Forced to live like it's a curfew. Translation, means I love you.

Top Ten Movies of 2007

2007-12-28T11:05:00.000-08:00

Worthy Mentions
Diggers
Stardust
Eagle vs Shark
Reign Over Me
Knocked Up
Sweeney Todd
Hot Fuzz

Top Five Concerts of 2007

2007-12-16T16:02:00.000-08:00

Jon was going to do this, but I guess I will do it first.

Daft Punk
Probably the best concert I have ever been to. Great visuals, awesome music, and dancing. I also enjoy that it was in Berkeley.
Highlight songs: Robot Rock, Around the World, Harder Better Faster.

The Swell Season
They seemed like the most honest, sincere, and thankful people. His voice was incredible, and her shyness was beautiful. It was at one of my favorite venues, the Grand. Highlight songs: Say it to me, Leave, Falling Slowly.

Ryan Adams
He was unbelievable, and the Cardinals are an amazing backup band. It was the ending to a great roadtrip.
Highlight songs: When The Stars Go Blue, Two, Off Broadway, Magnolia Mountain.

Andrew Bird
The whistling, violin, voice, and drummer made this show great. His creativeness with insturments is really awesome.
Highlight songs: Imitosis, Scythian Empire.

Mew
His voice may be the most incredible thing live. They are very powerful and melodic. There music almost sounds like a fantasy soundtrack. Highlight songs: Special, Seeking Rain Weeps For You, Comforting Sounds.

Top Ten Albums of 2007

2007-12-10T16:20:00.000-08:00

Radiohead: In Rainbows

The Arcade Fire: Neon Bible

Andrew Bird: Armchair Apocrypha

Young Galaxy: Self Titled

Once: Original Motion Picture Soundtrack

Shout Out Louds: Our Ill Wills

St. Vincent: Marry Me

Wilco: Sky Blue Sky

Ryan Adams: Easy Tiger

LCD Soundsystem: Sound of Silver

Worthy Mentions:
Animal Collective: Strawberry Jam
Rogue Wave: Asleep at Heavens Gate
Band of Horses: Cease to Begin
Feist: The Reminder
Eddie Vedder: Into the Wild Motion Picture Soundtrack
Devendra Banhart: Smokey Rolls Down Thunder Mountain

Where I Have Been

2007-11-30T11:18:00.001-08:00

The Voice is Back

2007-11-28T11:47:00.000-08:00

So... If you have read Jon's blog then you would know that I have been hearing a voice, and Drew saw someone in our apartment. Well, the voice is back. Last night right before I went to bed i heard the voice say "Some day I will see you." Yes, very creepy, but also intriguing. the voice has now come 4 times, and it has always been the same voice. It is a man that is whispering, but it sounds as if he is right about me when I hear it. Really weird. I don't know what it is, whether it is in my head or what, but its still creepy. On another note, I just remembered my dream from last night. It was also creepy, and not sure if it is connected, or if I went to sleep thinking about it, so I dreamt about it. My dream of which i can remember consisted of myself waking up in a forest where the fog was so deep that i could barely see my feet. I began to walk around and the only reason i have to believe it was a Forest was because I would walk into a tree every few feet. So, in the dream I wake up and am confused because of where I am. I begin to hear things that sound like whispers (like the voice). It was a little different because I couldn't make out full sentences. It sounded like the voices Sayed hears in the jungle in LOST, so it was a bunch of jabble (not a real word). Anyways, I was only able to make out certain words and only a few at that. The words were Run, Under, Listen, Time, and Carry. I have no idea what this means but its weird. Anyways, that is all I remember.

TOP 5 ALBUMS

2007-10-21T19:46:00.000-07:00

I had to think more about this, but I think I have it.

RADIOHEAD- KID A

JIMMY EAT WORLD- CLARITY

SUNNY DAY REAL ESTATE- HOW IT FEELS TO BE SOMETHING ON

BROKEN SOCIAL SCENE- YOU FORGOT IT IN PEOPLE

PEDRO THE LION- CONTROL

other amazing albums:
Death Cab For Cutie- The Photo Album
Elliot Smith- XO
Sigur Ros- Takk
Radiohead- Ok Computer

The Darjeeling Limited

2007-10-08T09:07:00.000-07:00

i am not going to say anything about this movie

Daytrotter Sessions

2007-10-04T14:22:00.000-07:00

I dont know if you have ever heard of Daytrotter Sessions, but if you haven't then you should go to daytrotter.com. It is a studio in Rock Island, Illinois that has bands come in for a small session of music while on tour. The bands use borrowed equipment and play basically what ever they want. Then the music is put on daytrotter.com. All the music on daytrotter is free. There are a lot of good sessions from bands like Grizzly Bear, Velvet Teen, David Bazan, Young Galaxy, The National, and many more.

