it is an absolutely radiant spring day.
the grass and dandelions of my odd, slanted yard are comically overgrown,
to be fussed over another day.
for now the sun's tender bugs float and twirl all about it,
i am lying belly-down in bed, window wide open, twirling my wavy strands
wiggling my toes, just letting myself be dazzled by their jungle ballet.
(and my daily bird's on the fence do not seem to mind, either)
at certain moments they rise up
(tiny white specks from here)
as micrometeroids drift down through the atmosphere
(seen pouring into my room when the light is just right)
and there is no battle,
just a passing through of one another.
perhaps we should all learn to be so lessened in our concern with others
with their thoughts on life and of us,
with their actions, political views, styles, vocabularies,
with whether they snort or smoke or swallow
with how they raise their children
we are destined to be disgusted with our own species and on too rare occasions,
endeared.
to expect drastic change of a species of nearly seven billion and rising
of humanity's size and capabilities
must be exhausting.
to be concerned and to take action in whatever way you do is noble and worthy
however, some days we have to look outside of ourselves
feel honored that despite the monstrosities of mankind,
there are scatterings of precious gems
and we are still in the presence of so many other wonderful life forms
that live and die without having to scowl at distasteful actions to pass
without a relentless struggle for money
without convincing themselves that the reason for the existence of life goes beyond
merely continuing the existence of life
but it is still fun to dance and sing and craft and ride and know we can be cured of ailments
but please, world, just for a few moments, a few days, a few years...
stop being so serious.
wake up and smell the bacon.
(and whatever you vegans eat)
tell the man "fuck you, man" at least every so often
remember that money is useful but you can indeed survive without much of it if you must
(and even just for kicks)
fall in love with the tiny feet of birds as they flit about on city streets
while a woman in a suit screams into her telephone,
"Mommy can't come to your soccer game!!! she has a HAIR APPOINTMENT!!!!!"
never, ever, forget life before twitter and facebook.
in fact, take time out to remember it well.
someone recently said to me after a trip to the used movie store: "i can't believe you still buy dvds!"
i guess i have rapidly become old-fashioned by today's standards.
well, i was staring out the window about to catch you up on the events of the past couple of weeks and now we have landed here, somehow. i am also not sure how to end this, and so i will just awkwardly transition.
i mentioned bacon...i do legitimately want to know if there is a vegetarian/vegan alternative to bacon that actually tastes somewhat like bacon? i don't plan to ever abandon my omnivorous ways, but i have always been curious.
but anyhow,
events!
me and my amazing lovah took some time off and made a journey down to virginia and then to new york. in virginia i got to visit my parents/sister/brother and they took me out for a belated birthday dinner at my favorite mexican joint. they also got me chocolate/banana/peanut butter cupcakes with white chocolate on top and even got skull napkins to serve them on. they know me so well.
the next day i headed to richmond and went to my favorite bookstore in all of the united states, chop suey, and purchased a few gems.
that night was the converge show in richmond that i've been anticipating for months.
it was fucking brutal!
i found this video of them performing last light at this show:
the next day we drove to new york where we stayed with a friend in queens.
it was super late when we got in and i was still pretty beat up from the show so we stayed in
but started early the next day with a brunch of kings at a place called cafe bar.
bacon! coffee! bloody marys! sunshine!
we checked out the high line which is amazing! a public park built on a historic freight rail above the west side of manhattan. walked the entire length twice. marvelous people watching.
the museum of modern art is free on friday nights, so that was a given.
there was a lot of cool stuff and a lot of questionable stuff, like any museum
some of my favorite pieces were
this painting called napolean on the wilderness by max ernst
this crazy egg filled with pieces of hair, bone, and timepieces by natsuyuki nakanishi
and this installation piece, for the panty hose fetishists
friday night was wild and fun. slugging whiskey and beer in queens and east village until 6 am.
i was proud of myself for finally somewhat figuring out the subway system on this trip.
saturday we went to eat at my beloved kati roll
as well as got delish donuts at the doughnut plant
saturday night we headed to brooklyn to see converge again at the music hall of williamsburg
(i LOVED this venue. the sound was incredible)
this show wasn't quite as intimate and violent as the one in richmond but still fabulous.
pianos become the teeth killed it as well.
they are one of the best bands to surface in the past few years in my opinion, i haven't seen so many people this genuinely stoked and moved by hardcore music in a very, very long time. i'm so happy they got the opportunity to tour with converge, who has personally influenced my life more than any other band.
a video from the brooklyn show! (long, but a great one)
now i am back in lovely little pittsburgh.
i've been struggling with shitty corporate jobs for the past year, ever since i quit the bakery
i found a new opportunity a couple of months ago but it just isn't what i thought it would be
life is too short to hate your job
i've been wanting to get back into the bakery business while i finish school and generally continue to feel life out, because it is a trade that i genuinely love and want to learn more about
on a whim i came across an opportunity at a local bread bakery who does everything here in pittsburgh, all the way from the mill. fresh. local. and it is located in the complete opposite direction from downtown. i have had to experience downtown pittsburgh every day of my working life for almost seven years. GET ME OUT OF THERE.
i would actually get to learn to bake bread which excites me.
and the possibility of not having to wear long sleeves the entire summer fills my heart with joy
interview is on wednesday, regardless of the result, i gotta get out of where i am
wish me luck
its been a glorious day ever since.
lounged at my favorite neighborhood coffee shop for a cup of joe and some quality reading time
added some treasures to my thrift store coffee mug collection:
otherwise been hanging in my skivvies enjoying a day free of homework and work of all kinds
i have some goods for sale in the swap meet group!!! check it out if you wish.
thanks for stopping by, sexy people of the land.
it has been a pleasure to share with you, as always.
til' we meet again..
<3 Rexxy
for things can harden meaningfully in the moment of indecision
i cannot decide in which direction to walk
but this doesn't matter to me, and i might as well
decide to climb a mountain (it looks almost flat)
as decide to go home
or to a bar or restaurant or to the home
of some friend as charming and ineffectual as i am
because these pauses are supposed to be life
and they sink steel needles deep into the poors, as though to say
there is no use trying to escape
and it is all here anyway.
-john ashberry
peace and love, baby.