I took one of my old guitars in today to get it fixed up. It an old Ampeg Stud that I bought used several years ago (it looks like an SG but I couldn't find a good link about it). I don't know exactly, but it was made sometime in the early 1970's. It was messed up slightly in the fire three years ago and has been sitting idle since then. I cleaned it up a few months ago and got all the soot off of it. So now it's at the guitar shop getting a new nut made for it and having one of the pickups replaced with one I bought in high school - a seymour duncan screamin' demon (a special model made for George Lynch of Dokken - no I'm not kidding). Anyway, it's going to take a week or so but I can't wait to get it back! It's like getting a new guitar, only cheaper!

If anyone is interested, I started a livejournal account so I can read/comment on my friends' posts. If you want to start up a real, live interweb friendship drop a note over there and I'll leave witty comments on your posts. http://www.livejournal.com/users/thewisdomteeth/

The internet makes me depressed. I'm getting drunk tonight. Who's with me?

Go faster, day! I'm tired! That's what I get for gloating about all the great sleep I got last night. I'm barely able to keep my eyes open.

At lunch I bought a Thin Lizzy double live album. This is my second Thin Lizzy double live album. I didn't know there were two and I seriously doubt it can match the awesomeness of the first one. It does, however, have John Sykes playing guitar on it and everyone knows I have a serious soft spot for John Sykes.

Sunday = good. I had to wake up early (9am after staying out at a party til 4am) to go to my ex-roommate/ex-bandmate Dave's wedding. First of all it was way the hell out of town - on the other side of Lake Travis. Also, you couldn't drive all the way there - you had to park by the road and they had van/buses to take you to the wedding site (not a chapel but a super cool faux-spanish villa perched on top of a hill over looking the lake).

So we get up there and the preliminary part of the wedding was underway. What was great about this wedding was that it was a glorious meeting of two ways of life - Hindu Indian and White Tra..., er, small town Texas. The wedding was a completely traditional hindu wedding. All the costumes and rituals (some involving coconuts!). It really was beautiful and totally different. We had some excellent curry for lunch and a nice pineapple punch that never quite got me tipsy. I, like the freaking moron I am, forgot my camera so you'll have to use your imagination.

After a brief nap following the wedding, it was BBQ time. I went over to someone's house (?) for my friend Maureen's birthday. I only stayed for a bit but it was nice and there were lots of dogs running around everywhere. After that it was over to Aaron and Stacy's for some real bbq. Good god! Aaron had actually brisket and pulled pork (as opposed to every other bbq which is really just grilling burgers and dogs, not actually a bbq). There was 15 feet of Elgin sausage. Damn! Drinking Tecate and testing out the different sauces. Shit! Awesomeness at its fullest.

Shortly there after I went to Jeff's and lost my money at poker. I went home, read a little bit, then slept for 9 hour glorious hours.

Good morning.

Attention everyone!

It is now Friday!

Listening to the Yardbirds.

Things is good.

Just so you know.

I spent the afternoon at my folks' house yesterday. My sister and my niece and nephew were visiting and that was the last day they'd be there so I went down. It was nice to catch up even for a couple of hours. I drove back last night at a high speed blaring the Detroit Cobras very loudly.

I'm still a bit sick but I'm now full of prescription drugs trying to make me better. Since I got sick last friday I haven't had any beer. I decided to make it into a test of my will to see if I can go a whole week without. I only have one more day. Tomorrow I will be free.

There are musical things in the works that I am excited about. I hope it comes together. <>

Did you know that pirates are making something of a comeback lately? Yes, pirates (the real kind, not the kind that fight ninjas).

I finally dragged my ass to the doctor this morning and, just as I thought, I have bronchitis again. Same as this time last year. Blech. Yay! More pills to take! ((beats head on desk))

OK, well, I'm not going into a blow by blow account of last week but here are some highlights.

1) Year Future @ the Chunklet party. Sonny Kay's (of VSS/Angel Hair) new band. Holy Shit. Renewed my faith that punk rock really can still do something interesting.

2) Big Business @ Sound on Sound in-store. Jared from Karp's new band. Fuzzy bass, screamed vocals and super-rocking drums.

3) the Gris-Gris @ Sound on Sound in-store. Psych-rock beauty.