Young Galaxy

2007-10-03T13:07:00.000-07:00

This is Young Galaxy. You should really listen to them becuase I can't stop. They are on Arts & Crafts which is where Broken Social Scene, Feist, Apostle of Hustle, Stars, and bunch more got started. So, if you like that sound then you should really listen to their album.

Long Over Do Update

2007-07-12T10:04:00.000-07:00

I'm back and better than ever. Well I am back to updating my blog. I know I haven't updated in a long time. I am going to start doing it more often. I am going to start posting more pictures and writings. Here is what is going on right now.

1. I am excited to go to Seattle
2. I am excited to have 4 days off work
3. I am excited to go to Ryan Adams and Daft Punk
4. I am excited to move to san jose
5. I am not excited that summer is half way over

Nafplion

2007-02-08T10:12:00.000-08:00

Athens/Sounion

2007-02-08T10:03:00.001-08:00

Venice

2007-02-08T09:56:00.000-08:00

Florence/Pisa/Cinque Terra

2007-02-08T09:55:00.000-08:00

Rome/Pompeii

2007-02-08T09:43:00.000-08:00

Bayeux

2007-02-08T09:36:00.000-08:00

Paris

2007-02-08T09:26:00.000-08:00

Europe 07

2007-01-24T05:59:00.000-08:00

I know Jon wrote a lot about our trip, but I thought I would give my story. Paris was pretty awesome. We had a hard time getting on their time, so we woke up pretty early for the first few days. One day we went to the Eiffel Tower and watched the sunrise, which was cool. The Orsay museum was awesome. There were so many artists that left you in awe of their artwork. Artists like Van Gogh, Monet, Degas, and many more. It was really cool. One day we went to Normandy and went to the D-Day beaches as well as the American Cemetary. That was my favorite day of the whole trip. It was so cool to see all that. The beaches were in a little town called Beavais and the town was so cool. It had a beautiful church which was the original Notre Dame. It was quiet, and amazing. It just gave me great feelings. Overall France was pretty cool.

Italy was incredible. Our hostel in Rome was pretty sweet. It had a bar with cheap drinks so that was cool. On our first day we went down to the Colliseum, and when you first see it, it is so big. It was closed that day but when we went in Drew and I took a brick each out of the Colliseum and Ashley got made at us quoting "If everyone took out a rock there would be no more Colliseum." The sisteen chapel was awesome along with Vatican city, minus the giant Nativity scene in front that was drawing more attention to people than the the rest of Vatican City. We hadnt eaten breakfast that day and it was a late lunch. Before lunch Drew and I drank 3 glasses of wine. Since we had empty stomachs we werre both pretty gone. We were in a crowded restaurant and could not stop laughing. We met up with Dan, that night and traveled through Italy for the next few days. We went to Naples which was really dirty, but Pompei which is right out of Naples was awesome. We were able to see the bodies that were covered from the volcano. We also met up with Julia, and Wendy and went to the Catacombs, which were the underground Christian graveyards which were cool.

After Rome we went to Florence for two days. The gelato in Florence was great. We climbed up 450 stairs to the top of the Basilica and looked over the city of Florence. At night we would go to the river because the fog would come in and it looked beautiful. We went to Piza and Chinqueterra for a daytrip as well. Piza didnt have that much to see other than the Leaning Tower, which was cool to see. Chinqueterra was awesome. It was five little towns along the coast. We walked along the beach, and explored two of the towns. We went to a bar which had great bruschetta, and beer. That was one of the best days of the trip.

Next up was Venice which was really cool to see. You see all these pictures of the canals and when you see them in person it really is something. San Marco square was really cool. Ashley fed pigeons and they attacked her. It was pretty funny. We saw the church that was in the Indiana Jones movies which was cool. The museums were cool as well. Our hostel in Venice was really cool. It was more of a hotel, and it had a bar as well. One night Jon, Drew, and I all got pretty tipsy and ran with our shirts off down the street where our hostel was.

Athens, Greece was pretty cool after the second day. The first day we walked through the city which looked like inner city L.A. At night people walked down the streets chanting. It was kind of scary. The next day we went to the Acropolis and the Temple of Zues. We also saw the Olympic Stadium. At that point I really started to like Athens. We took a daytrip to Sounion which was one of the best days as well, It is where the Temple of Poseidon is located. It was right on the coast. We sat on the edge of the cliffs and walked down to the ocean to relax. It was great. We were informed by the lady at our hostel to go to Nafplio. So we traveled there for three days. It was also on the coast and was one of the most beautiful places I have ever been. We meant to walk up to this fortress which was 999 steps up. We got lost and ended up walking around the entire mountain which was maybe 5 or so miles. It was well worth getting lost. We walked along the coast and the water with the mountain in the background were incredible. We later went swimming in it. It was pretty nice and warm outside, but the water was so cold so we didnt stay in for too long.

