Posts Tagged ‘Lost’

That Voice Again

Wednesday, March 3rd, 2010

Last night I watched Lost. It was good. Sayid was the main character. It looks like he may have crossed over to the dark side, but things being what they are and being a former comics book geek what seems apparent now, tain’t necessarily so later on.

It was enjoyable even though the plot seems to be getting murkier. They had better hurry up and make things clearer since they only have 10 episodes left for the series.

Oh this computer is acting up. I’m typing faster that it processes. Sometimes it’s OK. Sometimes it’s infuriating. Today it’s frustrating. I’m not complaining. I’m grumbling. But you get what you paid for.

Bill came home after his rehearsal. The play opens next Thursday He’s been exhausted He went right to bed almost immediately. I stayed up and watched Craig Ferguson.

In the Daily News yesterday was a review of Peter Gabriel’s new record, Scratch My Back. Orchestral cover versions of different artists like David Bowie, Radiohead and Neil Young as well as the song Book of Love which featured in the last episode of Scrubs.

The plan is for these artists to cover a Peter Gabriel track in return. Peter Gabriel covers Paul Simon’s The Boy in the Bubble and in return Paul Simon covered Peter Gabriel’s Biko.

Also reviewed was The Pursuit by Jamie Cullum. He’s a jazz guy from the UK and since it got a decent review I decided to go ahead and download both. I think Jamie Cullum is more Bill’s speed and before he went to bed I played a track or two and he definitely liked what he heard.

I didn’t watch all of Craig Ferguson and went to bed before it was over. I was working for Greg Stevens today and set my alarm clock for 7:30. I was scheduled to be there by 11:00 and I didn’t want to be late.

Apparently I shut off the alarm clock and woke up at 9:15, causing my first word of the day to be ‘FUCK’. I scrambled and made some coffee, poured some cereal and had a shower. Walked up to Washington Street just in time to see the 126 bus heading past me.

After a wait of about 20 minutes I was headed to the bus terminal where I decided to take the subway rather than walk across town like I usually do. It was cold and drizzly and I didn’t want to keep Greg Stevens waiting.

He was leaving for his winter home in Arizona with his wife and wouldn’t be back for a few weeks. That’s why he needed me to get some of his things together to ship out to Carefree. I was happy to be able to help out Greg once again.

I expect to get a phone call from him at some point while he’s out west, asking about how to do this or that on his computer. I don’t mind, he’s a nice guy and as long as politics doesn’t enter the picture we get along just fine.

After that it was a walk back to the Path train, enjoying a La Flor Dominicana and some tunes on the iPod. Just like old times.

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Winter Wonderland

Wednesday, February 10th, 2010

It’s a snow day. Most everyone had off from work. Not because the commute would be so bad in the morning, just getting home at night would be difficult. Some people did have to go into work today. They were on the news most of the day, the same story at the same train stations on Long Island.

The same woman having to go into work at JP Morgan. The same story of the guy who got on the train and suddenly asked himself, ‘What am I doing?’ before turning around and jumping off the train right before the doors closed.

I was surprised to hear from Bill, who was also home from work today, that there was a 4.3 earthquake in Chicago. That was major news in my book, since the northeast has had many snowstorms before, it really isn’t anything new. But no news on Chicago as far as I could tell.

The big news was on the snowstorm. No building crumbled, just books knocked off the shelves. No injuries reported. Still an earthquake hitting Chicago would be big news. I’m sure the right wing nuts will blame either the snowstorm or the earthquake on abortion or the rights of LGBT people becoming accepted. It’s just a matter of time and as usual they’re late.

Last night I watched Lost which was OK. Not much progress as far as I could tell. The alternative universe story was about Kate and Claire while back on the island it was mainly about Kate and Sawyer with a Jack and Sayid story thrown in. After the big season premiere last week, this was a bit of a let down.

After Lost I watched a mini series documentary on the Sundance Channel about Saville Row. Not 3 Saville Row once the home of Apple Records. Lot’s of nice looking bespoke suits which are definitely out of my price range at the moment. A few of the bespoke houses went to Florence, Italy to promote Saville Row abroad since bespoke suits are no longer the exclusive domain of Saville Row.

One representative of a Saville Row house was in Beijing trying to establish his label to the Chinese. It was quite awkward for the representative, culture clashes, communication problems and also finding out the the food in China is not the same as Chinese food in Knightsbridge.

