My other car is a minority.

It's late. The year is winding down and I've been watching PBS all night. On next is Rick Steve's Gaza Strip: Through the Back Door travel special. How timely. Sorry Rick, everything I need to know about the Gaza Strip I learn from fair and balanced AP dispatches. Anyhow, back to Senior Steve--seriously, who finds this guy appealing? Let's try again, who under 60/non-old-White-lady finds this guy appealing? No, I've been watching obsessed with this Spain On The Road Again series with Gweneth Paltrow, that Mario Batali guy, some creep food critic/writer and the new love of my life, Spanish actress Claudia Bassols. Move over Carla Gugino! A relatively unknown here in the states, I think the show's producers felt they needed a native to give the show a bit more authenticity, but that's not important right now, what is important is that I quite fancy her. In fact I think she may just be the perfect woman. I think I may just have to marry her. To see here hoarding slices of ruby red jamón from that creep was more amusing than the 6th time I came out of the closet. Hell, I'm even willing to overlook her upcoming romantic comedy with Breakin' extra Jean Claude Van Damme. The premise of the show is simple--the cast travel through Spain eating. The irony of course is that Spanish food is quite bland and isn't really all that good. But everything looks so damned good on the show...whats that you say?! The show is funded by Spain's Ministry of Tourism. Es verdad.

Now that's just S.A.D.

Courtesy Bio-Light

The irony here is that it's really cold and I haven't seen the sun since Friday...not exactly by choice (Oasis gig in Vegas) but that's not important right now. What is important is that I know the hell the song S.A.D. Light by Glasvegas is about. Only after reading the lyrics and a few Google searches of course. It had been driving me to what Esmée Denters titled her record, a crazy place.

Pity thy winter blues. So apparently, there are folks who suffer from something called, Seasonal Affective Disorder (S.A.D.), from Wiki:

A mood disorder in which people who have normal mental health throughout most of the year experience depressive symptoms in the winter repeatedly, year after year. The US National Library of Medicine notes that "some people experience a serious mood change when the seasons change. They may sleep too much, have little energy, and crave sweets and starchy foods. They may also feel depressed. Though symptoms can be severe, they usually clear up." The condition in the summer is often referred to as Reverse Seasonal Affective Disorder, and can also include heightened anxiety.

There are many different treatments for classic (winter-based) seasonal affective disorder, including light therapies with bright lights, anti-depression medication, ionized-air administration, cognitive-behavioral therapy, and carefully timed supplementation of the hormone melatonin.

Sounds made up. Just ask Tom Cruise. One "cure" is a S.A.D. light, aka Full Spectrum Lighting and how it works is simple--stare at 10,000 lux light for an hour a day--and you no longer feel the urge to leave Alaska or make friends or do crystal meth or burn down the Hot Topic. Hell, you don't even have to go outside. Smile! Like I've been saying for days, the sun is overrated anyway.

Perhaps I should be a bit more empathetic, not everyone has had the benefit of growing up in a season-less place. Es verdad, pero those people should move, apenas no aquí, por favor.

Winter blues no love for you
Seasons change in a gothic way
10, 000 lux to light us up
In these winter nights if I'm wandering all alone

I'll turn on my S.A.D. light

As I'm staring at Alpha Centauri
All I can see is how it's glow seems so far
How did I get to this point
Of things playing so heavy on my heart
Twinkle little star
How I wonder what you are

I'll turn on my S.A.D. light

See, you do learn something new everyday. Nuclear winters?! Bring it on. Okay, time for bed, the sun's coming up soon.

Sniff...no really, its just something in my eye...

Glasvegas - Daddy's Gone



Say...are these lads foreign? Accent? What accent?

May the absence of daddy continue to inspire many a maladjusted adolescent...and future exotic dancers.

Undead. Undead. Suckers.

Fad: a practice or interest followed for a time with exaggerated zeal.
— Merriam-Webster Dictionary

Bring back the penguins! What happened to the penguins? Do we not care about penguins any longer? What happened to the baby craze? Today, we've gone vampire crazy. The literary world started it. Hollywood should end it. Soon. What say you pirates? Hmm...pregnant penguin vampires...

Oh, and a heads up to insecure dudes...if there's a movie with anyone named Seth--acting, producing, directing, and/or writing involved you will see male full-frontal. Yes. Consider yourself warned.

Early AM Poetry from C.O.M.P.T.O.N

Yes this is verse from a "gangster rap" song. I recall hearing this in the early 90's and thinking...how wonderful.

RBX - Stranded on Death Row (Verse 2)

No prevention from this lynchin of sorts
Your're a victim, from my driveby of thoughts
No extensions, all attempts are to fail
Blinded by the light, it's time you learn braile
From the lunatic, I'm death like arsenic
When I kick a wicked raps, Dr. Dre will hit the scratch
With treachery, my literary form will blast
And totally surpass the norm
Not a storm, plural, make it, many storms
When I'm vexed, I fly leg necks and arms
In this dimension, I'm the presenter
And the inventor, and the tormentor
Deranged, like the Hillside Strangler
MC mangler, tough like Wrangler
I write a rhyme, hard as concrete
Step to the heat and get burned like mesquite!
So what you wanna do?