By the last few days as amazing as the trip was we all wanted to come home. The group that went on the trip was great and we all got along for the most part. I am really happy that we were able to go. Overall the trip was so great. I will soon post some pictures of the unbeievably awesomely courageously metophysically cool times that we had.

14 days and counting

2006-12-13T11:31:00.000-08:00

I am almost done with my last paper, and then I have two finals, and after that it is smooth sailing. After that Christmas and Europe in one week, what else could I ask for.

father/daughter

2006-12-12T19:14:00.000-08:00

I am in dyer need of a break

2006-11-21T12:36:00.000-08:00

I cant explain how excited I am about Europe. This semester has been comprised of endless papers, and projects along with 5 a.m. shifts that make me want to shoot myself in the face. I need a break from that. I also need a break from worry, I have about a year (maybe a year and a half) left of school, and don't really know what I want to do with my degree. Teaching is at the top of the list, but I still don't know. I am glad to get away for a few weeks, so I don't have to think so hard because it makes me tired. 37 days to go.

I am going crazy

2006-10-27T07:48:00.000-07:00

I hate working the 5 a.m. shift two days in a row. I get so tired that I don't want to do anything. I just want to sleep, but I end up hearing or dreaming weird things. For instance, today, I got to work and then signed in. I went to my desk and kicked back and tried to go to sleep. As I was about to fall asleep I hear someone walk by my desk, and it wakes me up. This happened 5 times. Every time it happened, I woke up really fast and got up to see who it was, and no one was there. Cool. Kind of scared the crap out of me.

My Top Ten Albums of the Year

2006-10-23T13:32:00.001-07:00

These albums are not in any specific order. I just like them.

mewithoutYou - Brother, Sister
Jeremy Enigk - World Waits
The Decemberists - The Crane Wife
Greg Laswell - Through Toledo
Ed Harcourt - The Beautiful Lie
The Knife - Silent Shout
Division Day - Beartrap Island
Band of Horses - Everything All the Time
Hot Chip - The Warning
The Album Leaf - Into the Blue Again

Log 7: March 26th 1953

2006-10-23T12:23:00.000-07:00

Winter was over, flowers were beginning to bloom. The sun was revealing through the dark clouds that I thought would never go away. I continued to walk by Joseline's home everyday to hear that beautiful, indescribable sound. My days seems treacherous and unworthy, but once a day a glimpse of light that made me breathe fresh air came out of that song. I had been working for her father, Thomas. He owned an old family run lumber yard, and I was there to make some money, with the bonus that Joseline came by every day. That was payment enough. Everyday that she would come by, I would make a promise to myself to talk to her. For the first ten days my mouth would open, but the only thing that would come out of my mouth was either uttered nonsense or saliva. On my eleventh day of employment my first word came out. "Hello," She echoed back with no hesitation. Everyday after I had planned to say one more word then the day prior. Day two, "Hello, ma'am." Day three, "How are you?" It was a lengthy process. By the ninth day she started a conversation with me. The sound of her voice was soothing. I knew that I was in love. My legs quivered as I asked if she would like to spend Saturday with me. Of course I couldn't take her to a nice night out, but a fun day, and dinner was within my grasp. Her response was less words, rather a giant shy smile stood out on her face. I walked to her home and picked her up. We walked to the nearby field where the blooming of the flowers rang with the smell of peacefulness. The yellows and greens were radiant. It was glorious and the time we spent together was indescribable. We ran throughout the shoulder high fields. For what seemed like hours. We talked and learned more about each other than I knew possible. The field was clear of trees except for one, a giant oak tree. The branches were incredibly thick, and the leaves were such a bright green that only the heavens shined through. Joseline ran around the body of the tree, and I chased her. She rid around one side. So I went the other way. As soon as she saw me, she turned the other way. The continued until we were tired, and decided to sit in the shade that the tree provided. We ate lunch, and talked. I asked her what she liked to do. No matter what she discussed was intriguing, but her knowledge of music and arts was unbelievable. She wanted to how me her music, and the excitement of being able to watch her play the song that made my life easier made me smile. As the sun began to go down and the night resonate we walked home. As we walked our hands connected, and at that moment I forgot that my life was a mess. The breeze from the streets made her shiver. I put my jacket around her, and turned her close to me. We stood there for what seemed like forever. I couldn't stop looking at her, my eyes were locked into hers, and hers mine. I could feel her breath and mine intersect, and I wanted to stay there forever. Without planning like most adventures I take my lips met hers. My arms held her in my arms and I wouldn't let go for nothing. When we got to her house hours had passed since the sun went down. I said goodnight, and she told me she couldn't wait to do it again. When she went inside I ran into the streets with joy, dancing which was a rarity for me. That night was the first time in many years that my heart didn't feel empty.