Still it was somewhat schwing city just looking at the fine pinstriped suits. After that I watched the news which was all about the upcoming snowstorm. Then Seinfeld, the Simpsons and caught Sade on Letterman.

Bill was home a little while after that and we watched Craig Ferguson. I did make it out once or twice today. I do enjoy snowstorms, walking around, smoking a cigar and taking pictures. Walked over to Church Square Park which had kids and toddlers and their parents having fun in the snow.

Various snowmen around, huskies and other winter dogs and a makeshift igloo were spotted. I walked up to Hoboken Daily News and talked to Andy who was worried about how he was going to get home to Jersey City. He might end up walking.

Apparently I missed Julio, Stine and Alexander in the park by minutes. Stine and Alexander were also interviewed briefly by Eyewitness News. I figured they would be on for the human interest hour from 5 to 6PM.

After an hour of all these snow stories Bill and I had enough and changed the channel. Of course that meant we missed the interview which was in the half hour from 6 to 6:30. Julio called me up after it was over to see if we caught it and mocked me when I said we missed it.

We hope it will be on at the 11:00 broadcast.

I also shoveled a bit today and I am feeling it now. Pretty tired.

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Earthquake Weather

Thursday, February 4th, 2010

Let’s see. What’s new?

Not much actually.

Earthquake, a 6.0 off the coast of Northern California. Annemarie felt it while home for lunch. Bill knew about it before I did. I found out when I called him just to say hello. He was quite serious on the phone.

Apparently he had just sent me a text about it. I called Annemarie who was back at work and she told me about it. I guess it wasn’t so bad that she went back to work after the earthquake.

Today I spent a good couple of hours pounding the cyber pavement looking for work. Even went so far as to apply for a job that required a four year college diploma for doing the same bloody job that I’ve done for 10 years.

I mentioned that in the cover letter, just did not use those exact words. Would be bad form you see. I’m definitely aiming a bit higher than I did. No need to spit in the face of employers.

I had a somewhat busy day. After pounding the cyber pavement I was in the library, visited Jim Mastro at the Guitar Bar and wandered around Hoboken a bit today. No sightings of Stine and Alexander today. Did clean the apartment some.

Still more to be done.

Bill started cleaning a bit last night, then we watched The Dead Zone. The David Cronenberg movie, starring Christopher Walken and Martin Sheen, not the TV show starring Anthony Michael Hall. I read the book ages ago, enjoyed it quite a bit while I was in the midst of reading most everything Stephen King had written.

I remember seeing the movie when it released. It is one of the better versions of a Stephen King story. When The West Wing was on TV starring Martin Sheen as President Bartlett, I couldn’t help but think of him as Greg Stillson, who ran for Senate and eventually occupies the White House.

Too creepy, but the future was altered despite the name change and eventually Jimmy Smits occupied the Pennsylvania Avenue address and the word was safe.

Lot’s of 1970′s/80′s actors in the Dead Zone. Herbert Lom, Anthony Zerbe, and Brooke Adams who is now Mrs. Tony Shaloub. Colleen Dewhurst is in it for about 5 minutes as well. That actually stopped Bill from his cleaning routine.

The other night Bill and I watched 3 hours of Lost. First the recap before the two hour premiere. After 6 seasons, Bill is into watching the show. The recap helped Bill catch up and he was oddly silent for three hours, except for his Craig Ferguson impersonations. “I know!”

Time moves on and the unease I felt at the beginning of the week is dissipating.

I was invited to Otisville on Sunday for a Super Bowl party but I am sticking closer to home in case Greg Stevens rings that bell for some work on Monday. Other than that, I would be totally clueless with regards to the Super Bowl. I have no idea who is playing anyhow.

I do know it is not the Jets.

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Fine For Now

Sunday, June 7th, 2009

Well last night was mainly me being exhausted from the afternoon’s events. I would have preferred being exhausted from bicycling over 30 miles, but no, it was the emotional wringer I had gone through.

Juan came by last night and that was good. We sat on the stoop for a while where I enjoyed a cigar and had 2 Stella Artois to Juan’s 1. He won the award for having a tumultuous life, he being without a roof over his head at the moment and people that were willing to help him out turning into douche bags.

Made my tale of woe seem like a walk in the park.

After my cigar we came upstairs where Bill was watching Snatch. The movie not the genital slang. I had seen it a number of years ago with my friend Miriam and it was still a fun movie to watch. A tad violent of course but darkly funny.