The narrator RBX, cell block two

Getting caught up in the moment...briefly.

Say, was that you riding a fixie at midnite around Sunset + Hyperion on election nite in skinny jeans, a I ♥ NY tee and sporting a keffiyeh? (You sure as hell weren't wearing that scarf on Sept. 12, 2001!). Complete with a bandana hanging from your back pocket. That was you. You had just left the taco truck with your carne asada con todo. Si Se Puede! The Piolín would be proud. Seriously. Stop. Please. No, seriously. Stop. Come on. I'm pleading here. Riding around in tight black jeans is just plain silly, with no helmet no less. Silly and unsafe. It's so not L.A. And when did not having to kill your legs riding uphill on an old road bike with more than one cog become uncool?!

I don't know what the motivation is. I really don't. As I understand, hipster (I hate that word, like EMO--I don't know what the hell it means. Someone asked me once if I listened to EMO, I replied, you mean like the Geto Boys? That's some EMOtional shit) fashion today is--one part skater/punk, one part Black girl (circa 1988) and one part fag--but you can only get away that shit in the Mission district (SF) or parts of NYC, but L.A.? Come on. My five biggest pet peeves--litterers, parking lot speeders, gasoline spillers @ the pump, people who aren't down with Air Supply and the most egregious--Californians sporting NYC garb. Leave now. Please. No really. Leave. I hate to break this too you, and there's no easy way to say this, so I will just come out and say it. Here goes. People from NYC aren't anymore interesting, creative, brave or real than folks in Chattanooga, TN or Blytheville, AR for that matter, but possibly more so than people in Orange County. Hehe.

I digress, I've spent the last few days here in the Bay trying to make sense of it all. San Francisco values seated deep. Quick recap--hip Lesbians, twitching dealers, hitchhikers, belligerence, parking nightmares, 120sq ft. studio apts, musicians, junkie clichés, lines and lines, good times. Pity thy principles. Looks like I picked a bad week to...what's that? You're a designer/writer/musician/dj/hairdresser/model? Wow. I'm sorry, but I'm interested in meeting a nice admin assistant who works in the billing department of a mid-size HMO.

So, nearly two weeks have passed since the election...a clearer mind and a chance to reflect as I await Change.

Election day...surprisingly, no line and no waiting. Walked right in to my polling location (St.Something-or-other Catholic Church). Ink-a-dot pen in hand, I did a quick once over of the names for Supreme Leader. First name--the Unreasonable Man himself, Ralph Nader, Cynthia McKinney (Green Party), McCain/Palin, that Hussein fellow, Alan Keyes (yes that Alan effin' Keyes--the man who once had his own show on MSNBC of all places--post 9/11 of course, what a difference 6 years makes), and Bob Barr (Republican turned Libertarian candidate). So there I was voting in this historic election and I couldn't do it. I couldn't bring myself to vote for the not-exactly-Black guy, even though I wanted him to win. I mean I like the guy. I really do. Truth be told, on more than one occasion I found myself defending BHO from some of the most asinine and downright sinister smears but on that morning I just couldn't bring myself to vote for the man. Plus, living here in CA, it really didn't matter much in the way of electoral votes now did it? No regrets.

But election night was an entirely different kind of flying--altogether. After watching Sydney McCain give his concession speech--gracious, humble, sincere--where was this McCain during the campaign I thought as I heading out. Ended up at a $9 cup o'chai tea cafe in L.A.'s lastest bastard child of gentrification--Echo Park, with a friend as CNN replayed parts of the Pres-Elect's speech on the flatscreen, when I heard some kind of ruckus outside the place. Finished my tangy tea and strawberry tart, went outside and noticed about 10-12 people on the street corner celebrating--a few with Obama t-shirts and placards. We stood watching for a few minutes before crossing the street and were warmly embraced with open arms and high-fives as triumphant tunes blasted out from the gelato place's tired speakers--everything from We Are The Champions and Eye of the Tiger to America, Fuck Yea! It was easy to get caught up in the moment. It seemed spontaneous, real, and genuine. In less than 30 minutes that small crowd had swelled to dozens and we could see another large crowd gathering on the corner down the street. A colored boy even tagged Yes We Did! on the utility box in front of me and for those brief moments, all I could do was smile my cynical ass silly. After about an hour the novelty had worn thin and it was time to go as a kind of immediate morning after effect kicked in.

And as the pieces of our new Pres-Elect's cabinet and policy making apparatus come together, the cynic has reemerged with a vengeance. Real change will probably have to wait a while longer. Let us pray.

The passing of a great American progressive

From The Guardian:

Studs Terkel, the Pulitzer prize-winning author, broadcaster and master chronicler of American life in the 20th century, died last night. He was 96.