Downer Days

2006-10-11T13:08:00.000-07:00

Yesteday was one of those days where you question what your doing. I was in a bummed out mood all day. I went to school and realized that I dont really have any friends at school. I mean I do, but I dont see them. There are all these people in my classes that know each each other and are talking about what they are going to do tonight, and I dont have that like I did in high school or whenever. Dont get me wrong, I have a great girlfriend, and my friends are the best and I wouldn't trade them ever, but today I just felt like I completly missed out on the college experience. Last night I went to see Sufjan Stevens, which was incredible. It was at U.C. Berkeley, which has a cool campus and it got me to thinking again about how I didn't get that cool college experience, that part of me wishes. I didn't know if I was alone in this, and after talking to Jon, and Jordan a little bit it made it a little better, but it was just one of those days where I felt like I had missed out on things.

Log 3: January 17th 1953

2006-09-25T14:26:00.001-07:00

The road seemed to never end. The snow had been shoveled as best it could to the side but had started to build up again. I had been walking for so long I was hearing voices in my head, and seeing things up the road that when I got there; there lie nothing. I kept walking; the same steps after the same steps. I kept watching my feet, left right, left. It became such a routine that my feet just kept going. As my feet kept leading the way I saw something in the distance. It was a carriage, or my mind was playing tricks on me. I made my way towards the carriage hoping to get out of the cold. Inside the carriage was a man. The way he stared at me was as if he had seen a spirit. I had been walking so long that my face was turning a shade of blue. I hadn't had food for a day and shelter for three. Jacob was his name, and he took me to the closest town. The darkness started to cover the trees, and as we arrived in the town. My money was low, so where I decided to sleep was limited. A found an alley that kept me about as warm as it could. I made it through the night and got a little food in the morning. The town was small, but seemed different than most towns I had seen. The snow had stopped, and settled on the roofs of the town. The people seems to be enjoying the morning. I was walking down the street and I heard something that caught my ears. It gave me a sense of ease. I had to know where it was coming from. It seemed to echo through the street. Where was it coming from? I searched the windows when I came to a home. The upstairs window was open and the breeze made the curtains sway. The sound was coming from that room. The breeze got stronger, but the sound kept me. I stayed in the street and listened until it ended. I had never heard anything like it. I waited in hope that the person that was playing it would leave so that I could meet them. An hour later she came out, covered in warm clothing to keep her from shivering. I followed her to the store just to meet her. When she got in she took off her coat. She was even more beautiful than the song. Her eyes shined, and her smile made me draw a blank. Who was this girl that could create such beautiful noise. I was intrigued by everything she had to offer. I had to meet her.

More India

2006-09-16T16:15:00.000-07:00

People of India

2006-09-16T15:40:00.000-07:00

Log 11: June 4th, 1953

2006-09-13T12:49:00.000-07:00

I woke up today to the sound of something I couldn't quite grasp. I knew that sound. My head played tricks on me as I lye in that waking stage. I had yet to open my eyes. I thought maybe a dream, but the sound was familiar. I opened my eyes to look around. Where am I? I couldn't remember anything. As I looked around there was nobody in the room. The walls were painted dark red with small blue shapes all over. I was in a small bed, and next to the bed was a lantern. Across the room from the bed was a cabinet. That was all that lingered in this large room. It had a very eire feel to it, Dark, and cold; almost seeming like the room grew as you looked around. All I could do was wonder why I was here, and how I got here. Then the sound came again. Very faint, its rhythm swayed through my ears giving me this feeling that was so hard to describe. I knew that song. Somewhere in my past, somewhere that my mind no longer allowed me to remember is where that song lye. As I got up out of bed my legs gave on me as if I hadn't walked for God knows when. There I was, on the ground pondering. Pondering of what? I didn't know. There was nothing, I couldn't remember what had happened to put me in this place. Suddenly a draft came in from behind me feeling as if my past had come back but quickly ran past me. I was left alone in this room trying to get my legs back to the way they once were. I saw a door that blended into the wall. Why it blended, I couldn't say. It seemed to be my only way out.

This blog thing

2006-09-04T15:49:00.000-07:00

I am working on learning the ropes of this blog. I promise to anyone who looks at this, there will be things up soon. I just need to figure you how to do things.

You think they would make it easy to do stuff.

A place for thoughts

2006-08-21T14:09:00.000-07:00

Lately I have felt I needed a place for thoughts. A place to put my photographs, and ideas. A place to describe life as I see it.