MY 30th BIRTHDAY PRESENT, TO MYSELF

So for many of you, er, for those of you who were at my fricking awesome 30^th birthday party, you know that I’m 30. So in honor of turning 30, I thought I would do something special for myself; so I’ve decided to get Health Insurance.

Is that applause I hear? No, actually it’s silence, and questions, especially the most popular, “Wait, you don’t have health insurance?”

“That’s right,” I says, “I don’t got it, don’t need it.”

And then I hear back, “You playin’ with fire boy.”

And then I look back at them and say, “No, I’m playing with house money.”

Okay, I’m done with that.

Anyway, I’ve decided to get it, and I have a few plans, well the most important decision, I’ve had to make was to get Physical Therapy included. So I did some research and found a recommended Physical/Sport Therapist nearby named Dr. Mike.

And what do you know, he’s not unaffordable when you don’t have insurance. Dr. Mike is kind of the bomb in that way, (he’s kind of NOT THE BOMB, in his pushing you towards a healthy vegan, exercise 1 hour everyday, and do everything good for yourself and nothing bad, even the bad things that you really want, like the Rice Dream Mocha Sandwich, I will eat as soon as I’m done with this blog.)

After meeting with Dr. Mike, I have found that my hip bones are not balanced (because of my back pocket wallet?) and that I have a nerve going the wrong way in my lower back, which he was shocked to find out doesn’t really hurt me that much, but might be THE PROBLEM with MY KNEE!!! And also, I discovered that my lower spine bone seems to be a little misformed which was something that happened when I developed in the womb or some kind of trauma to my tailbone I don’t remember, although I kind of feel like I have this lingering memory of excruciating tail bone pain, but I have no idea if that is real.

So Dr. Mike adjusted me today, and hopefully I will be able to run again, which would be the best 30^th birthday present I could ever gotten.

And because of all this, this weekend I will apply for insurance without Physical Therapy but does have better Hospital and more Dr. Visits per year, but is 50 dollars cheaper a month. (I still don’t get that works, but whatever.)

So family, Grandma, you can relax, I’m gonna get covered.

~Will

I Don't Know About This. Life...

(Um, so this was going to be a list of random thoughts, you know like the old days, but well, I came up with one stupid rhyme and that led to another and another, and then I was trapped, and I was RAMBLING!

- So in essence, I dedicate this to me, to life, to no one in particular, and well, maybe everyone....)

"I Don't Know About This. Life..."

It's funny business being a human being,

Always trying to figure out what life's supposed to mean.

There's so many answers I'm supposed to work out on my own,

All these things I'm expected to know now that I'm grown!

Well maybe I'm not supposed to know what it's all supposed to mean,

Cause, I swear it can't be a good thing to nail down your life's theme.

And how are all my dreams supposed to figure into this part,

I wish I could tell if they were coming from my head or my heart.

And sometimes,

I think I'd rather be heartbroken then heartless,

Which makes a lot of sense if you feel like me.

And if you're you and you're wondering why I let myself feel that pain,

Know that I can't help, I need it, it helps me numb my brain.

It helps me hide my insecurities about the things I don't understand,

Like the part I'm supposed to play in the great scheme, in the plan, man.

And maybe that's a waste of time, but it's better for my mind.

Maybe everything is a waste of time, but thinking like that is the real crime.

And sometimes,

I don't think it helps me when you look me in the eye,

Cause our souls might connect, and I might start to cry.

Because your eyes are like a two way mirror,

Revealing to me all the hidden pain and all that fear.

Cause I don't know if I'm ever going to get my shit straight,

And I pray and I pray and I pray, that when I do it won't be too late.

I know, I don't want to be like you, but I don't want to be like me,

Do you think maybe you and I could find something in between?

Music Report Jan-May 2010: CDs

Dear Music Fans,

What a big year for music it's been so far. And there is so much more to come. It's daunting to even begin to start this. Daunting, knowing that I'm not even going to write about Coachella in this one. Not here, we'll just start with some good CDS.

As always, this is more of a journal of discovery then a rank or a list.

Frightened Rabbit "The Midnight Organ Fight"

Holy shit. This CD is good. I mean like hella good. This CD came out in like 2008, i think, and of course I missed it. I only found it because they put out a new CD this year, which is like alright, but has nothing on this one. There are so many stand out tracks. This CD is about a guy who is just a dude, a dude trying to find love or something like it. Each track pretty much is about relationships, and really about relationships gone wrong. He's a dude in love, he's a dude who is really mad at a woman, he's a dude who doesn't care if she's really drunk, he just wants to feel the warmth of her. Now, for me it's not the depressing words or thoughtful contemplation on the multitudes of relationships, it's the power of the music, the songs, and the singing that keeps me coming back to this CD. This might be the best british rock cd of the second half of the decade. Might, but then again, I'm still finding things.

* Must Tracks - The Modern Leper, Good Arms Vs. Bad Arms, The Twist, Heads Roll Off.

Janelle Monae "The ArchAndroid"

So earlier in the year, I discovered that Big Boi (of Outkast) had rapped on this girl's song called "Tight Rope." And i was like oh shit, Big Boi, and then i was like, man when are they going to put out his CD, and then I was like, well I better give this a go. And I listened to it, and well, I wanted to cut a rug. (i don't even know how to do it, but I wanted to.) Now that the whole CD has come out, and I've listened to it a few times, I urge you, to check it out. This girl is musically talented. She's like this crazy awesome combination of the Amy Winehouse scene and the Lady Gaga Scene. She can sing, her music is funky, but classic, but she's weird. Really weird. But regardless of that the songs really hold up, she's a fricken stylistic chameleon. And she's in it for keeps. THIS IS NOT A CD YOU WILL LIKE FOR 1 YEAR. To give up on when the next BIG thing comes along. If you like this one, you will like it for a long time.

*Must Tracks - Tightrope, Come Alive (the War of the roses), Oh, Maker, Faster, Cold War.

Jonsi "Go"

Let me start this by talking a bit about Sigure Ros, the excellent band that Jonsi fronts. Sigur Ros, I can't pronounce you, and I've given up trying. I appreciate the shit out of them, but I can't really listen to them, not sure if it's the made up language or the length of the songs, but they don't draw me in. I really do want to try to write to them.

Back to Jonsi, so I found out that Jonsi was going to put out a Solo CD this year, and it was getting pretty good buzz, and I heard that it was going to partially in English. So i figured I'd give it a chance. None of that prepared me for how much I like this CD.

"Go" is simply beautiful, tender, happy, joyful, and powerful. It's songs are far shorter then any Sigur Ros songs, fulfilling my ACD requirements, but what that does is focus the songs around the core of what makes each song awesome.

