this is taking much longer than i thought it would?

Because I was interested to see how this would turn out, here's my version of the MEME Mary posted:

IF SOMEONE SAYS “IS THIS OKAY” YOU SAY?
Bring Back Pluto (Aesop Rock)
That actually kind of makes sense? Aesop Rock features J.Darnielle on one of his songs, so you can't go wrong.

WHAT WOULD BEST DESCRIBE YOUR PERSONALITY?
Blue Veins (The Raconteurs)
Wealthy?

WHAT IS YOUR LIFE’S PURPOSE?
Falling Out of Love at This Volume (Bright Eyes)
Well that's fantastic.

WHAT IS YOUR MOTTO?
Island Garden Song (The Mountain Goats)
I guess it's that "My garden will grow so high (2x) that I will be completely hidden." Or "I will jettison all dead weight."

WHAT DO YOUR FRIENDS THINK OF YOU?
If You Stay Sober (Shearwater)

WHAT DO YOU THINK ABOUT VERY OFTEN?
Bright Future in Sales (Fountains of Wayne)
A bright future in sales isn't quite correct. I do like the idea of getting my shit together though.

WHAT IS 2+2?
Hotel Song (Regina Spektor)
Hello, obligatory question with no chance of a correct or semi-correct response.

WHAT DO YOU THINK OF YOUR BEST FRIEND?
Take a Dance With Me (St. Thomas)
Man, I'm kind of a dick in this song. The thrust of it is fairly accurate, I suppose?

WHAT DO YOU THINK OF THE PERSON YOU LIKE
Dance Music (The Mountain Goats)
Apparently, "You're the last best thing I've got going" and "I don't want to die alone."

WHAT IS YOUR LIFE STORY?
Infiltration (Sam Phillips)
That sounds about right.

WHAT DO YOU THINK WHEN YOU SEE THE PERSON YOU LIKE?
Shadow Song (The Mountain Goats)
This song always reminds me of the very end of No Country for Old Men.

WHAT DO YOUR PARENTS THINK OF YOU?
Hook, Line, and Sinker (Jon Brion)
I am beginning to suspect the results of this may be random.

WHAT WILL YOU DANCE TO AT YOUR WEDDING?
Boy's Best Friend (The White Stripes)
I'm not sure how to feel about this:
I just don't fit in this place
Their thoughts cast me out of here
Their home has run out of space
My mind's already out of here
Won't you come along, dear?
Won't you come along?

WHAT WILL THEY PLAY AT YOUR FUNERAL?
Winter (Josh Radin)
Fitting. Although I was really hoping it'd be Elijah by The Mountain Goats.

WHAT IS YOUR HOBBY/INTEREST?
Bridge Over Troubled Water (Simon and Garfunkel)
Lovely.

WHAT IS YOUR BIGGEST SECRET?
Propinquity (The Nitty Gritty Dirt Band)
Hmm.

WHAT DO YOU THINK OF YOUR FRIENDS?
Song of Our So-Called Friend (Okkervil River)
High five, random shuffle button.

WHAT’S THE WORST THING THAT COULD HAPPEN?
Better (Regina Spektor)
Actually, I wouldn't mind things getting better.

HOW WILL YOU DIE?
Lightness (Peter and the Wolf)
Sad song.

WHAT IS THE ONE THING YOU REGRET?
San Bernadino (The Mountain Goats)
Man, there's a lot of MG on here.

WHAT MAKES YOU LAUGH?
Rhythm and Soul (Spoon)
Although I enjoy Spoon, they generally don't make me laugh...

WHAT MAKES YOU CRY?
Rowboat (Beck Cover) (Johnny Cash)
That sounds about right.

WILL YOU EVER GET MARRIED?
Old Dream (Darren Hanlon)
This song seems to say yes, but I'll be sad and poor.

WHAT SCARES YOU THE MOST?
Family Happiness (The Mountain Goats)
It doesn't scare me, but it would've been pretty sweet if this one came up one song ago. It would also point to a strange marriage, however. I do love the song.

DOES ANYONE LIKE YOU?
Peace (Weezer)
Answer hazy, try again.

