Self Made Mess

So This is the New Year?

2009-04-13T23:26:00.002-04:00

My grandma died on Sunday morning. I was at the movies. I came home and my mother told me that my uncle had called while I was out and said she had passed around 11:20am. That was about the time I was driving west on the Southern State Pkwy wondering if I would make it to the Farmingdale theater on time. I made it. The film was ok. When in a rush and driving, I tend to look at the clock frequently. I have a feeling that I will always think of what I was doing and where I was headed when my grandma died.

My grandma's passing was not unexpected. She had been ill for several weeks and spent some time in the hospital. She had Congestive Heart Failure. I wanted to go visit before she passed, but was not able. What I mean is that my mother and father were going on the same weekend that my oldest brother and his family were going, and, due to the fact that my oldest brother and I are in no way close -- we haven't spoken in well over five years -- I was unable to go. I know, you are probably wondering why we didn't put our differences aside for my grandmother. It's not that simple. It never is, I guess. My decision to stay home was made because I didn't want there to be any tension in my grandmother's presence. I considered traveling to Pennsylvania this past weekend, but then heard that my grandma was in-and-out of consciousness and having trouble recognizing people. This is not the last memory I wanted to have of her. As I expected, she passed before I could say goodbye. This will be another regret I will carry with me.

I am not a religious person. I guess I never have been. My mom loves to tell the story about how I talked about the Big Bang theory in Sunday School when I was six-years-old. I admit, I like to tell this story too. Perhaps my lack of faith is what caused me to see a great deal of irony in my grandma passing on Easter... the Resurrection.

Lately, I feel like my life is a book and I am a slow reader. Interpret that however you choose.

The funeral is on Saturday in PA. I'll be there.

xo

Teaching and such

2008-09-14T21:21:00.003-04:00

Happy September! We only have a few months left in 2008. It's crazy how fast the year goes. In less than two months we'll be voting for a new president (my fingers are crossed for a Obama victory). I have been following the race closely for the past year. Am I obsessed? Perhaps. But this is a historic race. If you would have asked me about my thoughts on McCain a few years ago, I would have said he was the only Republican I would consider voting for in a presidential race. Since his switch from an intelligent free thinker, I have lost any and all respect for him. He now wants to overturn Roe s. Wade? He has now become a typical right wing conservative? Thanks, but no thanks. Obama impresses me. I like his ideas. I like his approach to politics. Though it's true that no one truly knows what kind of president any candidate will be until he/she is in office, but I am willing to take my chances with Obama. McCain's views do not sit well with me. And now that he has Palin on the ticket, with her anti-abortion and eco-ignorance, I am angered to think that McCain even stands a chance of being elected. I feel like I did in 2000 when I told my college English teacher that I planned to move to Canada if Bush won. Well, I didn't move, but it has been a rough 8 years. I can't imagine living in the US with McCain running the show. Ugh!

As for my current job status, I have a full-year leave replacement position teaching 9th & 10th grade English. In fact, there is a chance that I may get upgraded to a full-time, tenure track position in a few days. Apparently, one of the people who beat me for a tenure track position has decided to resign. Since I was the 1st runner up for the spot, it may got to me. It is not definite yet, but I have my fingers crossed. Please cross yours as well. Thanks.

That's all for now. I'm watching House and it's getting exciting. Until next time...

-Sergei xo

Song of the Day:
Bloc Party - Better Than Heaven

July, July, July

2008-07-26T22:25:00.002-04:00

I survived three rounds of interviews for a teaching job. At the start of the last interview, I was told it was for a .4 position (one class in the High School and one in the Junior High School). Originally, I was informed that I would be interviewing for a full-time position. Eh, whatever. I was disappointed at first, but now I'm alright. Even if I don't get the job, I will not be completely disappointed. I decided that if i don't get the job, I will begin subbing in schools a little more west on Long Island and begin looking for a leave replacement position. I'm just happy to have survived the three rounds of interviews.

I saw The Dark Knight three times in the first week it was out. Do I have a Batman obsession? Yes I do! I'm planning a IMAX viewing for some time this week. It has been a while since I have been this excited for a film.

Seeing Batman Tech and similar shows on History Channel makes me happy. I feel like a youngin. It's quite wonderful.

Ok, South Park is on. I have to go. Later.

-Sergei xo

Song of the Day:
Someone Still Loves You, Boris Yeltsin - Heers

Five months later

2008-05-10T23:59:00.002-04:00

Five months without a blog. Time flies when you're working nonstop. I haven't had much to write in months. I work full-time as a sub during the day and full-time at the shoe store at night. At least, that is how it has been for the past month and a half. I'm quite exhausted. I have off tomorrow, which is nice. It will be the first time in a while that I can go to sleep without setting an alarm. I don't plan to get out of bed until after noon.