Experiment 1 - If you've never heard any of them, get it, download, don't listen. Get in your car, get onto a back road, or a highway by the sea or through the mountains, you have to go at least 4o miles per hour. And then, only then TURN IT ON and TURN IT UP, and FEEL it, FEEL ALIVE, feel awesome. If you don't, and you come back and tell me you don't, I'll smack you up the side of the head. (That'd be even worse then me not loving, but Only liking "UP") And if you can start on track 2 "Animal Aritmetic" even better, but the experiment applies either way.

Experiement 2 - If you've heard it and you're luke warm on it, try the above and see if that changes your mind.

* MUST TRACKS - Just get the whole damn thing, it's pretty short. (Okay, I think the essentials are 1 through 6)

Passion Pit - "Manners" "Chunk of Change"

Wow. Okay, so Passion Pit. Passion Pit got me through a remarkably hard/bad few days a few weeks back. I think i listened to their 2 cds like 3 times a day, and you know they really helped me out.

Let me flashback though, three months ago.

My buddy Abby Lance from work, recommended them because they were going to be playing at Coachella and I was like cool, I'll check them out.

A month later she asked me about it, and I confessed to not getting around to checking them out.

Then I downloaded two of their most popular songs and was like, wow, this is some ridiculous music, all falsetto and dancy, but like in a way that seemed to have been created for toddlers.

Then I caught most of their live set at Coachella and they were really good, the girls in particular really liked their music and sung every word and danced around. Now, i must say that they also do pretty much every band, but there was an energy to it, that made feel like they really cared about it, about the songs, it meant something to them.

So then, I was like having this hard crappy week, and so I had all this really tricky hard technical work to do, but I could listen to music, so i grabbed their cd and gave it a spin, and it was FRICKEN. AWESOME.

I can turn on their EP & their LP and just listen to them over and over, and that is a testament to the diversity of music and the sequencing of the songs.

Passion Pit reminds me of when I was like 8 or 9 and would like ride my bike around the neighborhood listening, singing along to cheesy eighties songs all summer long. That's what they are packing in here. And when they don't bring that they bring a certain romantic longing/wistfulness that I really like. Some reviewers have noted that there are songs on here they could imagine teenagers first rolling around in the haystack to, and I don't think this is that far off from true.

I could keep going and talk technical, but i think I've spent too much time on them.

*MUST TRACKS: Little Secrets, Moth's Wings, Sleepyhead, I've got Your Number, Cuddle Fuddle, yeah... I'll stop now.

Matt & Kim "Grand"

Matt & Kim are so much fun. This is another good drive or road trip CD. They specialize in quick fast songs, built on marching band drums and one keyboard, and the GIRL Kim, plays the DRUMS. But they are always melodic and great to sing along too. They can just bring out the good in things and make you feel like it's gonna be alright. And They Epitomize Do IT Yourself Music. And their video to "Lessons Learned" has them stripping and getting chased by Cops in Time Square. Awesome. And when they are inspired they can put together amazing melodies with thoughtful lyrics.

*MUST TRACKS: Daylight, Lessons Learned, Good Ol' Fashioned Nightmare

Hot Chip "One Life Stand"

Have you ever "Over & Over"? The one about the "Monkey with a miniature cymbal." Damn song is so REPETITIVE that you like the hell out of it, but have to turn it off before it finishes cause it's driving you crazy! Okay, so they came back this year with "One Life Stand" and I got mostly because i liked the title. And you know, the whole thing is pretty damn good, totally full of sound, great harmonies, good melodies, very Now. Great combination of Dance/Techno & Rock. Doesn't really make you Dance but it does get the blood moving. Huh, this CD would be fantastic to play in gyms or cardio classes. I don't know if that is a good or bad thing. Either way they are the real deal, not posers, like One Republic (and you know i like them sometimes) but listening to Hot Chip makes me realize on an intellectual level how High Fructose Corn Syrupy One Republic is. Anyway, enough ranting, if you don't believe download "I Feel Better".

*MUST TRACKS: Thieves in the Night, Hand Me Down Your Love, I Feel Better, One Life Stand, Take It In.

Los Campesinos! "Romance Is Boring"

When I listen to this CD, I can't help but think that this band is like the British Cousin of Blink-182. I know that a lot of Los Campesinos! fans would probably strangle me if they read this, but think about it, is that such a bad thing? More thoughtful, more british, more open, still emo, more band members, real british accents, they love to put obscene things into their songs, which are all about romance sucking and girls sucking, and boys sucking. The songs can be punky like "Straight In at 101" or slow and longing like "The Sea is a Good Place to Think about the Future." And like Blink -182 you have to either be teenagery in years or teenagery in spirit to really get them. God, I'm so screwed up musically.

*MUST TRACKS: Straight in at 101, The Sea is a Good Place to Think About the Future, Romance is Boring, There are listed Buildings, A Heat Rash in the Shape of the Show Me State; Or, Letters from Me to Charlotte.

And to close this blog, I present you:

LCD Soundsystem "This Is Happening"

I wasn't so sure about this one.

Before it came out, I wanted to name it, "HIGH HOPES, BIG LETDOWN." I just couldn't get behind the idea that James Murphy putting out a CD as good as "Sound of Silver". So I spent time lowering my expectations. Lower and Lower did I send them. Even when the positive reviews starting coming out. I listened to some of the songs and was like "Eh..."

But I bought it when it came out, and now I am seriously addicted to it, with the exception of one song (Somebody's Calling Me.) It's not as musically focused, er tight, as "Sound of Silver," but it's not as all over the place as "LCD Soundsystem" their first CD. And if it's their last, well they go out Aces. And it's their strongest CD in terms of Theme and Lyrical interplay.

It's just like Sound Of Silver in a sense that its Pop/Rock/Dance fusion, and yes, you will want to dance and jump around to it, but this CD is much moodier, not as happy nostalgic, it's about a lot of Not Happy Things, it's pretty close to life, its about being realistic, and its about the things you think about when you are alone or ranting drunkenly to your closest friends as another year has gone by and you still feel unfulfilled.

In this CD he writes songs about all the things you really don't want to hear about. He rants about Friends who suck and are mean, but you put up with it anyway, because you are Supposed to (Dance YrSelf Clean). In the party song, "Drunk Girls" he puts out one of his catchiest songs with it's stupid title, but makes it smart about drunk boys and girls, who go out get drunk do stupid shit, expect stupid things, but don't get what they want and then

All the built up expectations of intimacy and it's inevitable let down ("One touch"). And "Home" I think its about, HOME being a safe place outside of the awful confusion of life, I think, because it could also mean that home is an illusion we hide behind. "You Wanted A Hit," is catchy song that is a middle finger to the music industry.

And then there are is "All I Want" and "I Can Change" the two stand out tracks everyone is writing about.