IF YOU COULD GO BACK IN TIME, WHAT WOULD YOU CHANGE?
Bit Rate Variations in B-Flat (Beck)
Why yes, I would rock out more.

WHAT HURTS RIGHT NOW?
Revolution in the Heart (Ed Harcourt)
That doesn't link to the song. It links to a video I found when I was trying to find the correct one. It is a video of pure madness. And I'm sure that's really him in that suit, check out this one for his history of strange strange endeavors.


I've got to tell you I had to try really hard not to cheat. I did cheat on the last one because a live recording of This Year came up and I had already used the album version. So, yeah.

in which i say nothing (but freak out a little)

It is becoming increasingly apparent I will probably most possibly, that is to say "definitely," be graduating from COLLEGE in like, six months. WTF. I have, however, seen the other side in my friend Ben. He graduated last year and recently got a job directly because of his degree (Computer Science, I believe) and has not yet burst into flames. This is comforting to me. He's engaged to his girlfriend, which I just remembered. This is less comforting because it reveals one thing about this period in our lives which I had been hoping to ignore for a while longer: Real Life presses upon us.

I knew Ben back when he was singing about pigeons on a bagel being spread like butter during a down time while we were filming P.I. (an entirely different story altogether). Granted, I also knew David Forsythe back when he was just a little kid with a broken arm and he's now been married for a year or so, I guess I shouldn't be so surprised re: Real Life. These things happen. It's just weird.

Also: I'm going to need to get some health insurance when I graduate. Gah.

WTF, man. WTF.

barack obama left a comment on your blog

This evening I made my last donation to Barack Obama's campaign. Afterward, I was directed to write something down if I wanted to and send it along (to the campaign, I guess?) and I felt moved to do so. I was planning on writing something about this on my birthday, but I think this captures how I feel pretty well. And it's already written. So that's another plus.

I first donated to the campaign back early in the primary season, when Hillary was, I felt, being excessively negative to Barack. It wasn't much, but as he won more and more states I felt proud that I had donated and had in a small way helped his cause.
I donated a few more times during the primaries. And as he moved into the general election season I donated a little more. It became important to me to continue my support because I really believe America will be a better country with Barack as president. I've never understood why people dismissed him as little more than empty words and high retoric. If you would listen, I thought, you would understand that he's not just talking about hope and change, but he's talking about how to bring about change and how to renew hope.
Back when I made my first donation I was afraid he wouldn't win the nomination. But I saw that he and the people around him had thought through most of the paths their campaign could take and had chosen the right one. When Barack won the nomination, I was happy but still afraid that there would be something to take away his chances at becoming president.
Now I'm allowing myself to hope. The election is four days away and in two days I will be 22. Four years ago I voted for George Bush. It was a mistake I will not make again.

I don't know if you will read this, Mr. Obama, but if you do I want to say thank you. Thank you for being the canidate I hoped you would remain to be all those months ago. It means a lot to me, personally.

Thank you.

a quick one

Hey all, it's been a while. I'm fine, thanks for asking. And yourself? Oh, I've been keeping busy, mostly with school, but I can't complain too much about that.

I've been thinking about Things. (NOTE: This will not be a long heavy post, don't fret.) It hardly seems fair that college is almost over, especially since it seemed to take much less time to get through than high school did. I'll just end that train of thought right there. That train of thought can be difficult to articulate and I am too tired to do so now.

How about a joke? I don't remember where I read it...

What's the difference between Barack Obama and John McCain?

One of them offers you change, the other offers you a dish of hard candy.

Oh, ZING! Tip your waiters and waitresses.

thought(s) on the VP debate

gaioshfisahgh everytime I hear the word "maverick" I feel like someone is poking me in the back of the head asdsadasgahgops.

While she's rebuking Biden on his Afghanistan response, she looks like she wants to throttle him. He pissed. her. off. (Or maybe she's really flustered?)

This might be a bit too mean, but I thought it when Palin said John McCain "knows how to win a war": Didn't we "lose" the Vietnam War?

