Monthly Archives: February 2008

Cheese and Onions

Definitely a gray Sunday today. Definitely the essence of low key. I don’t mind, good to do nothing really. Just a lazy day, and why not? My weekend plans were mainly ignored, didn’t talk to many people on the phone so if you were expecting a call from me, well sorry about that. Next weekend I promise. And now that I have put that in writing, you can hold me to it, but please, be gentle. Last night, I watched The Bourne Ultimatum.

Very good, I really enjoy the take charge attitude of Jason Bourne, dealing with violent situations or surveillance. And Matt Damon is easy on the eyes. Definitely appealed to the 12 year old boy in me, the one who went to see the James Bond movies at the now nonexistent Century Theater by the Garden State Plaza. Saw my first movies there when I was growing up, The Jungle Book and Where Angels Go Trouble Follows.

After The Bourne Ultimatum I watched Saturday Night Live, which was a repeat with LeBron James hosting and Kanye West as the musical guest. A very funny episode which I’m sure I wrote about when it was first broadcast. By 1:00 I went to bed, listening to whomever was walking down the street and yelling to their friends quite drunkenly. I’m sure I did that once or twice in the past and it wasn’t so bad since I’m on the fifth floor. I know it would sound differently, and my attitude would be different if I was on a lower floor.

Woke up around 9:00, had coffee and went out hunting and gathering. Then all I did was make breakfast and read the papers, and watched Hard Eight by Paul Thomas Anderson, which was very good. That Philip Baker Hall, I love him and could probably watch him in anything. Just a very good taut story, and relatively seedy and shadowy. Worth catching if you’ve never seen it before. Now I can say I’ve see all of P.T. Anderson’s movies, and they’re all very good. I should watch Magnolia again, if only on brother Frank’s suggestion.

Not much going on in Hoboken, not that there ever is. Last night took some photos which are posted here. Reading Uncut Magazine which is marginally better than Mojo this month. Can’t always be home runs I guess. It’s odd that when I sit on my couch, to my right is a calendar of Magnetic Poetry, those little magnets with words on them that you can play with. And I have played with them somewhat. But the odd part is when I sit on the couch, I always think it’s a Warhol calendar that I had a few years ago, rather than the magnetic calendar.

Out of the corner of my eye, I see this,
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when it is actually this!
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Odd huh? I don’t know what to think. And it’s always Marilyn by Warhol. A famous Warhol piece for sure, but why after a few years do I see that? Unsettling in a funny ‘strange’ way.

Here is what the magnetic poetry says
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here are some pics from last night
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Promises

♫ It’s a Saturday, and I slept until 8:30 and it felt really good yeah yeah yeah.♪. Didn’t do much of anything last night, watched TV, read Mojo which for me personally was sub par. I tried to get into it, but I didn’t really want to read about the British perspective of Staten Island’s Wu Tang Clan. Not that I don’t like them, but Jeezy Creezy I know most of the story already and what I didn’t know, I didn’t care to know. Just a bum issue I guess.

I did find out that Nick Lowe’s Jesus Of Cool has been reissued for it’s 30th anniversary which is cool and worth getting. Here in the States it was called Pure Pop for Now People. So I’m going to get a copy for myself online, and probably burn a copy for my brother Brian. We both liked Nick Lowe & Dave Edmunds back in the day, and last September when I saw Nick Lowe solo I made a point to direct Brian to the YouTube clips I had posted under the vid de plume of johnotoole99.

I watched Monk last night, the detective with OCD, not the jazz pianist. It was the season finale, and even though I watch the show from time to time, I was able to figure out the cliffhanger. Monk was not shot, the gun had blanks, and he’s swimming off to fake his death to finally nab Scott Glenn, the corrupt sheriff. Or not. I was pretty much sure of that last night, but with time, my certainty fades. Also watched Bill Maher which I tend to enjoy more with someone else here on the couch rather than alone. Strange, that. I figured midnight was as good a time as any to finally fall asleep and that’s what I did.

Just knowing I have Monday off was like a vacation and waking up wasn’t so bad. I had things to do, laundry, dry cleaning, shopping for slippers, and some new pots and potting soil for an attempt to rescue a plant that I brought with me from Weehawken 6 years ago. It was originally William’s plant and it almost took over the kitchen. It’s a hearty elephant eared plant, but lately all the leaves fell off my plant. I thought maybe the problem was the soil and the size of the pot so that was my chore for the day. I wouldn’t really know if it was the right thing to do for a few days, much like surgery I guess. I do hope it works because I do like this plant, even though I think it may be from another planet.

Yesterday when I spoke with brother Frank on the phone, he was telling me about a PBS show with Henry Louis Gates called American Lives 2, about tracing roots and genetics for various prominent African Americans. It was very good and Frank was on the money about the show. I don’t think a lot of white people realize how fucked the black people have been in this country, they just expect them to get over 400 years of oppression, from slavery to today, all the time being told that they were worthless, less than human, and when that is systematically enforced both physically and mentally everyday of your life, just getting over it clearly isn’t an option. About 40 years ago there were struggles to eat at the same lunch counter. Such institutional bullshit, still exists today.

I looked into taking some meditation classes in Hoboken. Going to look into it at least. That should be interesting. I’m just in it for the mantra.