I can't make out all of the words to All I Want, because it is mixed low and that pisses me off, but whatevs, it means if you want to know, you have to listen again and again or go read it, which I guess is kind of smart, but annoying. So I went and read the words and listened at the same time and damn if this thing isn't straight up heartbreaking, its about not being home a lot and kind of living with your love who is a stranger. Musically its excellent, especially the Casio riff in the middle, damn that thing rocks, modern day Beatles shit.

"I Can Change,"is like the shit, it's the track that hit me straight up the first time I heard. It's Eighties, it's today, it's Beautiful. James Murphy sings it amazingly. It's about Falling in Love with someone and never wanting them to change, and at the same time it's about Changing so that they will fall in love with you. It's the modern singleton conundrum. SERIOUSLY.

To Recap:

Earlier, I mentioned that a casio riff in "All I Want" is some Modern Day Beatles shit. Well, I will close that after multiple spins of "Sound of Silver" cd, it kind of hit me that this very well could be the kind of Music John Lennon might be making if he was around still. And that sentiment applies even more to "This Is Happening." It's bold, catchy, real, not afraid to piss people off, seriously sentimental, and it's pretentious in a way that people can get behind. James Murphy really is a "cheeky bastard." Well Done, I love it.

*Must Tracks: Dance Yrself Clean, Drunk Girls, I Can Change, All I Want

_________________

Ok, that's it, no mas for today. Later this weekend, I'll report on some singles not mentioned in here that are pretty rad.

Happy Trails!

Announcement May 20th, 2010

Will steps up toe the podium. He has a few words he'd like to share with the reporters, members of the media, friends, family, hanger-ons, well wishers, and pets.

"I hate blogs." Takes a deep breath. "I hate blogs, but I think I need one, so I am here to announce my imminent return to blogging. I have a few scheduled blogs for this weekend and hopefully for the months beyond."

Will looks down at everyone looking up at him, the cameras flashing, the smiles, congratulations, looks of confusion. His stomach rumbles, nervous. He pulls himself straight up and mutters, "Well, that was the easy part."

CHANGE

CHANGE.

12 years ago, I sat in a friend’s minivan. She was going off to college the next day and it was probably going to be the last time we would see each out for months. 2 lives about to spiral into two completely different directions, for one it was collegiate life, for the other it was living at home, hitting up community college, and serving cheese fries. I think you know which one was this here writer.

My friend looked me in the eye, a little anxious, just as I was about to leave her van, and said, “Do you think things are going to change?” And I responded, “Yeah, everything’s going to change.”

Then we hugged, I left, and everything changed. It always does.

And I’m not going to lie, at the time, I don’t think I even believed it. It could have been some unknown insight, or I could have just been trying to sound cool. It was a long time ago. So much has happened since then.

The other day, I sat across from another friend at brunch, and I told her, “I don’t think that every one can change. Some people, I don’t believe can change.” She responded, “I don’t believe that at all, I can’t believe that. Everyone can change, they just to have really want to.”

I, then, cited my Mother who, I didn’t think was capable of change. My friend gave me this face, and then my mind blew when I realized that I was being Supremely stupid, of course my Mom was capable of change. Because for better or worse, everything is changing, always, even if it’s just a little, even my Mom. I just don’t want to deal with those changes, and I don’t want to deal with people who refuse to change the way you want them, the way you think they should. Of course, you can’t control change.

Change is a cruel bitch for sure. From the minute we’re born until the moment we die, and even far beyond that day, we are changing. It’s just that it’s so hard to deal with it, because change is nearly uncontrollable. It’s like when you’re in a sailboat out at sea. You’re always going somewhere, and yeah, you can try to control it, but damn if those winds and those waves aren’t going to sometimes have a mind of it’s own. And when they decide to take control, all your plans are screwed. They change your life and you change with it.

CONTROL GETS SLAPPED IN THE FACE BY CHANGE

I sat in a theater with a 22-year-old graduate that didn’t know who Warren Beatty was, and we were chatting. He asked me how I had made it. Mentally, I said, “Who said I made it?” I responded to myself, silently saying, “Oh right, I’m still here, so maybe I did succeed. Somehow.” Either way, I looked over at this kid, because he wanted advice, and I gave him my Blinko analogy.

For those unfamiliar with the Price Is Right’s Blinko game, it is this fantastic game where you climb up to the top of a giant board that is lined with spikes. At the bottom of this board is like five options for prizes, and you are given a disc to drop into the top of this spike maze. Once you pick your starting point, you drop the chip in and it goes off hitting all these spikes and switching directions until it gets to the bottom. The sad truth of Blinko is that it doesn’t matter where you put the disc in, it’s going to go wherever it wants to. No rhyme. No reason.

I told this 22-year-old dude with a weak handshake, “Getting into the film industry is like blinko. You come out to LA, you put your disc in, thinking you can have some control over where it’s going to go, where you are going to go, and then it just ends up going wherever the hell it wants to. And then you get to the bottom and you’re there. Life just happens.”

He responded, like most people, “Huh, that’s an interesting analogy. So you’re saying that you really don’t have any control over what happens out here.” And I said, “Yeah, but (And then came some simple realistic advice) if you do want to try to control things, you could do this, this, and this.”

I think he liked this, this, and this more than the Blinko analogy. And you know, I don’t blame him. Feeling like you don’t have any control over what happens to you can be awful, horrifying. But I’ve been around the block long enough to know that you can start out wanting to be a writer and you end up a Producer, or you can start of wanted to be a Producer and you end up a Sales Clerk, or you start out wanting to be a Production Designer and you end up Director, or a Mother, or sadly or happily, you don’t end up being anything at all.

Being alive means changing. Life demands it. His dreams may change. They may not change.

My dreams have and they haven’t all at the same time. And sometimes I think that my dreams really aren’t even what’s important, sometimes it’s just being alive, just being on the Blinko board that really matters.

TRAVEL YOUNG MAN, TRAVEL, AND LET ALL YOUR THOUGHTS AND CARES BE FREE

Oh if I could do it all over again, I might, the road trip I mean. But you know what, well, if I hadn’t gone through that trip, I might not have been inspired to have these thoughts that I have now, which I relate to you in a moment.

At the beginning of the road trip, I sat in a friend’s room, staring at Tarot cards, and I asked her a question about a recurring dilemma that I had in my life, which I will unfairly not share with you, and those cards said, “TRAVEL.” I said, “Um, what do you mean?” And the Tarot cards, because they can’t talk, really, responded again, “TRAVEL.” And I said, ah for the love OF GOD! This is so not fair. I wanted a damn answer.

On my trip, every town was a destination and at my worst moments, getting there was all I could think of, and at my best moments I didn’t care at all about getting there, I was careless free of everything, just me, my music, the wind, and what lay before my eyes. It was beautiful.

I would say that about 1/4 of my trip was living in these moments. Moments of pure living. Of bliss. Of freedom.

Most of the time, I wanted a coffee. I wanted to go to the bathroom. I didn’t want to be alone. I wanted to be alone. I just wanted a bed to sleep in. I just wanted to be home.