If either of you watched the debate, can you tell me how many questions she's answered? I haven't caught one yet.

AGH, stop being so damn folksy. It's like nails on a chalkboard!

"John McCain tapped me and said 'That's where I wantcha.' "

Were you aware Alaska produces a lot of energy?

Maverick twice in the same answer! When Biden was answering the same question he started to tear up. Palin said some talking points. Biden is NOT happy about that.

UPDATE: David Letterman has some special messages from Governor Palin which, I think, should not be missed. They clear several things up:

from work!

Ah, yes, the smell of cigarette smoke wafting down the stairs and from guys whose pants have not fit them for a long time. Now I remember why I liked it better why we had shows outside of the store.

Walt Fact #917

I really really liked Casino Royale. I thought, and it's been a while since I've seen the others, that it was the best Bond movie. Not only that, it was an awesome movie by itself. With that out of the way, I think Quantum of Solace (and yes, I like the title, I think it makes sense) looks even better:



When they both fall through the glass ceiling at 1:25? AWESOME.

no one knows where we go

I keep meaning to go to bed sooner, and failing. I think "oh, I'll just check this one other site to see if there's anything new" and then it's an hour later and I'm still tired. And the worst part is that none of it ever really changes, the new Macbooks are still unannounced (and probably won't be until early October) and Sarah Palin is still, well, not helping McCain (which is fine, but I'm still worried he can somehow turn it all around).

Fuck.

Fuck.

I'm going to bed.

"i am a werewolf."

For any and all interested parties, the Reading Rainbow version of When the Wolfsbane Blooms can be found here:
http://www.mediafire.com/?dgmymy0gmcm
The picture is pretty decent for what it is at the standard resolution and is passable (barely) at full-screen resolution, but it was the best option I was given that didn't make the file size prohibitively huge.

a horribly hilarious story FROM THE PAST

If you meander over to hobbescomics.net you'll see that I've finally updated the site with some new (really old) content! I wrote the story 13 years ago, probably fairly close to the day, and it really really shows it. Or at least I hope it does.
There are a great number of misspelled words. And a great number of silly illustrations. If you look at page five, you'll notice that someone is SO frightened their hair, teeth, eyes, and glasses are popping off of their round, smooth skull.
The copy I have is, as far as I know, the only copy left and even that is not the original. Anyway, check it out, it's pretty entertaining.

making that subtitle inaccurate since 1986

Hey. So. It's been a while. I've been working on a story that I'm probably going to be putting in the save for later folder because it's just not happening. I have ideas for it and I have some sentences I really like, but overall it's been fighting me every step of the way. I recently started reading a book called U & I: A True Story about a writer who is obessed with John Updike. I can relate. The man is nothing if not prolific and has remained well-respected into his later years (which other author can you say that of?) and listening to him speak, the sentences seem to pour out of him perfectly formed. But moving on.
The story started out being about a man and wife with their infant daughter waiting for a bus in a small town and became about the same couple with the same child seeing a man get hit by a car (tapped, would be a better word) and get in a fight with the driver and started being more about the man meeting someone he hasn't talked to in a long time and being confused and unsettled by the ways they no longer match his memory. And then he goes back outside to the bus stop where his wife and daughter are waiting.
I'm not sure why I'm so facinated by the motif (if motif is the word I want) of that sort of family. I have neither wife nor daughter. But they keep popping up. I just need to move on and come back to the story later.

I'll have something more interesting to say later, I'm sure.

EDIT: I love Dylan Moran. He's hilarious! This is from his show "Black Books"

i mean, like, seriously. ew.

Dear Lady Who Immediately And I Am Not Exaggerating People Started Trimming Your Fingernails After You Asked If We Had A Book,

That is NOT socially acceptable. At all. And when you didn't even sweep your clippings away, I was flabbergasted that people even did that. Please never come in the store again.

Thanks!

Walt

write or else

I spent about two hours over Friday and Saturday in the dark. This was something I had planned. During those two hours, give or take, I listened to a man speaking with a gentle accent, a sort of rolling of the vowels, a rising and falling of stresses, as he occasionally shifted from foot to foot, tapping the toe of his shoe to keep time. He smiled and laughed and peered into the darkness over his small glasses to either proclaim or jest. It was, by turns, hilarious and thoughtful.

