11/30/10

TownUp

Had today off of work, which was nice since tomorrow I begin working full-time in my new position. I'm scared and excited. I spent my free day like a present. I got up extra early to make a new iPod playlist for working out. I woke up this morning totally hell-bent on listening to/rediscovering the s/t Schema album, on 5 Rue Christine.

Anyway it's great. RIP Mary Hansen forever. Listened to that, and IQU (née ICU)'s first album, Chotto Matte A Moment!

I don't know why, but I'm in so into really late 1990s indie/alternative electronica music. Hmm. Like, Land of the Loops? Maybe it's the weather.

SIDENOTE: the night that Mary Hansen died, I was a freshman in college during finals week of my first year. My school threw a breakfast at midnight, since all the students were up writing insane papers. I was tripping on mushrooms for the first (and last) time. It was really overwhelming, a big party in the middle of the night with bright colors, almost all the students were fucked up on something, and they were serving my favorite breakfast treat: Pancakes. I was having a hard time processing. And this cool Junior girl I was friends with, Anna Margaret Hollyman, came up to me in semi-mock horror, and said "Max! Can you believe it?! Mary is DEAD! Have you heard?!" Incidentally, I had not heard. But I also did not know who Anna was talking about. I didn't know anybody named Mary. I was, for a few seconds, totally mortified and tripping my face off. But then she explained and I was sad. Then I told Anna I was tripping so then she started teasing me and it was cute, like "Are you seeing weeeeeeeiiiirrrrdd stuffff??" and I'd go, "No..." since then, Anna grew up to be an indie movie star.

Coolest Girl Ever?

So anyway this morning I went to the gym for a nice long time, since with the new work schedule I might not be able to. Or it'll take a little while with the new schedule to get back into my groove. Which is actually fine, I guess. Going at a later time. That means I'll be in the gym with all the other 9-5ers. And those people are often tired and cranky and a little bossy, when they wait their turn for the gym machines. But you know what? That's fine. I like those people. That is the anger and impatience of the working class. That is OK. The people who go to the Williamsburg Gym during the daytime on weekdays are just awful. Either they're very old people with bad attitudes and poor information about what actually constitutes exercise (they walk on the treadmills, slowly, talking to each other loudly-- I'm sorry, but couldn't you people do that outside?). Or, otherwise, the people at the gym in the daytimes are awful Bedford Avenue yuppies. Gross entitled white people. These are people who act as if the world revolves entirely around them, that they should never have to wait for a machine. They're awful. There is this one guy who is always furious at me when I am on one of the elliptical machines, his favorite, evidently. There are three working machines. And he will often use one of the other ones, sighing loudly and giving me real stink-eye, until I get off of His machine. Fuck the rich. Eat, I mean, the rich. Let's kill them.

I went home to clean up and eat some breakfast, then I spent the rest of my free day traipsing around the Upper East Side. I was sort of walking around listening to music and enjoying the drizzle, I was really grooving on my favorite neighborhood.

HIGHLIGHT: seeing four very tough 15 year-old looking girls, all in matching catholic schoolgirl uniforms, sitting and holding court in the front window of Mimi's Pizza, blithely chewing folded up slices, spinning around on stools, loudly sucking sodas from waxy paper cups. Clearly cutting class. My heroes!

Came home to make some dinner and have a cup of tea. Put my feet up before going back out tonight. Last night was pretty magickal too. My good friend and ex-room mate Jenny (Jennifer aka JuhNeeFah, aka Nifa, aka Katherine, aka Quinn's Mom) gave me a Reiki session, which she has been learning. To really great effect, I think. I had never had that before, it was really cool. I highly recommend it. And if you want to find a good practitioner who has reasonable rates and is very sweet and skilled, then e-mail me and I will put you in touch with her. Killing time before the session, I walked around the East Village, arming myself for the winter and trying to stay open and present in the moment. I mean, I was walking around without my sunglasses on, it gets dark so early, I can't wear sunglasses all the time. It makes me a little self-conscious, but it also makes me notice my surroundings more. I passed a record store with a bin of dollar records out front, and I saw this:



Definitely still not my favorite Laura Nyro album, but I had been wanting Christmas and the Beads of Sweat on vinyl for a couple of weeks now, and was hoping I'd run into a copy. I'm listening to it now. It's sort of poppy, like, by that point in her career, the production had been worked on to the point, and she had been getting to be a big enough star that pop music and fame were things she must have been thinking about. She had had a lot of success by then. So in some respects, I think the record reflects that relationship to publicity. And to her audience (the cover art is from a drawing that a fan handed to her from the audience at a concert). At the same time, it's still a young Laura Nyro, and the lyrics and concepts are obtuse, political, personal, funny, and fucking intense. Anyway. Whatever. Women's Music. So into it, right?

Quick reminder that the band I'm in with Perfect Little Daniel, B0DYH1GH is playing on December 9th at Earl Dax' legendary party / festival / series PUSSY FAGGOT. We will be performing as part of the EAST VILLAGE BOYS Happy Hour, and will have visuals by NewNeeds. PLD and I have been rehearsing, and working on some new songs. We shot some photos with Christian from Arsonist Photography recently, and I can't wait to see how they turn out. PS: Check out Christian's new show, with the legendary Jack Ferver, at PS122: RUMBLE GHOST. SO these are some cool things coming up. There are a bunch more. I have to get on top of all of them!

Here is a video of me performing at the last Pussy Faggot:

Video by Run Shayo. Thanks Earl for uploading it!
Ok I am going to make dinner.




Brr wake up!

No comments: