About two months ago, when Ryland and I were in Madison, Wisconsin, we were sitting in a coffee shop doing business stuff. He was booking shows I was working on my internet project or something. I was looking up flights for Ryland to take from the states to Paris, and then I checked out airfare and such since I didn't really want to come back to Washington. I then checked what flights would cost from New York City (JFK) to Paris. Whatever they were (super cheap) I just decided to buy the tickets since I would already be in New York anyway and it would definitely be cheaper than going to Paris later in life from Seattle.
Now, the tickets were super cheap for the date of the 29th, which is only two days before New Years eve. It kind of worked out that I'd end up spending New Years in Paris. I'll be attending an event called We Love 2009 that will take place in a speakeasy at the Tapis Rouge in Paris. Here's what's happening there:
- IVAN SMAGGHE (London / Kill The Dj)
- CHLOE (Gare du Nord / Kill The Dj)
- MASOMENOS(St-Honoré / WTM)
- SIS (Offenbach / Seis Es Drum / Cecille)
- SISTER PHUNK BROTHERS (Mairie du 18e / Phunk)
- PILOOSKI (République / Dirty)
- YACHT (Portland / DFA)
- JEAN NIPON (Champs Elysées / Institubes)
- Maud & Zoé (Scracth Massive - Cassavetes)
This should be fun!
After France, I'll be hop-scotching it up to the UK since I have more contacts to stay with when I'm there. After the UK I'm going to Cracow, Poland, for what I'm planning to be two weeks. This is kind of the big reason for the trip since I'm partially Polish and my dear friend Michael and I have had great conversations of Eastern European/Collectivist culture. I feel like this is something that is incredibly important for me. Like a pilgrimage to my ancestral homeland.
I just have good feeling about it in general.
Much of this trip, including the last month, was spent taking notes on people I've interacted with and acquiring information about the history, community, and general social aspects in the different places I visited. It's all incredibly interesting.
The last couple of months have been incredibly enlightening and I've felt like my spirits have been lifted from what they were prior. I've added a few more new perspectives on life to my already growing repertoire and I've cleared out plenty of previously disillusion of life. I've seen more than I thought I did in the fuck ups I've had in life and I've grown to appreciate more of the great things that have happened to me.
Also, I left my phone in St. Augustine. Florida, two weeks ago. It's fine because I was going to delete it from my life as soon as I left America anyway. The only downside is that I don't know what missed calls or voicemail I received but I've already spoken with the very few wonderful people that call me. So it's really no problem. You don't need a mobile to live. I've been hopping around New York without one for two weeks and I won't be using one for the next two months either.
Also, I made this for my dear friends Rebecca + Jake. The color version may be on its way:
12/11/2008
/
13:24 EST
It's December 11th in South Carolina and it's maybe 74º outside. It's humid, drizzles maybe once a day, and I'm sticky. That's what humidity makes you- sticky.
The last time I experienced warmth this time of year was when I was, maybe, thirteen and it was the last time my father, sister, and I had our yearly winter trip down the Arizona. This was always the highlight of my year from what I can recall. The three of us would hop in a camper on the back of my father's brown Ford pickup truck and drive from Tri-Cities, Washington, to Quartzite, Arizona, to visit my Grandparents during Winter break. It would be about a two day trip (dad once conquered it in twenty-four hours) that my sister, Katie, and I would dread each year. The same feeling applied when we'd come back from our trip.
Each year, a bit after my birthday in September, Grandma and Grandpa Pie would head down to Quartzite, Arizona, until late February or mid March so they wouldn't have to put up with the years' cold seasons. This was the most unpleasant time for my Sister and I since we wouldn't see our grandparents for a few months and then a few extra months after our own winter trek. I think it was around the time I met my old best friend, Javier, was close to when I became less affected by their departure.
The most frequent thing that would happen would be that my grandpa and father would gold hunt in the Arizona desert, sometimes on other peoples claims*, while grandma, Katie, and myself would look around in the absurd amount of flee markets. There were so many neat wares and trinkets that my sister and I would swoon over but would never get. What I enjoyed about flea markets in Quartzite was the way that the vendors laid out their items in a very nice presentable fashion; much better than street vendors that have their goods laid on the ground.
Christmas day was a big deal for us, like any kids, and we were always excited when that day hit. Each Christmas Eve, I alway had a hard time sleeping on account of pre-chirstmas anxiety compounded by the eighty degree weather it was in the bedroom. I recall sleeping with a sheet only because it was easier for me to sleep when there was some kind of blanket-esque material to sleep with. Then the next day we'd open presents. At that point, the only thing I didn't enjoy about Christmas was the fact that it started the one week clock of when we'd have to go back to the Tri-Ctities and resume school. I believe my excitement became more subdued within that one week window.
Grandma acted as and still does act much like a mother to Katie and I. Since we didn't have our biological mother to do the motherly things with us in life, Grandma did her best to fulfill that void when our father couldn't. We lived about five miles away from each other, so taking trips to our grandparents wasn't that bad and occurred more frequently when my father trusted me not to crash the four-wheeler (It's a four-wheeled bike) into something.
The Quartzite trips ceased about five years ago after Grandpa Pie was diagnosed with Alszimers. I don't really think that was the reason for the departure from the annual trips but I it definitely factored into it. This was probably a downer added upon the fact that grandpa was going to be mentally dead in a few years and that his body would a year and a half later be turned into carbon. Alzimers likes to turn someone you love into a shell with only a few remnants of personality left.
Since Grandpa kicked the bucket, Grandma hasn't really felt like celebrating Christmas; it depresses her. It's not that big of a deal since we haven't had a christmas that hasn't involved my parents arguing since eight grade. For now it's just something that Katie and her boyfriend, Kevin, celebrate by spending winter break together while I go off and do something else. Last year I spent some time with my parents place, partook in some odd low-key family time, then went over to the Luksic's (my "adopted" family) and spent the rest of the evening with them, then later with my close friends from home.
This year I'll be in New York for Christmas. I might see one of those horror movies that they release every year and walk around taking note of how many people are outside for that holiday. I might sleep in, I might wake up early, I might record some songs, mix a few recordings from this tour...
It's a bit of a unfortunate feeling of not having a stable Christmas setting but fortunately it's something that you can construct out of friends and paper ma-shay. It's New York, so I'll find something to keep myself busy.
For those of you who have good family or friends (who are like family) to spend the holidays with; remember how important those people are and that they are indeed important to your life. Even if they annoy the hell out of you or you passively resent them. They're still family, and family will always be there** when your non close friends are gone.
*(property reserved by the owner to hunt for gold in. I'm not sure if 'claims' is the right terminology or not)
**(... Well, unless they're all dead, or you're an orphan, or something. In that case, close friends work.)
I met this really cool dude, Kyle, from Westminster, MD. He's the nicest guy and it's sad to see that it's harder and harder for him to book shows and such. Plus, I have the feeling that Westminster isn't in a booming state at the moment, like things are on the decline. It depresses me to know that there are other places similar to Westminster that have had a harder time booking shows or... Well, Karl wrote about it a couple months ago in his myspace blog. I never would have thought in a million years I would have met Kyle but I did.
It wasn't until he was buying some of Ryland's merch that he mentioned that this was the last year he put on the festival, which struck a chime in my memory. I was really saddened to hear that things are not so great at the moment. Fortunately, he told me, that he's working at a coffee show now that he's going to start booking shows at. This was good news.
Dearest Kyle Woodworth,
You are a top notch guy. I hope to see you in the future, especially if you go to heck fest this year. You said you were there last year, right?
Love,
-Kenneth-
Also, I think there were, like, two people in the United States that did see me at What the Heck Fest this last year. Very neat (and neat people).
12/12/2008
/
10:25 EST
The other acts that joined us were Tele V. Cheeseburger (Matt & Phil) and the Ocean Floor (Lane). Since I don't see my dear friend, Peach, often, I broke from the tour for a couple days to hang out with him in Charleston, SC.
The two days that ensued are nothing fancy to note other than I was able to hang out with Peach only in the evenings when he was done with his Navy job. I did get booted out of the place that I was staying because that particular person is out-of-their-mind, doesn't dig people, was ill with the flu (or something), and has some... Well, I guess I should have just said issues in the first place. It was just... Dumb... In any case, I stayed at someone else's instead.
I met the band the night we had a show at the Communications Museum in Charleston. The show was a success and I felt like the two days I was there, I missed out on hanging with the cool indie kids since the others I was with were nothing going for them drunks. I became intensely depressed from the drunks I was with on account of their social drama and lack of being interesting and I became fortunified that I'm not of that or part of it.
After the show we headed over to a hose of some of the people at the show. I made some peanut sauce with leftover rice that warmed and won over everyones hungry hearts. The rest was what you'd do at anyone's house when your visiting; drink beer, talk, climb a cast-iron door, and distribute/recieve hugs.
On our way to Athens, Georgia, the police cruiser that was carrying Matt, Phil, and Lane smelt funny. I verified the odor with Ryland and he agreed that he thought it might be coming with the cruiser. The cruiser pulls over and we follow in the Peugeot. I immediately hopped out of our autocoach to see what was going on and noticed, while everyone was still in the car, that the rear right tire was smoking. After some quick thinking and such, Lane replaced my spot in the Peugeot and I took his in the cruiser.
The car was toed to a car shop in North Augusta, SC, where we found out that the tire was smoking because the caliber (which connects the break to the tire) was stuck in one position, broke the axel, and I think the brakes fused to the tire? Well, the police cruisers are built so that the brakes attach the tire to the axel? Essentially, if the brakes weren't stuck to the tire then the tire most likely would have popped off and the cruiser would have developed into an incredible disaster. Luckily it was a police cruiser and any other vehicle would have lead to potential deaths.
Luckily that wasn't the case but we are stuck in N. Augustin until the car gets fixed. It is estimated to be done between sixteen or eighteen hundred this evening and the quote for repairs that Phil got was $1200. Kind of ridiculous.
When the car repairs are complete we have an eight hour car drive ahead of us and hopefully we'll be able to make the show in Orlando, FL. Sounds like we probably will since Matt works at the place they're playing at and they're fine with running late.
---------------------------
12:44 EST
... Back to Charleston, South Carolina; It has four things going for it:
- Navy Base
- University
- Me
- American Civil War History
As soon as I left, Charleston lost one fantastic attraction but the rest are a year round kind of thing. There were a few French folk I'd notice walking around, which was odd, but made sense if they were tourists. The area I was around about ninety-five percent of the time was Downtown Charleston. This area has a mix of students and locals out and about (mostly students) and there is a two block strip on King St. that consists of the same yuppie stores you would find in any mall*.
The entire experience along with my other college town experiences, is that I don't like college towns. There is nothing to do aside from party, study, and hang with friends. That's fine, I have no problem with that, but it just feels like that's all there is to do. Of course, in the woodwork of these college towns, there are probably people making cool things happen that I haven't encountered. I dare say, though, Bellingham is taking the cake (for me at least) of rad college towns. I don't like it but it's so far taking the cake. Most of the people I've encountered in small college towns on this trip seem somewhat depressed if not born adjusted to that life style.
I have to say it seems that if I'm going to do any categorizing on people, I would say that the indie kids tend to make things happen, if not the kids that are into social work (humanities). It's a no brainer but nonetheless, the indie kids are the group of individuals that I fit with.
I'm just declaring that in a more overt fashion now... I guess...
*Even an Ambercrombie and Fitch complete with that ghastly cologne smell that flows out of the establishment. I was walking in the street and I gaged. It was awesome.
Well, I can't really leave the apartment I'm at in Charleston tonight. I could but then I wouldn't be able to come back in until 12:45 tomorrow or something. The person I'm staying with is a friend of Peach's, who is probably one of the most anal person to live with. This was an observation from just being around her for five minutes in her apartment that she shares with Peach's cooler friend. I can't even go to the kitchen because this friend is very noise sensitive in her sleep; so sensetive she can hear my socks tip-toe across the carpet.
Since I "can't leave" I'm writing lyric bits, scripting, researching neurology, looking into schooling, looking for shows to go to next month, figuring out money, sending e-mail, thinking about grrrls, finishing up the soon to be online project, and more importantly, watching La Blogotheque and YouTube.
I'm also going to learn some basic French while I'm in New York next week. Also, I need to know what the deuce I'm going to do in Orlando, Florida, for two days. I get off the American portion of the tour on Friday, catch the airplane to NYC on Tuesday (the 15th) at 7:10 or something and then I won't see Ryland until the 5th of January
I'm also getting ideas for the summer.
I'll probably go to this provided I can get some already sold out tickets. I'll be back in Brooklyn on the 15th anyway.
Pop Quiz!
A) Williamsburg (Brooklyn) ≤ Capitol Hill (Seattle)
B) Williamsburg (Brooklyn) ≥ Capitol Hill (Seattle)
C) Williamsburg (Brooklyn) ≥ Neighborhood Bedbug Infestation
D) C and A
E) C and B
This will probably be fucking fantastic. Even if I might not be able to get sold out tickets for the full of Montreal show, that doesn't mean I can't go to a fucking-fantastic-bar dance party that Kevin Barnes will be DJ-ing (as well as some other individuals). Ah, the magic of being age 22!
I'm waiting for Ryland to get back from Greenville NC. It's 5:17 EST and I'm a bit worried...
5:27 EST Nevermind, he just called me.
I may be going to see David Byrne play in Charleston, NC, on Tuesday. I'm heading down to that podunk town with Peach tomorrow. I was solidly thinking about it earlier tonight but now I'm wondering if I want to spend $36 (or $46 for better seats) to see him. How often am I going to see David Byrne play? Probably not again since I wouldn't be motivated enough later in life... What am I saying... Look, I might go.
-See, this is what happens when your insomnia comes back you stop making sense.
When I was listening to of Montreal for three solid weeks back in... October? Maybe late December... Damn, I mean late September... (Wow...) The only breaks I took were to listen to Richard Swift and a dash of Dirty Projectors and Magnetic Fields.
Anyway, this song, "Knee-High Boogie Blues," my favorite to recreate vocally and the one most likely in my head when you spoke with me from October 11th to the 14th. What you didn't know, was that I was actually going a bit crazy.
Maybe you did.
12-04-2008
/
2:16 EST
Earlier this afternoon was the third time on tour that I've cried. This one was less intense though. It's been becoming a problem, actually...
In about a week and a half I'll be in Florida and I'll be on a plane to New York for a couple weeks. In that time we'll be hooking up with Ryland's friend Lane's band, The Ocean Floor, in South Carolina. We haphazardly ran into Lane in Williamsburg, Brooklyn, when we locked ourself out of the car for two hours in the cold wind. It was not good times. Lane is a bang up fellow and I'm excited to meet up with him again.
I'm not exactly sure what I will be doing for Christmas. I've kind of stopped celebrating that holiday since it bums my grandmother and myself out on account of our family's status. Personal note: It's hard to celebrate it when you don't necessarily have a family and just like valentines day, if you don't have a valentine, then you pretty much detest the holiday. I don't think everyone is like that but I do know that it's hard for me to see most of the people I know partake in something that I am unable to engage in myself. It's kind of like seeing all of your friends get invited to a house party but you're not welcome due to the poor grounds you are with a resident of that house. I can't really do anything about it.
Since I'll have a couple of weeks in New York I might record some songs and perhaps work on some drafts of a comic I'm planning to publish. It's going to be a bit rough drawing since all of my art materials are in the back of my car in Ryland's driveway.
I've been having the case of the crazy's for Taco Bell in the past week. It's sick, actually, but luckily Taco Bell has vegetarian options otherwise I wouldn't really eat there. I discovered that in the midwest and the south, Taco Bell is referred to as 4th meal when it's in conjunction with the late night hours such as post rock show. It doesn't correlate to the hobbit meal plan though, something I immediately inquiereied about when I heard of this nonsense. This craving for Taco Bell, however, has reminded me that I need to do some research on MSG, the neurological effects of it and the FDA's regulations take on it.
We were in the drive through tonight ordering food in the most ridiculous manner we usually order in. The employees at that establishment always get confused when we subtract meat then add beans to our order; something in the business that we like to call replacing. At some point when our friend DL and I are conversing and Ryland is laughing because we're all pretty out of it and shouting- we hear a crack outside. Like metal hitting metal that could definitely be considered a car accident.
A man in a wheel chair-crossing the road near us- was hit by a car.
The driver of the car had a green light and the pedestrian began to cross the street anyway. The car immediately stopped after the impact and I believe it was a bit before the driver exited his vehicle. DL said "I think someone got hit? I'm calling 9-1-1" and proceeded to do so. He gets on the phone and begins to talk to the operator and in about 20 seconds after he gets on the horn, about a minute after the man was hit, there was an ambulance that pulled up near the scene. During this time I'm not quite clear what to do and I was probably going to get out of the car but it looked like there were already people on the scene.
From when I first noticed there was a hit pedestrian, I saw a person laying on the road to what seemed like he was writhing in pain; kind of in the same manner that someone would rock back and forth in the fetal position. He was wearing all black from what I could tell but I am unsure about where he was hit and how bad he was. Not too soon after the paramedics arrived, they gathered around the scene and assessed the situation, the three cars that were there originally there stayed, maybe a few cars drove by the accident and the car that hit the pedestrian moved to the other side of the road. A bit after the man who drove the car got out of his vehicle, the police arrived and a fire truck soon arrive opposite to the police cruiser.
