Dec 30

These are the hangover days – frosted glass, metallic glean/All these new known places they erase your memories

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Hindsight being 20-20 & all – I guess that last post was a bit harsh. Ahh boo – I have my moments of raving lunacy & I embrace’em.

Pa was gracious enough to re-assemble the treadmill & I’ve been running away the small town blues (while watching trash TV). There’s nothing like pairing StarTV with “long-distance running, cross-country running” (to quote Coach Calhoun) to put bygones to rest.

Enough with the low-lights – some highlights are: the mass exodus of all docs, Mp3s, software, etc from the Mac Dino to the iBook, old-school family dinners, car time, errands & reruns with Pa, digesting 2 newspapers/day, re-reading R. Doyle novels & Althea Prince’s Loving This Man, re-screening all Rufus DVDs & e-mails from Japan, U.S.-of-A. & Germany, plus Hometown Proud Tam, Rob&Jus, Mern&Trev & Ern.

I made a tentative promise to Hiroyuki to get on the digital camera front when we e-chatted this week….and I actually followed through, bud! Yesterday in Orillia I took advantage of Boxing Day ’sales’ & probably got fleeced. I am the dupe-able consumer that keeps the electronics sector alive & kicking. It was either this or an Mp3 player & I just can’t give Mac more $$ knowing that the Minis were superior beasts for music lovers (I wouldn’t watch crap American sitcoms on a regular TV, what’s the appeal of a matchbox-size screen?).

So $250-ish later, buyers remorse has set in & I’m hoping that I can figure it out & put it to good use at the wedding tomorrow night…That flushing noise is my ‘06 mantra to reduce spending to facilitate a Hiro/Toshi double-header visit… not conducive to gadget-getting…

Anyway, there’s excitement in the air – not just the usual NYEve hype, but a true, tangible & beautiful anticipation of a happy wedding & marriage ahead. Here’s to an ‘06 that will bring a 1st year wedding anniversary for Robyn & Justin & a puck-in-the-face-free Leafs game.

Peace & Photos to come,
Meegs

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Dec 26

…to take away this buzz that I call you/14 hours ahead, a head that’s heavier than lead/Toothpicks pry open eyes

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This week’s quotable quote on family-time comes straight outta New MeXmas from my fav former work bud, Peg, who summed it up poifectly with this gem; I HATE OBLIGATION THAT LEADS TO RESENTMENT.

Priceless & applicable to every unnecessary appendage dangling off Xmas: gifting, time, attention & stress. It makes me wish that I didn’t grow up in such a small town - tho its picturesque & you can strike up a random conversation about the benign things that townies talk about with justabout everybody you meet - it gets exhausting after awhile.

I missed being invisible, anonymous, jostled, coughed on & elbowed on public transit & avoiding phlegm clusters in Chinatown instead of tiring ‘where are you now?’ conversations with two-degree-away friends. You become myopic spending too much time with your family in a small town - a case of family-sized-narcissism. Its only cure is fleeing with your media (mags, music, iBook, DVDs & books - necessities) to the nearest urban centre.

What did I not get for Xmas? Perspective. Sometimes I wish that we had a drunk-driver-pedophile-serial-killer in our ranks to put the obnoxious, but relatively (no pun intented) ‘normal’ kin into perspective. After the sheen of basic+ cable wears off (in, uh, 24 hours, I really wasn’t missing much, huh? VJs get younger, dumber & more meterosexualized & I get older, grumpier & snottier about music) all we really have….is each other. Terrifying.

Since this is the time of year when journos rely on lists - I’ll do a short-version of Lows:

Absolute low - The actual trip itself was going okay until my iBook conked out & left me with no light, no music & no stimulation….except eavesdropping on an excruciating conversation between the pitiable driver & the requisite “I say I need to sit at the front because of my carsickness but its really because I’m a lonely old goat that needs a captive audience.” It was a goddamned Hinterland Who’s Who up there - comparing the cunning & wiles of wild animals. I’m so not kidding:

“You know what’s smart? Foxes.” (Kill me now. Please don’t elaborate) “Yep, we had a fox that would come to the fence every single day and tease our dogs…(For the love of God, please go back to talking about your grandchildren or road conditions.)..They can get along though, they’re from îthe same family - canius genus” (Did you go to the Wile E. Coyote Veterinary School? Would I rather have the bus roll into a fiery ball or be condemned to use this vile bathroom for the rest of my life?) “Oh, yeah, if they grow up together they can get along.” (And you learned this from a Disney movie that you’ve mistaken for a documentary. Terrific.) “You could actually breed them together - a dog and a fox - yep, I mean you might have infertile cubs, but you could do it.” (Are you smoking crack in your laboratory of white trash inbreeds & animal hybrids? Did you actually make a liger after seeing Napoleon Dynamite?)