After that I threw in a DVD of The Buddha of Suburbia, which was written by Hanif Kureishi. Kureishi also wrote My Beautiful Laundrette, Sammy & Rosie Get Laid and London Kills Me.

His books and screenplays are mainly about the interaction and love lives of Asian Indians and Westerners, mainly the British. Very enjoyable and eye opening as well as risque which in my eyes is a good combination.

Naveen Andrews who plays on Lost as Sayid is in The Buddha of Suburbia as the Hanif Kureishi role. Teen-aged then, he shows his ‘how do you do’ a few times. It was a 4 episode series from the BBC and we only caught the first 2.

After that we watched the repeats of Lost on ABC which featured the more muscular Naveen Andrews with a thicker middle eastern accent.

Bill was in bed by the time that ended and Juan was soon out the door after that, coming back after I texted him to tell Juan that he left his phone charger here.

I slept the sleep of the exhausted and having a total of 5 Stella Artois under by belt made for a deep sleep.

In the morning, Bill was off to church again kissing me goodbye and I soon got out of bed, took off my clothes and went to take a shower when I realized I was still pretty tired and could use some more sleep so I went back to bed sleeping naked under the sheets which was really nice.

Bill had gotten bagels from H&H in the city yesterday so there was no need to deal with canary face at the bagel shop on Washington Street. But I did go out since I wanted the Sunday papers. Nothing that I could have missed there but still some habits die hard.

Around 2:00 I went out, to the river and sat by the soccer pitch reading the Eno biography. It was almost comforting that Brian Eno had some crisis of self doubt when making some of his landmark albums.

The same self doubt that I suffer from occasionally. Not that reading about Eno’s self doubt helped me, but the realization that it happens to a lot of people helped me think that as usual, self doubt is a momentary thing. Crippling for sure, but eventually you can walk again.

I sat for a few hours just reading and watching people and ocean liners go by.

Sitting there made me think that Hoboken is no longer the hipster town it used to be, if it ever was. Especially compared to Williamsburg yesterday. We drove past McCarren Park which was swarming with hipsters in tight jeans and fedoras.

It was off putting somewhat. Juan mentioned that no one wears fedoras anymore, only the ones that don’t know any better, and there they were, the ones that didn’t know any better.

Remake/Remodel

Saturday, May 16th, 2009

It’s been quite a pleasant Saturday. Pleasant enough that I wonder what will I write about? I could write about last night. I came home from work and wrote rather hurriedly, did some laundry.

I kept thinking that Bill and I were supposed to meet on 42nd Street to see the Star Trek movie. As I headed downstairs I saw Julio sitting on the stoop. Had a little chat with him, with me keeping my distance since he’s been feeling not at all well the past week and Alexander was sick last weekend.

While I was talking to Julio I suddenly remembered that Bill and I were meeting on 23rd Street and not 42nd Street. I headed towards the Path train, somewhat secure in my knowledge of where to go.

I sat on the Path train after walking against the commuters heading home and sat and read my Eno biography.

I got off at 23rd Street and lit a cigar and saw that Bill had phoned while I was underground and left a message telling me he was on 23rd Street and Eighth Avenue.

I puffed on the cigar as I walked down 22nd Street. Less crowded which meant less people to complain about the cigar.

I rounded the corner and found Bill leaning on a bus stop. Gave a nice kiss hello and we stood on the side of the movie theater talking while I finished the cigar.

Bill got the tickets and we made our way to the seats after getting some popcorn and sodas. Luckily we found two together on the side. It was very crowded, a sold out showing.

Star Trek was a lot of fun. Very entertaining. Miles ahead of Wolverine. Like I wrote last night, I’m no Trekkie but this was so entertaining, a clean slate for the franchise. A lot of fun indeed.

A few laughs at things that hearkened back to the original series that even a passing viewer with just a basic knowledge of the series could be in on.

Bill loved the movie quite a bit, and of course it wouldn’t be a modern movie going experience without a crying baby sitting nearby.

We caught the Path train back to Hoboken free of crying babies. The bar scene in Hoboken was hopping as befits a Friday night. I texted Roda and told him that Star Trek was good. He texted back that he plans on seeing it soon and that it sounded awesome.

Bill and I made it back to watch Bill Maher before him going off to bed leaving me to watch some episodes of The Daily Show before I went to bed myself around 1:00.

Woke up a little before 9:00 this morning and got myself together. Had a cuppa before heading out to get bagels and other foodstuffs. Saw Julio, Stine and the Boy Wonder and hung out with them for a few minutes.

Alexander is certainly getting active. Julio misses the days when Alexander would just lay around whereas Stine doesn’t and is more entertained and busy now that Alexander is more active. He is still so adorable.

No pictures this week but I should have some next weekend at the party in Van Saun Park for Alexander’s first birthday, which was actually last month.

Bill and I watched three hours of Lost which we recorded on Wednesday night while we were watching the Ludes.

Star Trek was directed by JJ Abrams and Lost is his baby. The first hour was catch up from the previous episodes, the last two hours were the season finale which was intense and with every commercial break I let out a ‘Wha?’ V

ery good finale, a tad upsetting but it’s science fiction so normal rules don’t apply, meaning the dead could not really be dead and on a show like Lost that happens sometimes.

Or does it?

Bill went out after that and I went wandering around Hoboken, getting a Graduation Day card for my niece Corinne’s party tomorrow in Garfield.

After sitting by the river and reading a bit about the beginning of Roxy Music I ran a few more errands before coming home and taking a well deserved nap. Overall a pretty good day.

I keep forgetting to write that I saw Bjork with Matthew Barney the other night while walking past Washington Square Park to see the Ludes. She looked great.

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Born Late

Thursday, April 30th, 2009

OK, this is what happened today. I wonder if I should start off each entry with ‘this is what happened today’? But then again I do write about the night before so maybe I should write, ‘This is what happened in the past 24 hours’.

Last night was quiet, Bill came home halfway through Lawn Hors d’oeuvre. I wish I caught the whole episode but I watched The Colbert Report after Lost. Lawn Hors d’oeuvre had some very good acting by a Central American actress who was simply heartbreaking at the end.

So damn sad. I think it had something to do with the beating and eventual death of Jose Sucuzhanay who was attacked in Brooklyn in December while walking home arm in arm with his brother after drinking one night. And also the day laborers out in Long Island who were routinely beaten by gangs of white kids. Gripping.

Lost was good last night, and too convoluted to get into here.

Bill was in a weird way, mostly depressed from not getting enough sleep. He’s been using a mask for his sleep apnea and it isn’t comfortable for him, causing him to wake up several times in the night.

With no relief in sleep and the situation with his mother who told him that she wants to die the poor guy is a mess. This morning he sent me a text about how he just wants to cry. He was at work and thats not how he usually goes through his day.

I was waiting for Abby to pick me up when I got the text. Abby told me yesterday that he was going to pick me up at 9:00 to go to Avenel. At 9:00 as I was about to leave, Abby calls.

He said he spoke to the property owner and said we should be there at 10:30, so he was going to pick me up at 10:00 instead.

Now I’m a stickler for time and a sucker for time. No matter how many times I’ve been kept waiting by family members, partners and friends, if they tell me they they will be somewhere like say, noon, I will be there at 11:55.

I always give them the benefit of the doubt.

So at 9:50, I went downstairs thinking that maybe this new guy, Abby will be early. I don’t like to keep anyone waiting you see.

At 10:15 I called Abby to find out what is going on. He told me he was on 50th Street and should be here in 10 minutes. Also the property owner apparently told him anytime after 10:30 was fine, which was not what he originally told me.

He also wondered why I was calling while waiting outside. I told him that we could do the trip some other time.

I had to go to the bank to get some cash and find out when I would be getting my new bank card, and there were things to do in the office that needed to be done today.

I’m probably being a pain in the ass to Vivek and company buy I do have other responsibilities. Responsibilities that are more or less concrete rather than the kind that change with the weather and Vivek’s whims.

I made it into the office and spoke with Greg Stevens before he headed out to the Hamptons. He just laughed at this situation, telling me that these guys run on Indian time. He inferred that Vivek was like a big kid who is used to getting his way, by hook or by crook.

Then it was off to the Hamptons for him.

I did whatever it was I could do in the office, also checked in with Bill from time to time. He took my advice, had a banana in the morning, a salad for lunch and another banana in the afternoon.

When I last spoke to him, he sounded a lot better. Not exactly ‘happy’ but busy enough at work to occupy his mind.

And if you’re in Hoboken on Sunday, and it’s not raining, you should check out Rand’s gate sale which is conjunction with Lois’ gate sale.

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It’s also the Art and Music Festival with the headliners being the Box Tops featuring Alex Chilton and also various members of the Feelies in various bands like Yung Wu, Wild Carnation and East of Venus.

Unless it rains.