The man stopped moving.
The paramedics brought out a gurney and didn't really put him on it. I think they just set it down on the ground and may have or not put him on it. They were very slow about this operation but I watched one paramedic walk over to the ambulance and bring back something that turned out to be a sheet when he unfolded it. He then put it over the man, I believe, in the same way that you would make a bed.
I witnessed someone die tonight.
12-01-2008
/
20:47 CST
We're heading toward Nashville at the moment, the cars been funny since we left Westminster.
Baltimore, Maryland, is the most depressing fucking place ever. We drove into Baltimore on the 29th to play at a loft/venue(?) in some warehouse complex neighborhood in the outskirts of Baltimore. First, in all fairness of Baltimore, I did not nor did I have time to venture to downtown Baltimore but the feel I got from where we were at and from the residents of this not so fair city, is that it's all kind of the same.
The fist notable things I noticed were the two po-po cruisers parked awkwardly beside a house with their light flashing, followed by some more cruisers not to far down the road en route to some murder, probably. My favorite part was that there were randomly placed (seemingly random) poles placed with flashing blue rotating lights on top. These are somewhat of the same variety that are among college campuses in cases of need, except these lights were three times as tall and I saw at least a dozen or so going off as we were searching for our destination.
As all of this nonsense was occurring, there were people casually walking across the street in a hurry but still as if this wasn't too out of the ordinary. There was still a feel of cautiousness afoot though. I also forgot one detail: it was probably nine or so at night.
We moved most of the stuff from the car to the loft when we arrived on account of the chance someone may decide to bust into the car and steal a plethora of small band shirts.
There were maybe thirty people there, all nice indie kids that live in a sketchy neighborhood. From talking to Amy, others, and just from some field research/notes or what have you; there seems to be a reoccurring theme of white indie kids living in sketch-ass neighborhoods. I've been told that this is because those particular areas are "edgy" and equates to "hip" or something to that degree. One example is the Tenderloin district in San-Fran proper. According to Amy (since she is indeed a bay resident), the mission is the main place in San-Fran where most of the hipsters reside. Recently (unspecified time range) the new place for the hipsters to go is the Tenderloin district that is chopped full of homeless and crack-heads. I took a walk through that area during my SFO Halloween stint and didn't really notice too much of that but I was also, per chance, a main drag cutting through there. I also cut through that area on the way to a venue I needed to see (the Boom Boom Room) but didn't see any Tenderloin-esque activity on account that the entire fucking bay was raining buckets that day. I walked three miles under those buckets and have the photos to prove.
The edgy neighborhood thing has indeed been a reoccurring theme that I have noticed on this trip when coinciding with loft or collective spaces and I have some input on why:
A) These neighborhoods are cheap. Think of it; if there is a bad neighborhood that average people won't live in on account of potential danger then it's probably going to be cheaper there. My Aunt and Uncle live in a part of Park Slope in Brooklyn that they bought their house at about four years ago. It was a complete reck at the time, which knocked down the value of it but also because the neighborhood was not the best then The house, if they choose to sell it now, would be a quarter more of the original price they paid for it, which is a lot if you knew the original price. In any case, it would be worth more now to sell because of all of the fixing up they did on the place but more importantly, in a few years the house will be worth more since there is a gentrification process occurring. This hasn't yet reached their neighborhood but it will. As neighborhoods are being dolled up to become more attractive (via residents, city actions on the neighborhood, blah-blah) the property values go up.
There's more to say about this but the point I'm leading up to is the neighborhoods may be terrible which leads to them being more affordable and as us young people have it, we're willing to take more risks because we're young. Older people tend to... Well not. So, the affordability probably tends to lead the younger crowd to those neighborhoods
B) It's fucking hip to be in an sketchy neighborhood. There is nothing wrong with this other than maybe getting raped/mugged/murdered. It's not exactly the ideal living conditions but if you do want to live in an area where you have potential like-minded individuals or a particular social group you can associate with then sketchy neighborhoods may one of the ways to go. It's a way that you may fit or not fit into a neighborhood. It's affordable and in some cases it's a social bonus.
There have been a few lofts that I've been quite fond of and most of them have been incredibly cold. It's winter and heating is expensive, so it makes sense. It's something I couldn't really do in the Winter- I could but I wouldn't want to- unless if it was at the Department of Safety.