Celebrated for his streetwise portrayals of the American working class, Terkel was best known for letting the common people he called "the uncelebrated" tell their stories in books like Working and The Good War.

To generations of radio listeners he was also the voice of The Studs Terkel Show, which ran for 43 years and was widely syndicated across the US.

More on Studs @DemocracyNow!

Studs Terkel worked as an activist, a civil servant, a labor organizer, an ad writer, a television actor, and a radio DJ, among many other occupations. But since the 1960s, he was particularly well-known as a world-class interviewer, a writer and radio personality who drew celebrities and, far more often, average citizens into sharing their oral histories.

For 45 years, Studs Terkel spent an hour each weekday on his nationally syndicated radio show, conversing with famous and not-so-famous guests and with a loyal audience of Chicago listeners.

Late nite music to sit down to...

Tim Booth works the crowd @ the El Rey last nite.

First show in ages where I actually stayed for its entirety. Simply amazing. Fans rushing the stage at a James show?! Yes but aren't they like old now? Self control has just expired--Tim brought it out in us ;) Stand out tracks--Say Something, Say, Sit Down, Top Of The World and Laid. Say, I hear Tim lives in L.A. now...I should go get him a new hat. Here is an older live clip featuring Tim in a weird skullcap/beenie. Cheers!


Laid


Say Something



Tim Booth sans curls 2008

You ever seen these two in the same place? Exactly. Now if you could get Ben Kingsley to dance like Michael Stipe, Tim Booth would be out of a job.

Ka'dairy.

What did I say? What did I say? For the love of Intelligent Designer, never trust anyone named Asif--under any circumstance. Here is the playboy makin' a play for my special lady friend, Sandra. Yes, I call her Sandra now.

And a happy Eid to you too.

Late nite music that bobs and flaps...

My second favorite Scorpio.


OMD - Pandora's Box

Late nite music from the land of fire and ice.

Gus Gus circa 1997 - Believe (Live)


Fashion. Art. Beats. 10 years ahead of it's time. Brilliant.

Has it been over ten years?! Geez, I'm gettin' old. Help the aged. One of the best live shows I've ever seen. Polydistortion tour 1997 @ the Roxy, Sunset Blvd. Where were you?

The Market is falling!

So much for my retirement accounts. Another headline like this--Lehman bankruptcy filing shows $613 billion debt, and I'm going to have to stop using my stimulus package on lapdances. $613Bn. Seriously? How does this happen? Someone explain! Surely Governor Gidget Palin will save us! Say, whatever happened to the guillotine? I decree now would be a good time for it to make a historic comeback. Begin with them pesky whiners and their mental recession! Say what? You owned LEH and AIG? Listen, this will all be over soon enough. Think of the losses you can write off.

Say, what are the visa requirements for Canadian residency?

Cup half-full--lapdances will stay reasonably priced for some time to come. Oooh, 2 for 1 specials. Don't despair!

Give this guy your money.

Unhealthy obsession #342

Vintage Trek road bikes. I youtub'd Trek and came across this winner from the Empire state...normally I don't condone any kind of violence but after watching this, I wish someone would run over this guy's big toe with a 27" Super Champion Wolber. Vintage wheel reference. Thank you.



Subdivisions? $180! New Pedals! Craig1974 on youtube. Watch his videos. Pray for humanity.

How do you say crook in Urdu?

"Playboy"

BBC Profile:

He spent several years in jail on charges of corruption. He was labelled "Mr 10%".

He found himself in major trouble in 1990 when he was accused of tying a remote-controlled bomb to the leg of a businessman and sending him into a bank to withdraw money from his account as a pay-off.

As a rule of opposable thumbs, never ever under any circumstance trust anyone named Asif. As if? Please. Crook? Possibly, but he'll be a pro-Western crook! Well why didn't you just say so in the first place? Send cash quick!

What say you Democracy?

Harmony, balance, beauty! Or simply looking for Chinese investors?

Red.

Red is hot. It's a strong color that conjures up a range of seemingly conflicting emotions from passionate love to violence and warfare. Red is Cupid and the Devil.

Red is power, hence the red power tie for business people and the red carpet for celebrities and VIPs (very important people).

Flashing red lights denote danger or emergency. Stop signs and stop lights are red to get the drivers' attention and alert them to the dangers of the intersection.

In some cultures, red denotes purity, joy, and celebration. Red is the color of happiness and prosperity in China and may be used to attract good luck.Red is often the color worn by brides in the East while it is the color of mourning in South Africa. In Russia the Bolsheviks used a red flag when they overthrew the Tsar, thus red became associated with communism. Many national flags use red.

First it was Nevada State Hwy signs, now this...for over a year now, I've been watching every Bank of America location update it's signage to it's (newer) logo to a red background with red or occasionally blue text (see below). I totally flip out every time I see it now. Red on Red?

What say you dear Aesthetic?


Logo w/white background. Super!


Passion?




Let the eagle soar!