught my eyes lately.

Jonathan Segura, in support of his novel Occupational Hazards, blogs about Omaha at Powell’s, including a nod to the “miraculously” alive Dave Sink at The Antiquarium (which last I head was going out of business… guess not, just a new location)

Ernie Chambers, no longer in the legislature, is looking for his day in court versus God, seeking an injunction against the violent acts of tornadoes & earthquakes: “If there is a ruling against the existence of God, it will be by the court and not by me.”

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looking back/forward

Posted on August 1, 2008 by Tito

a few highlights looking back

  • Sunday: at the Lucero show (awesome), I got much happiness from hearing Ben drop some El Guapo referencesfrom one of my favorite cowboy movies. “For some people, lack of education may be their El Guapo. For me, Scott is my El Guapo”
  • Monday: Greinke + Soria getting it done. Good for real. Good for my fantasy team.
  • Tuesday: Hold Steady - another killer performance, including more guitar heroics from koob than previously witnessed. Perhaps he’s spent some time at some sort of guitar/ninja retreat.

looking ahead
What better way to prepare myself mentally for the Conor Oberst concert tonight than polishing off some 8 year old Z-Trip/DJ P tracks?

Dust In The Wind

Passing Me By

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straight talk from tito*

Posted on July 31, 2008 by Tito

For some reason, I feel the need to set the “record straight”. So for the record:

Cadbury Creme Eggs My all-time favorite candy. I long for the days following Easter when they can be had for pennies on the dollar. Getting harder to find the “real” ones because of all the caramel/snickers versions. Speaking of which(not exactly) does anybody remember the SCTV skit that lampoons Grapes of Wrath (the movie, specifically) — instead of peaches, the grandpa is obsessed with chicken fried steak? I’m almost afraid to youtube it for fear it won’t live up to the memory.

Slim Jim. I have only tried them once - in high school - and am afraid to ever try again. Perhaps the worst thing I’ve ever put in my mouth.

Best (storebought) cookie: This is a tie between:
1. Archway Vanilla Wafers (screw ‘Nilla Wafers)
2. Archway Windmill cookies (with the little nuts)

further … i think storebought is officially a single word in Perez family lingo. Growing up, we’d often get our school clothes from a combination of
1. hand me downs
2. garage sales
3. thrift stores
Over anything else, (royal) we would often choose garments based mostly on how “storebought” it looked as opposed to such silly things as:
1. “Fit”
2. “Style”
nowadays, I still catch myself commenting “looks storebought”

* this may be the last time I ever associate anything with my “real” name. I’m considering taking on an internet persona, but have yet to decide on my name. Early contenders are
1. Sparkle Motion
Ok, that’s as far as I got.

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get your “man sized wad”

Posted on July 31, 2008 by Tito

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0GyEkvqtHPs

brought up in the ever amusing JoPo comments

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Excess ain’t rebellion

Posted on July 31, 2008 by David

In case you missed this you’re-drinking-what-they’re-selling essay, oh, about five years ago, just like I did, it’s been re-worked into Rob Walker’s latest book, Murketing:

Under these circumstances, the thinking goes, P.B.R. needs to stay neutral, ”always look and act the underdog” and not worry about those who look down on the beer, presumably because they’re snobs whose negative opinion only boosts its street cred. The Plan B analysis even says that P.B.R.’s embrace by punks, skaters and bike messengers make it a political, ‘’social protest” brand. These ”lifestyle as dissent” or ”consumption as protest” constituencies are about freedom and rejecting middle-class mores, and ”P.B.R. is seen as a symbol and fellow dissenter.” Eventually all of this sounds like satire, but the punch line is that it isn’t really that far off from P.B.R.’s strategy.

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World Premiere

Posted on July 30, 2008 by David

With Scrabulous down, I’ve sought other copyright-ambivalent outlets to fill the emptiness.

So enjoy my muxtape.

Sigh, what to do now….