Of course, I was always home. I had everything I needed. I just couldn’t see it. I spent 3/4 of the time wanting something I didn’t have. Silly me.

Near the end of the trip, I was in a New Orleans Voodoo shop. Real Voodoo shop and I was finishing up getting a Voodoo Tarot card reading and all the cards had eerily reflected my adventures and in the order that I had taken them. Or maybe they represented the future. Or maybe my entire life. You never know with the cards. Either way, a Gentleman was there, he was wearing all black, and had a long ponytail. He was kind of like a ponytailed, black clothes wearing, Nathan Fillian (I shit you not). Oh and he was psychic, or at least claimed to be. He and the voodoo priestess had a little repartee about their different powers and I just listened, amused.

After their playful ribbing ended, he asked me how the voodoo tarot card reading went, and I told him that it was really cool. Then he asked me if I would mind letting him inside my head, or spirit or something, and I told him, “Sure.” Then he made a funny face and kind of got theatrical and said, “I hear this noise, this buzzing in the back of your head. It’s like you’re always thinking, there’s always something going on in there.”

And I responded, “Oh.” Internally, I responded, annoyed, “Who the hell is this guy?”

He continued, “That voice is going to take you down, man. It’s causing you a lot of stress. You don’t always have to listen to it. It doesn’t have to be there.”

I told him, “A lot of what this trip is about is that. Getting away from that voice.” And he nodded his head, like I hadn’t really achieved that. And then I probably made a face, because I was supremely annoyed.

So then he smiled and said, “You know my advice to you is to go get a Hurricane (Iconic New Orleans drink) and sit down by the side of the Mississippi and watch the sunset. It’s beautiful. Just kick back. Take it easy.”

I nodded and said, “That sounds awesome, but I have a dinner and a Ghost Tour I have to get to.” All these plans.

And he nodded and said, “That Ghost tour is going to be terrible if it’s not wit this one person, so and so.” And it was not with so and so. And I never made it to that Ghost Tour because of an upset stomach.

I get him now. I wish I could have had more chill out moments on my trip. Not made so many plans, and destinations. But if I had, maybe I wouldn’t have learned what I learned on the trip, and maybe I never would’ve gone on the trip in the first place.

Flash back to New Orleans, fifteen minutes before my talk with the Pony tailed Psychic. I’m getting my Tarot cards read by the Voodoo Priestess, who looked like a normal woman with a New Orleans accent. She asked me what my astrological sign was. Taurus, I said, but I have a lot of Leo in me. The Taurus is stable, chill, stubborn, and perhaps a smidgen lazy. The Leo is all about fire, taking charge, devil may care attitude. She looked at me sympathetically said, “I’m the same way. Those two are really hard to balance. It gets easier with age.”

I hope she’s right.

3 years ago, I sat with my Grandmother on a park bench and she looked over me and said, “B, you never stop going do you. You just keep going and going. Even when you’re on vacation, you always have to be doing something.”

In response, I said, “That’s just me. I’m always going. I like to keep going, doing things, always gotta be doing something.”

She said, “That sure must be hard.”

I ended that conversation by saying, “I’ve just always been this way.” And she smiled.

I’ve accepted that I’m never going to be totally chilled out, “dude… life is beautiful, lets just sit here, drink a beer, and appreciate everything.” I’ll never be a Nascar guy, I’m a basketball guy. There is always going to be the voice that is causing me to strive, go forward, take on life, fight through everything, get it done, make it happen, pay the bills, force change, for change to stop. It is never going to go away. It is part of me.

But on the other hand, it doesn’t have to be all of me, all the time. I can find that balance. I am finding that balance. If I don’t take a moment, breathe, focus on the leaves in a tree, listen to a song, SING MY LUNGS OUT, dance, move, be creative, do these things from time to time, I’m going to go crazy and then I’m going to get sick, and then well… it all happens again.

THE CALM PRESENCE OF THE SEA

Last weekend, I took a drive down Santa Monica and went straight to the sea. I’d been having these recurring pictures in my head of me sitting and watching the ocean. And I realized that morning that I absolutely needed to get out of the house and go to the ocean.

Everything that day had worked out for me. I had done all these things I wanted to do. And now I fortuitously arrived at my parking spot, 15 minutes before the sun would disappear into the ocean.

I ran towards the cliff over the beach, passing all the tourists, cars, and shops. I was out of breath when I finally was able to see the ocean. The sun was burning down into it. Just above it. It was beautiful. The sun had disappeared by the time I got to the water’s edge, but it was still day. The colors of the sun and sky, made the water look like a pearl. Everything was so clear. I walked into the water. It was a transcendent moment.

I was alone, but you were all with me. Every one of you sat there beside me, past present, and future, on that beach and watched the sky turn from blue to black, as the Carousel on the Pier spun with it’s ever changing light show. It was amazing.

And it crystallized everything that had been running through my head recently. All my thoughts of change, of control, of chilling it out, of changing my careers, of dreams all came front and center, and I realized that none of it mattered. Nothing but this moment. I had never watched the sunset over the Pacific, at least not here, not with the sun, not with my eyes, not with intent.

In those five years, so much had changed. So much. And I felt really good about it, even the things I hadn’t wished for or didn’t like. Everything was all right. It was all good. It all got a pass. All the stupid things I did, all the stupid things other people did. All the smiles, all the tears, all the mistakes, all the friends I made, and all the friends I lost, the family that was still here and the family that had passed on, everything got equal footing on this night. This was all a part of my beautiful, crazy life. And it would have totally stunk if nothing had happened.

I wanted nothing but this night, this feeling to go on forever. But it couldn’t. And when I was ready to go, I was ready to go, I knew that it was time for things to change. And I smiled because I realized that I welcomed it, with all my heart.

My playlist for this amazing sunset, night, beach trip was:

Los Campesinos! – The Sea is a Good Place to Think of the Future

Los Campesinos! – Coda: a Burn Scar in the Shape of the Sooner Shape

Death Cab For Cutie – Bixby Canyon Bridge

LCD Soundsystem – Someone Great

LCD Soundsystem – All My Friends

U2 –Bad

As I got up, I turned on LCD Soundsystem’s song “North American Scum” and danced across the beach back towards the street. No worries, no cares, it was that kind of a night. Don’t tell me there’s no such thing as magic. This was a perfect day.

WELL WHAT DO YOU WANT YOUR LIFE TO STAND FOR

I recently spent hours and hours helping my friend/yoga teacher set up her Yoga studio that she was opening up. I got cut. I got a headache. I might have gotten sick. I also missed a banging 80’s party. An 80’s party!

Many people wondered why I did it. They asked me if I was going to get paid. I said no. They asked if I had any romantic interest in her, which I answered no. They asked if I was getting free yoga. To which I answered, “Yes.” And then my friend pointed out, “But you’re already getting free yoga.” And I said, “true.” So they wondered why I was doing it. And I had no good answer.