4) Edith Frost @ some day party. Heavenly Voice. I crawled outta bed in a fever induced haze to see her. This was the only time I left my house on saturday.

5) Erase Errata & Les Georges Leningrad @ a house show. 3am on a thursday night these bands were playing on the front porch of a house 1/2 block from my place. A-Frames played earlier at the same house but in the super ultra crowded living room so I missed 'em.

So all in all it was a good time. Sadly, just as I was getting into full party mode (this takes a day or two to adjust the body to no sleep, breakfast tacos for all meals and beer from 11am onwards) my body gave me a big fuck you and shut down. I've been off and on sick for the past few weeks and friday evening I just pooped out. I spent most of the next two days in bed with a high fever, an awful cough and NCAA basketball on the tv. I'm disappointed that I missed out on friday night's and all of saturday's fun but it couldn't really be helped.

I'll post a link to pics as soon as I resize 'em all and get them uploaded.

PS, I have to get my bitching about the official sxsw stuff done. I'll be brief.

1) On Wedneday night I was going to go see Elvis Costello. I got all prepared and went down there early enough to get in. Now, I was prepared to pay a chunk of change for this show. Probably $20-$30. I get there and the door guy asks me for $50. My jaw hit the ground. $50 for a 45 minute set of Elvis Costello? And I'd have to sit through the three other nameless crap people they put on before him? Fuck that. I went downtown and paid $5 to see my the kodiaks.

2) Friday evening I went to try to catch the Hyrdahead Records showcase. Once again I was ready for a pricey night and they didn't disappoint at $15. However, when I got there an hour after it had started, the snotty sxsw bitch told me that it would be $15 but they weren't letting cash people in yet, just wristbands and badges. There was no line. It wasn't very crowded so it's not like they were keeping their precious VIPs out so I could get in. So she tells me that I can be first in line and would I mind stepping aside. I said something not very civil to her and turned to leave.

Sorry for the lack of updates. I spent the first half of sxsw drunk and running around and the second half deadly sick in bed. This time last night (sat) I had a 102 degree fever. I'm much better now. Only 100 or so. There will be a recap and some pictures soon.

If people keep bringing snacks to work and leaving them out for everyone on the table next to my desk, I may explode. Yesterday it was brownies and today it big shamrock shaped cookies.

I will be a very absent blogger after today as I am taking off work to attend all the day shows/parties.

There's a pretty good article on Adrian Tomine in US News & World Report.

Two BBQs in as many days. It was a beautiful spring weekend in ATX. 80 degrees and sunny. Perfect perfect perfect. Combine that with some Fredericksburg sausages on the grill and $4.99 12 packs of PBR (I'm normally a die-hard Lone Star guy but the PBR was on sale) and you have good times o' plenty.

I'm not much in a writing mood. More later. Maybe.

You know that feeling you get when you know you're about to get really damn sick? I had that all day yesterday. All achey and snotty and sore. The movie was great last night but by the time we got to the whisky bar all the meds I'd taken to stave off feeling like shit had worn off. I felt like my eyes were on fire, I was dizzy and all my joints freaking ached like hell. I stayed as long as I could stand, caught the first couple of songs by the sword then got the hell outta there.

At home I doped myself up with benedryl and advil and hit the bed expecting a night of shakes like I was getting clean in some bad movie. Thankfully, the benedryl worked and knocked me out. I still woke up several times feeling all dreamy and weird but mostly it was ok.

I'm always amazed by how much better I feel in the morning no matter how sick I might be. I'm at work and vaguely coherent. I'm going to do my best to take it easy this weekend and be in primo shape for sxsw next week (hello, free shows!).

Speaking of sxsw, those assholes revoked chunklet magazine's press pass. The official reason is that they weren't going to cover the festival enough, but through the grapevine I heard it was because they were advertising their free party/day show too much. I'm thinking of making t-shirts that say "sxsw destroys music" and wearing it around all week. The festival itself is such an awful thing but, damn, I love all the parties. So, yes, I'd like that cake and I'll be eating it too.