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lyric of the now

Posted on July 24, 2008 by Tito

Gillian Welch - Look At Miss Ohio
I want to do right
but not right now

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bullshit detection

Posted on July 20, 2008 by Tito

Lit Crit Impostor

{XKCD}

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5 Day Forecast

Posted on July 18, 2008 by Tito

Edit Friday brain attacks strike back. Royals & Hold Steady aren’t until the week after next. thxkbai - the managment

Friday
Possibly head over to my old hood’s Bookshop West Portal to see Ethan Canin (who’s latest earned a “fucking brilliant” at Jodi’s)

Saturday

I had been thinking of going the see Feist at the Greek Theater in Berkeley but topping $50 a pop after ticketmaster “service” fees, I’ll likely pass. Kicking myself for not being a little more organized and planning a trip to Omaha last weekend where I could have seen her for free. Guess I’ll get by watching Sesame Street youtubes.

Sunday
Nothing firm yet. May respect the sabbath (aka sleep in, poke in on some scrabulous games & work the crossword). One contender is Bay To Barkers, though.

Bay to Barkers 2008

Monday
The Royals are coming to the Town so I’ll cross the bridge. My company came up big here:

  • Having recently completed my 5 year anniversary at work, I got to pick a prize from a little catalog - reminiscent of elementary school slave labor fund raisers, where you could get boomerangs, slinky’s and such for hocking candy bars. I chose the portable propane Coleman grill, and plan to break it in with this tailgate.
  • Got some of the company tickets right behind the visitor’s dugout along with “VIP” parking pass. Normally BART to games, but with the aforementioned grill, this comes in handy.


Tuesday
The Hold Steady roll into The Mezzanine in San Francisco. Very jazzed to see one of my favorite bands. The only other show I’d seen here was perhaps a “top 10″ show in my book - The Silver Jews a year or two ago. Not so jazzed that my pre-order from Vagrant has not arrived yet - WTF? I’ve pre-ordered for Saddle Creek a few times, and usually got the CD’s at least a few days before the drop date. I’ve been getting by with this tape of their show in Baltimore … which I’ve since seen on Letterman as part a skit with some antics from the unified scene before they did Sequestered In Memphis.

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Let’s All go to the Movies

Posted on July 11, 2008 by Tito

The San Francisco Silent Film Festival kicks off tonight.

The Soul of Youth

The full schedule:

FRIDAY, JULY 11
The Kid Brother 7:00PM
Opening Night Party 9:15PM

SATURDAY, JULY 12
Amazing Tales from the Archives 10:00AM
The Soul of Youth 11:40AM
Les Deux Timides (Two Timid Souls) 2:15PM
Mikaël (Michael) 4:15PM
The Man Who Laughs 7:45PM
The Unknown 10:45PM

SUNDAY, JULY 13
The Adventures of Prince Achmed 10:30AM
The Silent Enemy 1:10PM
Her Wild Oat 3:50PM
Jujiro (Crossways) 6:10PM
The Patsy 8:45PM

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great questions

Posted on July 11, 2008 by Tito

JoPo getting me ready to ponder this weekend:

Best Springsteen love song?
Who is worse: Costner or Cruise?

And that’s what makes them intriguing … if you have someone you have never liked in anything, say someone like Pauly Shore, then there’s really nothing to argue about. But Costner and Cruise are interesting and worth arguing about because, despite what might be perceived as overall lameness, there are some good moments in there.

Of course…. this extends musically…. give me some time as think of some crappy bands that managed to have a good musical moment.

in the meantime….

Rosalita (Come Out Tonight)

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hail hail

Posted on July 10, 2008 by Tito

If I end up as a blogger who does nothing more than post “fail” photos & mountain goats songs…
worse things could happen.

hail satin [sic]

The Best Ever Death Metal Band in Denton

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half-assed

Posted on July 8, 2008 by Tito

what i do when busy not blogging

1 - tinkering with my muxtape

2 - butt rocket

3 - Fail Dogs

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Yes, so I’m reading Zinn now

Posted on July 3, 2008 by David

So said a lanky junior Illinois congressman about the war not started on his watch:

The declaration that we have always opposed the war, is true or false accordingly as one may understand the term ” opposing the war.” If to say ” the war was unnecessarily and unconstitutionally commenced by the President,” be opposing the war, then the Whigs have very generally opposed it. Whenever they have spoken at all, they have said this; and they have said it on what has appeared good reason to them: The marching an army into the midst of a peaceful Mexican settlement, frightening the inhabitants away, leaving their growing crops and other property to destruction, to you may appear a per¬fectly amiable, peaceful, unprovoking procedure; but it does not appear so to us. So to call such an act, to us appears no other than a naked, impudent absurdity, and we speak of it accordingly. But if, when the war had begun, and had become the cause of the country, the giving of our money and our blood, in common with yours, was support of the war, then it is not true that we have always opposed the war. With few individual exceptions, you have constantly had our votes here for all the necessary supplies. And, more than this, you have had the services, the blood, and the lives of our political brethren in every trial, and on every field.

And if Obama be our Lincoln, and the Mexican-American War be our Iraq, then where is our Frederick Douglass?

The determination of our [...] President to prosecute the war, and the probability of his success in wrining from the people men and money to carry it on, is made evident frorm the puny opposition arrayed against him. No politician of any considerable distinction or eminence seems willing to hazard his popularity with his party… by an open and unqualified disapprobation of the war. None seem willing to take their stand for peace at all risks; and all seem willing that the war should be carried on, in some form or other.

Slightly related note: I dreamt that Obama chose Bob Kerrey as his running mate. Ummm, TGIT?

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Caravan (without the drum solo)

Posted on July 2, 2008 by David

Here is a wonderful new blog recently spawned by an accomplice of mine, the idea of which is to post mp3s of out-of-print vinyl from his obscenely large collection. This morning is Harold Dumont singing Duke Ellington.

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Kill Me / Driving

Posted on June 25, 2008 by Tito

Once upon a time, I used to make “Mixes” for my friends & family, distributed throughout the USA after being “burned”. One such mix landed in my sister’s mini-van along with her family, including a then 3(?) year-old “boy” who had cottoned to This Year by the Mountain Goats, often requesting it enthusiastically, “Play the ‘Kill Me’ song! Play the ‘Kill Me’ song!” whenever in the van. It’s simple pleasures such as these juvenile affirmations that keep this uncle truckin’.

Which is all fine and good until the day her family gets into a minor fender bender, and my sister’s top concern is that the boy will not continue his entreaties for “Kill Me” as the local police office approached their ride. Though, from a few thousand miles & days away, I would have preferred that he did. (Un)fortunately, he remained quiet as the officer was within earshot.
Anywho, NPR has decided that This Year is an excellent road-trip song, a view I share. But maybe just be extra careful when rockin’ it in the vicinity of a Super-Target parking lot.

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shit

Posted on June 23, 2008 by Tito

The Rake:

I thought at a certain point that his later material had gotten carelessly nihilistic; then I got a bit older. Now I see that he was just so damned disappointed, and that no one that disappointed is a nihilist.

Atlantic City

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kerning fail

Posted on June 22, 2008 by Tito

kids exchange

from failblog (of course)

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wanders, indeed.

Posted on June 22, 2008 by Tito

Joe Posnanski finds himself backstage at a Death Cab For Cutie show in Berkeley:

Anyway, beyond the obvious visual differences, and beyond the fact that the conversations revolve around Guitar Hero and the new Hold Steady record rather than Jeter Hero and how the hold is a bad statistic, it’s pretty much the same party. Which means I would rather be at an In & Out Burger* right about now. Oh well. The mind wanders.

And he ranks his top 5 KC BBQ joins, which is nice. (I’d had Jackstack as my #1, but his is solid)

Seeing listening to the Royals come back to beat the Giants 11-10 in their Monarchs throwbacks reminds me to pick up The Soul of Baseball: A Road Trip Through Buck O’Neil’s America

I Will Follow You Into The Dark

and of course plenty of Brian Bannister analysis…

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TEV in SF tonight

Posted on June 19, 2008 by Tito

Mark Sarvas reads from Harry, Revised at Cafe Royale tonight.

Blogged with the Flock Browser

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keep looking »