It really wasn’t until tonight that it dawned on me, the correct way to describe why I felt compelled to help her out, even though it was stressful and hard and challenging, and the last thing in the whole world I wanted to be doing, I did it because it’s a friend following her dream. Going for it. She’s starting her own yoga studio, and who knows how it’s going to turn out, and if it’s going to be successful or whatnot, none of that mattered. She was going for it. And I could help her.

I may not get anything physical or tangible out of it, but dammit, I’d rather be doing something in the service of someone’s dream. So what if it’s not my dream. It’s someone else’s passion, and passion can ignite passion. I think that’s something I can strive for.

I realize that this isn’t always possible. Life gets in the way, change gets in the way, and hell, most of the time I don’t know what I want anyway. But until I do know what I want, what I want to make life be about, I’d like to at least do things in the service of a dream or a passion. This would be a good thing. I’m still figuring this out.

CHANGE2.

Heraclitus the Greek Philosopher ~ “The Only Constant is Change.” I hate this guy.

I looked at myself in the mirror and I said, “Well Will, do you think everything is going to change.” And I responded, “Yeah, I think so. I think everything is going to change.”

Things have to change. My life has to change. We’re always changing, but I mean big change. And now is the time for that change. I don’t really even have a choice in the matter. Sometimes, I don’t want to change. Sometimes I want things to stay the same. I don’t want to be brave. I don’t want to do anything. I’m afraid of the future, of change. BUT there is this constant tug in my stomach, pulling me somewhere, so hard that sometimes it makes me sick.

And I say this to you right now. I have no idea where this change will take me. I never have, never will, I guess none of us do until we take a moment to look around and see how much has happened. I just have to be ready for it, because the wind is kicking up, and if I don’t stick the oar into the water and change direction, the wind is going to kick my ass and make me do it anyway. I just have to remember to breathe, smile, sing a little, and watch the sun set from an idyllic location.

Preface to Change:

I preface this next blog by saying - I've had a lot on mind. This one's a long time coming. And it's really long, so you know, no rush in reading, and oh yeah, Enjoy!

Under-appreciated: Great Scores

Hello ALL!

So up until recently, like the last 2 years or so, I hadn't really given much thought to how Scores/Soundtracks actually enhance movies. I'd always recognized them for being great, but I'd never really given them credit for making or breaking films, or for taking a good film and making it great. But recently, I've had the privilege to see films before they had their finished score in, and seen how ugh, they are. And then seen how much better they are with them.

Just think about some of your favorite movies and think about if they have really good scores and what they would be like without them.

Some of my favorites for listening, or writing, or driving really fast have been, The Bourne Ultimatum, The Dark Knight, and Star Trek.

Do any of you all have favorites? Post them in the comment section if you're up for it.

Hasta!

THE NETFLIX ATE BLOCKBUSTER: 2009 MOVIE RECAP BOWL

Wow. Okay. Here we are again. Another year, another hour, another list.

Star Trek - The Most watched film of the year. 6 Times! 6 Times! Nice Work from the JJ Abrams factory and ILM. Really has a chance to be the beginning of a great great thing, ala, Batman Begins. We'll see how it ends.

Avatar - 4 Times. Most Wow Film of the year. The movie that turned everyone into Keanu Reeves saying "Whoa..."

You know in 15 days, it almost passed Transformers 2 for the highest box office of the year.

I have deemed Avatar a modern day Kurosawa film. No one is making epic movies like Cameron. Not right now. Peter Jackson did it, but he had a source world, and he hasn't nailed it since. The scale of it, the bigness of it is like incredible. I don't want to say it's the best movie ever, because it's not, not even close, but it's definitely awe inspiring and makes everyone have to raise their game, everyone in the action, epic field. I have to wonder how many filmmakers who have a movie coming out next year, saw Avatar and just went "FUCK!" hehe. I bet there's a lot.

Zombieland - Funnier then the Hangover. And deeper too. What a good movie. I love the Woody Harrelson renaissance.

The Hangover - Awesome the First time. And awesome 6 months later. But do I feel like I want to see it again, maybe in six months. Kind of like a hang over.

Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince - Great Adaptation of a great book! Yeah, it could've been more awesome, but it would've had to have been like 3 & a Half hours long.

2012: A great film experience, with some awesome guys, watching this big monster of a film, that I can't say is good, but totally entertaining!

District 9: Bold filmmaking here. I hate the ending, but I loved it. An out of nowhere experience that lived up to it's marketing and hype as a great experience. Frightening, fascinating and awesome.

Transformers: Revenge of the Fallen - Most fun I've had after watching it. Thanks to all of you who hate it and amused me with your hatred/mock hatred as I gleefully embraced this terribly fun movie.

I love You, Man - The movie everyone tells me to see, which makes me not want to see it. Totally illogical of me. I need to rent it and have fun.

(500) Days Of Summer - What a movie! Some people weren't sold on it, I was sold in the first 30 seconds with just a little bit of perfectly timed text. You KNOW what I'm talking about.

Drag Me To Hell - Sam Raimi makes up for Spider-man 3 to his fans by giving them what he's great at. Blood, guts, gore, comedy, and zany hijinks. Drag me to Hell is a great time!

The Brothers Bloom - Good Movie. Good Times. A deceptively deep, comic gem of a movie that knew what it wanted to do and did it perfectly. TOO BAD NO ONE WENT TO SEE IT! Gets the award for "Best Male Costumes." I wanted to own every outfit those guys wore, well not the whiteish cream suit. But EVERYTHING ELSE. The Runner up for "Best Male Costumes" was Sherlock Holmes.

The Hurt Locker - I never need to watch this movie again, but while I did, I was fricken mesmerized. Serious On Your Seat Suspense. A great war movie that took you into the head of damaged soldier, and while you didn't understand him too well, you experienced what he did. Well. Well. Done. And thank you Kathyrn Bigelow for making the comeback you needed and solidifying your place as a filmmaker again. Now if I could just get people to go back and rewatch Strange Days. What a good year for you and your ex hubby James Cameron! And speaking of Strange Days, that movie, co-written by James, is another pointer to Avatar. Anyway...

Up In the Air - What did you think of Up In the Air? Did you like it? Did it make you feel bad? Did you talk about it after it was done? Filmmaking, as in all forms of Art & Entertainment comes in multiple types and has a million different intentions. Up In The Air, wanted you to think about life and talk about it. And in that way it was successful. YOU are given the opportunity to think about what is going to happen to the lead character after the events of the movie. This is a funny, sad film, that hems closer to life then a lot of people feel comfortable, more then I feel comfortable with, but in that way, it holds power over the viewer. I'm rambling right now. I liked it. I related to it. I was bummed that it didn't have a nice neat bow on it. But I think it made it a better film.