Overall Low: Welcome to Martyrdom - Population: Moms
I am so sick of uterus - carrying member of families emotionally blackmailing people with guilt and other trickery. Can this gender-stereotype end soonish?

Continuing Disappointment: Nostalgia.
Enough old clothes, books, tapes, photos, I am over-nostalgisised - give me tang and touch-tone phones ASAP. The Mayberry allure of the small town has also worn thin. Tho the Boxing Day shopping here is gunfire free (Becuase there are no real gangs in PS - the Choko/Snap-on-Tools/Yamaha/Artici Cats tribes get along without any problems because there’s no real crime turf to fight over - the open market of selling of ‘schrooms goes on relatively unimpeded.)

On that Festivus-airing-of-grievances-note I’ll return to the pleasures of small town life - alphebatizing bottlecap collections, syphoning gas & huffing said fuel….I’m due for some solvent salvation.

Save me,
Meegs

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Dec 21

Dreamed I was an Eskimo, Frozen wind began to blow, Under my boots and around my toes, The frost that bit the ground below

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Today would’ve been Frank’s 65th birthday….If there really was a God, wouldn’t Mr. & Mrs. Spears/Federline be roadkill by now & Zappa’d still be making freaky tunes? A pre-Parry Sound ponderable. I will probably indulge in some fun Apostrophe tunes – or dabble into the massive Pitchfork Top 50 Singles list on my way back on the Ontario Northland stretch limo a.k.a. the stank ass buss. Brought my iBook to keep from thinking or reading – it’s the holidays for chrissakes!

Namaste to all the friends & family from around the world – it was cool to hear back from some ‘wildcard’ Xmas card recipients….I’m glad that I fired off postage to Germany, Japan & the far reaches of Ottawa – Don’t expect many postings from here on in….dialup on the archaic iMac

meegs

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Dec 20

Snow white room on the snow white clouds, Taxicabs disappear like keys in lost & found bins

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A Xmas Mix Tape For You

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Dec 20

Hey, keep an eye on what you say, You think the words just walk away, But they’re creepin’ through my brain, Sinkin’ deep into my step

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Too much living - too little blogging.

Well, well, well….since my last post
- a fantastic & super-sweet house guest stayed at the apt
- friends shared thoughtful & music-related gifts
- an EPIC & perfect wedding at the Berkeley Church brought a gaggle of fun-loving friends & new acquaintances into town
- attended the season’s requisite Xmas party with an impromptu danceathon
- thankfully met the host/ess couple 2xs on the grumpy & cramped streetcar
- brightening days twice
- ate, drank, was merry with soon-to-be-married buds in a fondue frenzy
- shared Vietnamese food unexpectedly with our soon-to-be-cohabitating buds
- argued (friendly-style) over the Top Ten Lists of the year
- got in touch with a Top-Tenner
- current-colleague lunch was had
- a former OP-colleague lunch is this aft
- reached out & touched a former fav O-town supervisor
- got great feedback from the Xmas card mail-out (mine not the MPPs…tho both were well received)
- helped the Beau pack up for MTL
- prepared the nerdy packing list for my PS trip
- took fav UK-ex-pat couple to Timmy Ho’s for some nostalgic nosh
- overall - renewed my faith in ‘holiday season’ hokery

This has been a tiring run, but I’m sure that I’ll miss it when I’m in the Hoot. I guess the images (so tempted to post Pho & fondue pics but that’d just make me hungry) represent my future NY Resolutions - the ol’reliable floss more & improve posture are just annual standards…but I fortuitously stumbled upon these bmp’ed gems & I’m going to put’em to good use before the clock strikes twelve in Nobel, Ontario. Less consumption - more civility.

peace
meegs

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Dec 19

This Just In: & Me Just Out….Boo

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If you are around between Christmas and New Year’s, drop by the Tranzac Club on Dec. 27 at 7:30.