Get Carter is tonight, bitches! Watch Michael Caine get revenge on his brother's murderer in downtrodden Northern England! (alamo drafthouse downtown, 7pm)

The Sword is also tonight, bitches! Hear JD & Co get revenge on all that weak shit that passes for rock these days! (whisky bar, 11pm)

Here's a link to some pictures from tuesday night at beerland. They're a bit murky.

India gets its own version of Spider-Man. I think this is a cool, yet, very odd development. I tell you, spider-man is universal. When I was a kid I had the new issues of all three titles (at the time - amazing spider-man, peter parker-the spectacular spider-man, web of spider-man) kept on hold for me at the local comic shop. Hell, I still buy the new trades.

The show as part of hellolovers last night went surprisingly well. I got off work, picked up my shit, went over Jon's, practiced with him and Yasmin for an hour, went home and ate, went up beerland and played a show. It was nice - we all played in a little semi-circle seated onstage, I didn't even mind as Jon's hippy friends banged on tambourines and wood blocks as we played. Jon and Yasmin's voices go together really well. As much as I like really having shit down for a show, it was exciting and fun to play it very loose. I have no idea if it sounded ok to everyone else but I was digging it.

I've been a bit out of it. This weekend (or rather, saturday night) really messed me up somehow. The short of it is that I got barely any sleep sat night (I mean 1-2 hours) and then I was all fucked up tired on sunday. So I took a nap sunday afternoon and therefore wasn't able to sleep sunday night despite how tired I was. I came to work yesterday for around 3 hours before the weird tired crossed-eyes state I was in was enough to get me to bail and go home. Where I couldn't sleep. Last night was ok but I still feel weird.

It isn't for sure, but I'm probably playing at beerland tonight w/Jon King aka hello lovers. I'm supposed to learn the songs this evening and then play later tonight. So come by if you want to see something akin to a great, beautiful trainwreck. I'll be the one hunched over an farfisa organ.

Is it wrong to admit that I'm still sore from bowling on saturday night?

Are you sensing a pattern here? I'm not quite sure why I write on here except, perhaps, to help pass time during a work day. I don't write much in the way of exciting insights into my way of thinking or ponder the large questions of the day. It's a whole lot of today I did this, last night I went to see a band and, boy, did I get drunk or I'm reading/watching this. The whole thing really seams more than a bit useless and narcissistic.

Perhaps that has more to do with the way I'm living my life than the way I'm writing about it. If my life had a bit more substance, then this blog probably would also. I go to bed every night staring at the same ceiling and wondering why I feel as if I've spent my whole life staring at that ceiling. Wondering when things are going to change. Wondering when life is going to get exciting and/or interesting and/or meaningful.

Damn, this is some whiny shit. Someone smack me in the head.

I'm feeling nostalgic lately. I've been listening to some old Unwound and Johnboy tapes I found. When did noisy music stop being interesting? Every few months I'll get all into it for a day or two then revert back to my normal listening habits. I think it's a getting older thing. Bleh.

I stayed in last night and watched I Heart Huckabees until I fell asleep. It was a very OK movie. It felt like I was watching Robert Altman Lite. And I'm not an Altman fan. Why do people get excited about this shit? It didn't help that it had two of my least favorite actors in it - Dustin Hoffman (anything past, say, 1975) and Naomi Watts.

Student arrested for making "terrorist threats"... with zombies.

Audition was rad to see in the theater. It was great as everyone was groaning and squinting their eyes during the torture scene (myself included).

Nothing much today. Check back tomorrow to see if my life has suddenly become terribly interesting.

Just so you know, it doesn't matter that you're only stopping in to pee on the way to break, if you walk into the restroom at work with a 1,000 page novel in your hand, you're going to get some funny looks.

Going to see Audition tonight. I've seen it before but never at a theater. It should be interesting just to gauge other peoples' reactions. Miike can be damn weird and sometimes outright disturbing but somehow I really like his movies. What does that say about me? Wait, don't answer that.

While I'm thinking about it, "Big Ups" to Dan for running the Austin Showlist. I've just been sitting here checking out his near comprehensive coverage of the free shows during sxsw (an invaluable resource for the free music/free beer connoisseur.)

Yesterday I went with Joe to get a new tattoo. Last night I dreamt that I had a Misfits tattoo like the one I saw in the sample book at the ink place. Now I wish, just a little bit, that I did have a Misfits tattoo.