One more thing on this film, how many Adult movies did you see this year? Movies that weren't trying to bring in that big teenage cash. On this list I have, maybe The Hurt Locker, Brother's Bloom, kind of (500) days, but not really. This was one that held it's grownupness on it's sleeve and declared itself for Adults, looked like a film for adults, and a had message that people who have had a few years under their belt as adults could really relate too and take in. Hell, I might even be too young for that movie.

Nice Fluffy Animated Kids Fair

Ice Age 3 - Lots of fun. Simon Pegg can make it anything fun! Not good, but fun!

Cloudy with a Chance of Meatballs - Fun for everyone. Great Mister T supporting role.

Not Fluffy Animated Kids Fare

Where the Wild Things Are - WTF? Is it good? Probably. Did I enjoy it? For about 30 minutes. Not for children younger then 8. I repeat. Not for children under 8. And if they are sensitive. Just skip it.

Disappointing Films

Terminator Salvation - What a terribly plotted film, bad storytelling, nice effects, too much 1 dimensional screaming. Thanks Christian, but it's really McG's fault. I mean for real, Christian brings nuance behind a mask. He should be able to do it as John Conner.

GI Joe - It was fun, but I'm not sure if it was just fun because it was marginally better then Transformers, or well, just because it was seen after Transformers. I think in the long run, Transformers is a better movie. Like GI Joe is a 1.5 and transfers is a 2.

Public Enemies - Blah. Blah. Blah. God I thought this movie could have been good. Maybe if I rewatch I'll understand, and maybe that is a load of crap. 1 out of 10 people like it. It gets the award for "Fell Asleep the Most Times"

X-Men Origins: Wolverine - So bad, I didn't even want to see it. Didn't even want to see it.

The Time Traveler's Wife - Blah! Less said on this movie the more. Not the best year for Rachel McAdams.

Notorious - Not a bad movie, well it would've been a good VH1 Movie, but Biggie deserved more. I mean they let Tupac upstage him in his own movie. HIS OWN MOVIE!

Inglourious Basterds - Any Tarantino movie I don't love, or uniformly believe is awesome is a disappointment. And I don't feel that way with this one. I'm sure it's great, and it has great great scenes, but overall it didn't connect to me, and that makes me sad. I guess we just can't predict what we are going to love and what we don't love which leads me to---

THE Ronald McDonald's Snack Wrap - WRAP UP

The big budget money making machines win! Little films got stepped on. I mean, look at what's going on right now, all the talk is Avatar, while some supposedly (not seen by me movies) like Precious, A Single man, An Education, are really really well reviewed, no one's going to see them. It's like that whole A Tree in the Forrest, if it gets knocked down, but no one hears it, did it really happen. And the list below of films I still want to see, the Dramatic Ones didn't ride up a storm. Nope. The only one that did was Up In The Air, and that movie hasn't made the kind of money people were hoping it would. Nope, it's all Avatar all the time. And like it or not, Avatar hands down represents the money making machine. What will this signal for the future? Will the Studios keep trying to cut down on it's low budget, medium budget films, so they can continue to make bigger and bigger films, that for the most part don't mean anything to people (Transformers, Terminator & GI JOE) but make pretty good money? Let's hope not. Let's hope that a balance can be struck, because I think the movies are best when there is something for everyone. Even if that means Sandra Bullock just became the first leading lady of a leading lady led film, to have her film gross over 200 million. What a year!

A few films that premiered before the end of the year that I'd like to see, like: Invictus, Nine, Away We Go, The Fantastic Mister Fox, Jennifer's Body (Don't hate me, I'm just being real) The Road, The Informant!

The 2009 Music Recap

I have a problem with Music. I tend to either be way ahead of the people or way behind the people. It's never like right there in between. I almost never discover songs on the radio or on TV. So when I attempt to do a year in review, well I tend to either write about stuff that people have no idea what I'm saying or I write about things that were like, so last year. I had to go back and look at last years list to remember what I was into then, and some of it is the same, and some of the CDS on this years list were on last years, and when I write them, well I'll explain why they appear again.

This is ranked in no order, because how can you put an order to music? I mean, for many people the best CD of the years was, uh, Black Eyed Peas CD "The E.N.D." but for someone else, they may have liked the Girls CD "Album" but for many people over 40 they're totally loving Susan Boyle's "I dreamed a dream" (Really??? It's, like the Avatar of the music industry right now. I fear listening, what if it's good? I can't take that chance.) So top 10 lists just rankle people, and then make you feel really stupid as soon as you publish it, because you forgot your obvious favorite.

Anyway, to Will Gong's 2009 Musical Journey. I hope you check out some of them when you have time or are bored, or are just like staring at your Facebook page waiting for something to happen. If you're doing that, just stop. It's not worth it.

- Phoenix - Wolfgang Amadeus Phoenix.

Oh 2009, how could I have made it through without Phoenix. I was just a sad young man, making a music playlist for Jorge, when I accidentally discovered you. The minute I heard "If I ever Feel better" off your almost decade old CD "United," I fell in love.

And then I found you had a new CD coming out with the cheeky title "Wolfgang Amadeus Phoenix" and I clicked on a streaming link of "Listzomania" and had my MIND BLOWN. Best POP Song in like forever. Straight up POP. I mean, I can listen to this song everyday, and I think I have. It never gets old. Okay if you listen to it 4 times a day it gets a little old, but it's still fun. AND YOU AREN'T ON THE RADIO. So I can have it to myself, unlike "Hey Ya!". And you gave Radio and Commercials the song "1901" which is as good and maybe better, but not as poppy as Listzomania.

The rest of the CD is golden. It gets a little repetitive eventually, but never bad, and damn if it doesn't make you feel good, and bop your head, and sometimes get up and do an IPOD AD Dance in your kitchen, or in your car.

For those intersted, Phoenix did a really cool live set through Paris. Please Watch. It's at the bottom of the post and It's sooooo goooodddddd.

BON IVER - For Emma, Forever Ago (2008)

So I suck, and here's why: Last year, I put this on the list, because I could consciously understand how good it was, so I'm lame. But I was trying to bring the music to the people. IT WAS NOT UNTIL THIS YEAR, that I really fell in love with the CD. It took like 5 to 10 listens, before it sunk in and was like WHOA. It's deep, but on a deep level, because I still don't know what he's saying, a lot. But listen to "The Wolves" or "Creature Fear" and feel, just feel. The harmonies, the gently guitar strum, the occasional Auto-Tune. It's amazing. And Powerful.