Mike Evin’ll be playing two sets of music — the first will be solely comprised of Motown songs and the second will be originals. And it’s free!!

TUESDAY, DECEMBER 27
TRANZAC CLUB (292 Brunswick Ave., south of Bloor)
7:30 pm - MIKE PLAYS MOTOWN
8:30 pm - MIKE PLAYS MIKE EVIN

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Dec 16

Oh, your record label hasn’t come through yet, You’ve gained some weight, And all you can think is, When the Romeo’s gonna show

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Your apartment is on fire – screw the possessions, photos, pets, etc; you have mere minutes to download the best tracks of 0-5:
1. Stay Gritty - Mike Evin (I’ll Bring the Stereo)
2. Taper Jean Girl - Kings Of Leon (Aha Shake Heartbreak)
3. Don’t Get In A Fight - Spitfires & Mayflowers (Triumph)
4. The Chronicles of Sarnia - Final Fantasy (Final Fantasy Has A Good Home)
5. Drink To Me, Babe, Then - A.C. Newman (The Slow Wonder)
6. parry sound - Jason Collett (Idols of Exile)
7. Earth Angel - Death Cab for Cutie (Stubbs the Zombie s/t)
8. Movement II - DaKah Hip Hop Orchestra (Live at Grand Performances)
9. I Summon You (Demo Version) – Spoon (Gimme Fiction Bonus Disc)
10. Stormy Sky (With Emmylou Harris & Willie Nelson) - Daniel Lanois (Rockets)

Phew! It’s not the smoke detector, just the carbon monoxide thingie going off – well, then, hunker down for the top 10 LPs & EPs of 2005:
1. Joel Plaskett – La De Da – Of course he’s my #1. I can honestly say, tho, that this is JP at the top of his game – crisp production, sharp, witty, biting lyrics & aching ballads. Heads up for a DVD in ‘06.

2. Low -The Great Destroyer – A 180 from all previous releases – panned & hated by critics & fans alike. Screw’em both, it’s a brilliant, – gasp – accessible LP & shows the breadth of the band.

3. Nada Surf – Let Go – Guilty pop pleasures that haunt you. I’m tempted to see them for the 3rd time this year & no, they’re not at all the “Popular” rockers you remember, they’ve evolved into a great band.

4. Mike Evin – I’ll Bring the Stereo – Great voice, great lyrics, amazing composition, catchy bridges & perfect choruses. For fans of B.Folds, S.Slean, R.Wainwright, etc.

5. Various – Stubbs the Zombie Soundtrack – Do I know anything about the video game from which I pilfered this LP? No. It’s a perfect set of lo-fi heroes doing covers of pop song classics. Ravonettes, Ben Kweller, Cake, etc, etc.

6. M.I.A. – Arular – I’m that lame early adopter, fruitlessly waiting to get into her SXSW show with the B-list industry weasels. Since the shut out in TX & the many sold-out gigs in TO, this galan-chicka has the forbidden fruit allure….& great dance tracks.

7. Kings of Leon – Aha Shake Heartbreak – Lack the jawdropping factor as the debut…what PS gal won’t swoon at a tribute to tapered jeans. Skynard-tinged teen partying tunes – good times.

8. Spoon – Gimmie Fiction – Another follow-up-to-break-out CD, but its more ‘Girls Can Tell’ than ‘Kill the Moonlight’. Looser, jammier & rougher - a testament to long-ass tours.

9. Diableros – You Can’t Break the Strings of Our Olympic Hearts – A genuinely praiseworthy album, swirly & thick East-Coast US feel to overall production, sound, lyrics (like BRMC, Warhols, etc).

10. Martha Wainwright – B.M.F.A. EP & S/T LP – The strength of these releases is that they won me over – I was convinced that she was a coat-tail-riding sibling of my future baby daddy, Rufus. She’s better than Joni. I was wrong. Not about the baby daddy stuff.

Coudda Been A Contenda Honourable Mentions: Hi Lo Trons, Wolf Parade EP, Frontier Index, Les Georges Leningrad, Animal Collective, Cuff the Duke, & The Acorn.