I'm talking, of course, about Thomas Lynch.

He came to my school on Friday and gave a reading in the recital hall, where he was either accompanied or followed by a piece of music various students had composed for his poetry or essays. The music was often very good, and fantastic at least once and he seemed pleased by it. He read selections from "Sweeney," "All Hallows Eve," the first essay in Undertaking, and one poem whose name I cannot recall.
I went downtown to see him Saturday, my father, a copy of Still Life in Mitford, and my uncle's copy of Bodies in Motion and at Rest in tow. The talk was supposedly called "Undertaking Nonfiction" and was to be about the craft of nonfiction writing. But he didn't touch on that and instead read "Grimalkin" and told its story (a more compact version of which is in the essay of the same name). He read from some articles he had written, some poems I have not read, some essays I have, and talked the whole time about the whys of the writing. When asked, at the end, by some small child "Have you ever cremated an animal?" he answered, laughing, "Not on purpose."
So I went into the lobby, waving to people I know, and had the books signed. He asked me what I did and if I was in the MFA program at Eastern and then if I was going to stay here or go somewhere else for it. In my uncle Tom's book he wrote: "Uncle Tom, Namesake, etc. Best, TL." And in mine he wrote: "Walt- Write or else! TL, Spokane 2008."

Awesome.

you guys.

You guys I love the Mountain Goats so much.



I know that in California, the waves break on the beach
I know that the foam on the breaking waves is as white as household bleach
But can you see that particular white right now?
That's the color of the young star, coming on down
I've got joy joy joy in my soul tonight
I've got joy joy joy in my arms all right
Although you treat me badly
I will love you madly
You really got a hold on me
You really got a hold on me

i am incredibly bored so you get to read whatever i can think of until i absolutely have to do something:

To say that it had been raining long would be laughable. In fact, Rabbit tried it out, and found that he smiled in spite of the sagging in his earthen roof and the fact his whole front was soaked from dumping several pots' worth of water out the door of his burrow. He eyed the roof, tendrils of grass root were reaching stupidly for his rug. If it was still raining tomorrow he'd go out into the forest and fetch some lengths of wood to brace it.
He got word the day before that Rat's home, or at least the part of which he was most proud, had crumbled into the river and that Rat had moved in with Badger and was drinking what little of his store he had been able to save. Rabbit was thinking about all this and wondering if he should perhaps go into the forest tonight when someone knocked on his door. He stepped around the series of pots and opened it to find Hedgehog standing there, her shawl making thin tents on her trembling quills, her eyes wide.
"Rabbit," she said, ignoring his offer to come in, "quick, you've got to help; it's Rat."

And now someone's come in with books, so I'm off...

top five most ridiculous romance titles in a single order

1. Paging Dr. Daddy
2. The Spaniard's Pregnancy Proposal
3. The Italian Billionaire's Pregnant Bride
4. Expecting His Love-Child
5. One-Night Love Child

I've figured out one of the formulas for a romance novel:

The [Profession/Ethnicity/Ethnicity & Profession]'s [Amount of Wealth/Prengnan/t/cy] [Bride/Lover/Secret Lover]

I'm learning so much!

in which i pause for a moment and abandon being self-reflective for at least a paragraph

I've been on Spring Break for the past two weeks, so I've had quite a bit of time on my hands (when my brother wasn't here). I've been spending some chunks of that time playing through Splinter Cell: Chaos Theory, which, although it didn't get great reviews, is a lot of fun. There is one particular thing that bugs me though:
If I can pick off a covert agent from tens of yards away even if he's run deep into the shadows, you'd think I'd turn if someone opened a door two feet away instead of continuing to walk from one desk to another/smoking an entire cigarette. After that, sneaking up behind someone and then quietly dragging him to the shadows is considerably less satisfying.

That's pretty much it. Stuff about school comes tomorrow, after, you know, I'm done with it.

Also, Tom Nook is a cheap bastard.