GIRLS - ALBUM

First few lines of the Album from the Song "Lust for Life"

Oh, I wish I had a boyfriend
I wish I had a loving man in my life
I wish I had a father
Maybe then I would've turned out right
But now I'm just crazy, I'm totally mad
Yeah I'm just crazy, I'm fucked in the head
And maybe if I really tried with all of my heart
Then I could make a brand new start in love with you

I mean read it, You know, Nuff' Said, and I don't really think I need to tell you why I like the CD, but I'm going to anyway. Ths guy is crazy, but relatable. I mean those lines, right there, he basically laid out his craziness, and you know it's a FRICKEN LOVE LETTER TO A GIRL. I think.

Anyway, other than being crazy and relatable. These two guys, have actually crafted a really beautiful like classic 60's POP album, and did with a whiny guy voice. It's the music. It's good. And catchy. And kind of fucked up. See "Lust for Life" "Laura" "Ghost Mouth" "Big Bad Mean Mother Fucker" and "Hellhole Ratrace".

Weird and beautiful :-D

The Beatles "Remastered Complete Collection"

Wow. I mean, everybody gives props to these. Because they are amazing. I mean, I don't need to go over again, my love for The Beatles, but fuck it. THESE SONGS ARE AMAZING and everytime we, fans, have a reason to go back and rediscover them, we are going to. It also helps that I read the most indepth accurate Biography of them ever "The Beatles" at the beginning of the year. AND It's amazing they made music like this, especially JOHN. That dude was nutz. I mean, Paul, had music coming out of his pores, but John had rage, jealousy, drugs, attitude, and a slew of other mommy problems.

Anyway, if you get the remastered and listen to them, you will hear them anew, you will hear all the shimmers, every guitar stroke, the harmonies are stronger, and best of all, YOU Can actually hear a lot of what Ringo was doing (For all those that shit on Ringo.) He keeps it simple, but with eloquence and propulsion. I mean like The Beatles were never going to need a batshit crazy drummer. Sorry Grandma for the profanity. Moving On.

BLIND PILOT - 3 Rounds & A Sound

Thanks Tracy. Okay, how do I describe the Sound of Blind Pilot. Itunes has them listed as Indie Rockers playing Folk Music or as Folkies playing Indie Rock. I think that about sums it up. These songs are beautiful, and have a great lyrics and stories that really get to you. I saw them live and they were just a great time, and they had really awesome fans. LIVE their music really pops, but I think that's because they've added band mates. But still. This is a must LISTEN CD. I dare you to listen to the songs "The Story I heard" and "3 Rounds & a Sound" and tell me these guys aren't good and have a great future.

Another year spent trying to love Bruce Springsteen. Another year, I fail. Sigh.

DISAPPOINTMENTS - Better Than Ezra's "Paper Empire" boring, old, uninspired. - Ryan Adams may have given up making music. - The Final Curtain Call of Michael Jackson. - Mariah Carey's "Memoirs of an Imperfect Angel" totally flat and self indulgent. - Franz Ferdinand "Tonight" is it their now horrifying inability to craft new hooks that is so painful, or is it that I find the music to now be impenetrable. - Everyone else finally figuring out how Crazy Kanye is. I mean come on people, wasn't it obvious. OBVIOUS! Although, I gotta give props to some people for defending Kanye's statement, not the action, just what he said. Poor Gayfish. - My giving into Katy Perry, sigh, I wish I could just turn it off... - Miranda Lambert's "Revolution." I don't know why I don't like this CD more, it got great reviews. Made best of lists. I just can't get it now, maybe 2010. - Timbaland talking up how great Miley Cyrus is and then making a not even Craptastic Song. Ugh. You Are Better Than This. -

END DISAPPOINTMENTS - BACK TO BEST LIST

BAND OF HORSES - CEASE TO EXIST (2007)

After spending a Day with this backpacker, traveler, fellow hostel mate, Frank, from Portland Maine, he said "Dude, I think you should try to listen to Band Of Horses, I think you might really like them. I said, "Right on."

Shimmery Guitar Pop, lush orchestration, a voice that can occasionally reach to the heavens. Listen to "Is There a Ghost" and "No One's Gonna Love You." Wow. The whole CD is great, really mellow. But not as mellow as their first CD, which some people like better, but it's just too low for me. They're like if The Shins tried to go for Coldplay, but before Coldplay's self importance U2NESS! It's good stuff and worth a spin.

Kelly Clarkson - All I Ever Wanted

I wrote an unpublished blog on the ever expanding multiple meanings of "My Life Would Suck Without You." But I just couldn't publish it. It's like just not worth the flack. Well, Kelly came back with a satisfying CD of great pop songs. Illustrating her talent of going to multiple genres, and mastering them, but making them all sound like Kelly Clarkson songs. But I will forever remember this CD as being the CD I was listening to when I busted my Leg and couldn't run anymore. I still need to get that fixed, hmmm... 2010 resolution maybe. Yeah. Well, other then the radio songs, you should definitely check out, "I Want You." Super cute song, I think all the other ones actually did get on the radio somewhere.

LCD SOUNDSYSTEM - SOUND OF SILVER (2007)

So I knew one song of this CD for the past 2 years, the magnificent "All My Friends." Which Rachel calls one of the most unlistenable pieces of repetitive music ever made, and although she may have a point about it's repetitiveness, I don't think that was the point. The point was that the repetitiveness illustrated how life was, but they kept layering it, it kept getting stranger, and more full and beautiful, and the song was about growing old and missing your friends and finding your friends again, but then looking for them all over again, when you REALLY NEED THEM. It's powerful stuff.

Anyway, it wasn't until my road trip, driving through the Pacific Northwest on my way to Montana, that I Hear another song off the CD, "New York, I love you, But You're Bringing me Down. " It made me laugh, and was also kind of deep. And then months later, I discovered another GEM "Someone Great." Which may be the best SONG on the CD. And it's about losing people. So after that I finally gave in and listened to the rest of the CD.

And it's Great! IF Sad, lonely, Dance, ROCK, music, for people who might be getting old and are totally freaked out about it, is your cup of tea. And I guess it is mine. But I'm not that old yet.

Miike Snow - Miike Snow

Okay, so when Jeremy Foley (thank you, thank you, thank you) said I might like this CD and gave it to me, all I knew about them was "They're like Music producers from Sweden". I started listening to it and was like oh, wow this is weird, it's like a mix of Blur, Gorillaz, Peter Bjorn & John, and Goldfrapp. And I really liked it, because it was like Sad Dance Music, but with the occasionally Happy, Weird Dance, song, like "Animal" but its the sad, deeper tracks that make a deep impact, like "Sylvia" and "Burial" and "sans soleil".

THEN I FOUND OUT THAT those Swedish producers made "TOXIC" That's right TOXIC. And many many other Britney songs. Crazy. Toxic.

Neko Case - Middle Cyclone

Uh, It's good. I know it is. I love "This Tornado Loves You" and really love "People Got a Lot of Nerve" (She is a MAN-MAN-MAN MAN-MAN-MAN EATAAAA!!!!!) But it's a Neko CD so it's dense and deep, and can really burn you. So i fully expect to discover more tunes on here as the years go on.