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Dec 15

Now main street’s whitewashed windows and vacant stores, Seems like there ain’t nobody wants to come down here no more

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T-Minus One Week Til I Go Home. It’s been a really long time, too. The clan didn’t celebrate Thanksgiving this year for family health reasons that I have blogged about @ length. So there’s a certain anticipation (or impending doom - back blogged family stuff here under the Louden Lyric) looming about my return to the Hoot.

Tomorrow brings many Canuck ex-pats to our frosty shores: Tammy & Zac are returning to the Great White North from our colonial motherland - first crashing at Robyn & Justin’s vacant pad & hopefully hooking up with yours truly before they catch a dog sled up to the Hoot & further. Luc’s bud Antoine from AUS will be lodging with us for a festive-timed wedding on the 17th….& then Parry Sounders get to play host to all those coming up for the New Year’s Eve Nuptials. It’ll be nice to show Ozzy how much more sophisticated OUR hometown is vs. Brockville….Ahh boo, who am I kidding?!

Hopefully tonight we can draw a respectible posse for the Rheos guest vocalist night from their long-ass stint at the Horseshoe. Could’ve gone on Tuesday with Martin & Ruven (the free night with new material) but the Beau rented The Big Lebowski & insisted that I not wait another moment to screen this cinematic masterpiece…which, I must admit, was pretty thought-provoking without pummelling a ‘lesson’ into your head, worked on many different levels and featured amazing character actors (like all Cohen Bros. movies).

Tho I find it hard to look ahead to an outing tonite - I am hurtin’ hard from some good times @ last night’s Xmas bash….Closed the resto & stayed up waaaaay past my bedtime @ the Chelsea Room (where they let nasty patrons smoke inside - WTF?)…Was in such a mist this a.m. that I grabbed disgusting bright & fuzzy green socks that’re now shimmering thru my lil’orphan Annie-style MaryJanes. Brutal.

Anywhoo - enough ramblin type - back to work-ish

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Dec 15

You’ve Gotta Roll, Bah-bee….

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This just in from Jeff:
oh! the pretty things will be playing our first show next thursday (the 22nd) at clinton’s. we’ll be there to support our good friend, shannon briggs, who’s just finished recording a record with some help from some excellent musicians (including sarah harmer). jason denicolais will also be playing an acoustic set.

oh! the pretty things will be playing through the tracks from the album we’re working on, tentatively titled, 50 ways to lay a fish.

please pass this puppy on…

oh! the pretty things
sash, pinto, kearnsy, and suppa

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Dec 14

Bridget’s all wrapped up in foil,You wonder if she can uncoil

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What a difference a book makes.

Two nights ago I finally finished what had become an arduous transit-companion, “Nico, Songs They Never Play on the Radio,” written post-Nico-humously by her last piano player from her last tour…

Now I don’t pretend to be some literary laureate & you can tell by the jangly prose herein that I don’t conform to most rules of writerly engagement….but there’s nothing more depressing than a book on a depressing subject that’s slopped together haphazardly by some coat-tail rider from the past…

& why did I see this tome through to its miserable end, you ask? Well, I’m a stubborn mo-fo & I hate putting a book to rest (& complaining about it) without finishing it….Like my voting philosophy - for every valid anti-politico whine there must also be an admission that one vote was cast for ‘the other guy.’

Yesterday I finally cracked into an early Xmas gift for myself - the 2003 Sedaris ‘masterpiece’ (everything he writes is, to me, a masterpiece) - Naked. I was laughing out loud on the streetcar on my way home (& for the record I only drank non-alcoholic bevvies that that eve’s reception…) while reading about his poor mother’s enduring rivalry with her mother-in-law….priceless & timely considering that I’m mentally training for the annual Warby sparring match between the estrogen-powered matriarchs…(& this is why I worked every-single-Xmas-break until my MA & TX).

Enough bookwormery - need to get to work on my 2005 top ten list…there’s a dark horse Wainwright on the longlist….I need some downtime & reflection to nail this year’s write-up & avoid recent purchase/nostalgia-influenced decisions…it’ll have to take a backseat to tonite’s Xmas soiree for the politico party…Back off lefty-pinko buds, I didn’t turn Republican in Bush’s state, il y en a des limites….

peace
meegs

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