Of Montreal - A Little Bit of All Their CDS

So when I was making that Jorge's Mix earlier in the year, when I discovered Phoenix, I also discovered Of Montreal. Was this the year of discovering, weird, poppy, folky, dancy, bands with singers who were slightly WHINY. I think may have been. Ugh. I should probably make that the headline, whatever.

I digress. I found these guys and fell in love with the line "Let's pretend we don't exist, let's pretend we're in Antarctica. Let's have BIZARRE CELEBRATIONS!!!" from the song "Wraith Pinned to the Mist and other Games." But the real keeper song for me was, "First Time High (Of Chicago Acoustic Version) a remix done by Jon Brion. He turned a weird, electro rock song into an accousti James L. Brooks trailery, Sufjan Stevensesque Masterpiece.

So Weird. So Good.

I'm going to take a moment here and send a Shout Out to Regina Spektor. "What up!"

TV On The Radio - Dear Science (2008)

I think this was almost in every top 10 list last years, so of course I got to it this year. Just start it off, and you know you are hearing something special musically. It's like if you mixed Talking Heads, Bloc Party & Something Awesome. I can't explain it. It's like Magic. Start off with "Halfway Home" slow building and then exploding but in a way you don't expect. And that's what this CD does, it does things you think it might do, or uses an instrument you're familiar with, but does it with a twist so it comes off in a whole new way. I MEAN THIS CD HAS the BEST USE OF A SAX, like in forever in "Dancing Choose."

Oh and the words are great in the CD. It's like hmm... maybe the more Adult, or less jokester version of MGMT's Album. Not to discredit those guys, who when the hit, HIT SO GOOD and powerful, but i think this CD is just more over and all sound. But it's also like their 2nd or 3rd cd, so I guess it's not fair to compare.

U2 - No Line On the Horizon

Notable, for being great and terrible at the same time. Kind of like "Avatar," but not in the Susan Boyle Money making way. But interesting and experimental, and fearless. I had a lot of great moments this year with this CD. I even came around to like I'll Go Crazy If I Don't Go Crazy Tonight

Which I know is not good, but dammit. I'm programmed to like these guys. And you know what, they aren't Oasis (who broke up by the way). Give it a chance, it'll surprise you, or make you puke on yourself. :-D

Really Great Songs that didn't make the BEST OF CDS of the year to listen to: MGMT's "Kids" & "Time To Pretend". Dead Weathers "I Cut Like a Buffalo". Death Cab For Cutie "Little Bribes". Doves "Jetstream" "Kingdom of Rust". Julian Casablancas "11th Dimension." (If I just put this song on a CD, it would be the most perfect Jorge's Mix.) Kings of Leon "Sex on Fire" (I feel stupid putting this on the list, because it's so obvious. And although I like "Use Somebody" I've decided that it feels too much like an unfinished song, and if they had finished it, it may have sounded like warmed over U2.) Mos Def "Quiet Dog" "Life in Marvelous Times" Temper Trap "Sweet Disposition" "Fader. Our Lady Peace "Paper Moon" Rhett Miller "Like Love" Weezer "(If You're Wondering if I want you to) I Want You To." Hall & Oates "You Make My Dreams" hehe. Mr. Hudson & Kanye West "Supernova" One Republic "Secrets" Grizzly Bear "Two Weeks"

Well, that's it for the year. So much good music. and so Much I forgot. So much I'll regret. And so much to Discover.

Keep Listening. Keep Dreaming. Keep Living.

Phoenix - 1901 - A Take Away Show from La Blogotheque on Vimeo.

Most Important Events of the 2000's and More!

The Most Important Events of the 2000’s…

- I fell in love with a stupid smelly lake surrounded by Palm Trees and decided to go to the University of Miami.
- I changed my name/moniker from BJ to Will.
- I drove some guys on my dorm floor to a club, (scaring them half to death, because well it was fun) and through them made some of my closest friends of the decade.
- I switched from Journalism to Motion Pictures.
- My brother had a baby and got married.
- My Grandparents let me live with them for a year. Worked at the Cheesecake Factory.
- My Dad told me he had another family.
- I traveled to Foreign Countries. Italy. Peru. Bolivia. Argentina. Singapore. Thailand. Hong Kong. And Canada.
- Gabe invited me to live on his floor in Los Angeles.
- Corey got me a entry level night job at Herzog.
- I bought the new guy on the night shift from Maine a McChicken. Who said McDonald’s couldn’t change your life in a positive way.
- I sold out and jumped onto those crazy Pirate Movies and watched myself climb up the corporate ladder. (Sounds kind of gross when I put it like that.)
- I decided to fill in for Lindsey on her Maternity Leave.
- I started doing Yoga, because I thought my mind and body weren’t in sync. Found a great teacher.
- I permanently left the Night Shift and decided to take more control of my work career.
- I went to my 10 year high school reunion and realized that I was perfectly happy being single, and happy that I had not forced myself into some situation that didn’t fit what I wanted in life, or did something because I thought I had to.
- I accepted a job overseas and had one of the craziest adventures of my life. Thanks Sandrine.
- I tried to cultivate an attitude of never saying no, no matter how mad I got about it.
- I decided that you really are what you eat, and I felt really shitty about it.
- I went to a psychic who kind of told me some really important things about my life, that I needed to work on.
- My Brother had a second baby.
- I traveled across America, and took my time, for the most part.
- As my brother has told me, I became West Coast.

I had a lot of fun in the 2000’s. A LOT OF FUN. I had a lot of hard times, too. I lost two years of my life/memories to Night Shifts, although I’m still hoping to do a data recovery. I laughed, I cried, I smiled, I gained weight, I lost weight. I had my Wisdom Teeth removed. I ran a lot and I busted my knee. I DID A LOT OF STUFF. I spent a lot of time doing nothing. I made almost nothing. I made a lot of money. I bought a lot of stuff. I got rid of a lot of stuff. I painted walls and I put down my stake and declared this my land. I made a lot of friends and I lost a lot of friends, but I made sure to keep the keepers.

I learned a lot, about myself, about the world.

My problems, my worries, and my hopes are pretty much the same as they were at the start of the decade, but I’ve learned so much, about myself and about the world, that I consider myself on top and ready to tackle the next decade.

If I spent much of my teens, the 1990’s physically growing up, then I spent the 2000’s my twenties psychologically growing up. Learning the hard way, by doing, by feeling, by being.

What can I hope for in the 2010’s?

To keep learning. And I hope this might be the decade where everything, er most of it, well at least a few parts of my life really come together. And if it doesn’t then I guess I have the 2020’s to look forward to.

But I can tell you this, either way, I’m going to keep “Kick’n Ass,” because you know, I have nothing else to do with my life.

Or more poetically:

“Oh mistress of fate, sweep me up into your arms and let us dance the night away.”