The quest is on for a full-time teaching position. I miss having my own class. When I was a student teacher, I felt like I became the teacher. I guess this is to be expected, since I was teaching the kids every day. But even the kids told me they felt like I was their teacher. They didn't treat me the same as other student teachers. On Monday, my former cooperating teacher at the high school asked me to stop by and see her at some point during the day. When I stopped by her office during 6th period she told me about a descriptive writing assignment the kids had one day. They had to write nice things about people in the class without using "nice," "good," "very," etc. Some of the kids asked if they could write about me. I haven't been with them since January, aside form the few times I had the chance to stop in and hang out during my off periods. I was really touched to hear that the kids wanted to write about me. I stopped by to visit during 2nd period on Wednesday and was given nineteen little notes, some mounted on construction paper. Several of the notes mentioned my funny stories about my friends and crazy dance moves. Other notes discussed how they missed having me in class and how they will never forget me. When there are moments that I find myself exhausted from waking up at 4:45am after falling asleep after midnight, I think of these students and the affect they have had on my life. It's better than a cup of coffee.

As for music, I have been downloading a lot lately. I know it's wrong, but I find it helpful in finding new music. If I truly like it, I will buy the album. I have been good so far. The new DCFC is fantastic. It reminds me of "The Photo Album" if it were conceptualized like "Transatlanticism." Aspects of it remind me of "We Have the Facts..." as well. I'm also enjoying Pinback's "Summer in Abaddon." How I slept on this band for so long I have no idea. 2008 has been a good year for albums so far. Bands I never thought I would like are impressing me. Someone Still Loves You, Boris Yeltsin surprised me with "Pershing," as did Tokyo Police Club with "Elephant Shell." The year is almost half over already and there will plenty more good albums to come.

In addition to new music, we will have a new president elected by years end. Granted he won't take office until 2009, but I will sleep better, I hope, knowing that someone new is in office. First off, I feel comfortable saying "he" because I highly doubt Clinton has a chance at this point of winning the nomination. At one time I would have been happy if either Obama or Clinton won the nomination. These days, I would be somewhat disappointed if she were leading in the polls. I'm tired of the "tell them what they want to hear" politics. Too many politicians say whatever they need to to get elected. I once respected McCain for his non-status quo approach to republican politics. Once he became Bush junior in order to win votes, I lost all respect for him. Clinton plays the game the same way. I'm tired of being treated like an ill-informed moron. A Gas tax holiday? I'm sorry, but it won't solve anything. If economists are saying it won't help, then politicians should listen. If a mechanic tells me that sticking a bucket under a car leaking oil won't stop the leak, then I'm going to listen. The same should apply to economic problems. I should stop here before I go on a rant. Well, a longer rant, that is.

Absolut Pears is delicious. I bought a bottle tonight.

Ok, I'm off to watch a movie. I'd say I'll write again soon, but I never know. Fingers crossed that I won't be too lazy.

Later on.

-Sergei xo

Song of the Day:
Death Cab For Cutie - Cath...

A New Year

2008-01-05T01:47:00.000-05:00

2008. It's funny how so much changes in the span of a year. When 2007 began, I was preparing for my last semester of classes. By September I began student teaching. For the first few weeks, I counted down the days. After a while I stopped counting. Eventually, I counted the completed days to have an idea of when I would finish. As this day approached, a part of me did not want student teaching to end. Earlier today (yesterday, technically) was the day. My last day of student teaching. I didn't sleep well the night before. As I walked into the High School on Friday morning, I wondered how the day would go. I kept reminding myself that I would still see my students when I returned to the school as a substitute. Then it happened... As I stood around pretending that my presence would help heard students to their first period classes, one of my students, Nicole, walked up and handed me a note. She said, "I can't look at you. I'm going to cry." Then she walked away. As I read her note, I could feel a lump forming in my throat. Nicole had forged a bond with me. Her Dad is going through chemotherapy and she would often share her feelings with me. I knew she was under a lot of stress brought on by her dad's illness and the extra responsibilities at home. She told me that every year she finds one teacher she can tell everything to and that I was that teacher. I was later surprised by a giant card from my classes. The students wrote me notes. I also received a poster some of them made. One girl gave me the comic book she was making about me. Leaving was not easy. I'm really going to miss them.

Later, in the Junior High School, I wasn't sure how I would tell my 7th graders. They are extremely energetic, so I was afraid if I told them at the start of class they would be distracted all period. I was planning to wait until the last few minutes. When those minutes arrived, I was surprised by them. My cooperating teacher pulled out a giant gift basket filled with various items, including personal notes from each of my students. I was in complete shock. When I though of becoming a teacher, I liked the idea of having a positive impact on the lives of the students. I never imagined the positive impact the students would have on me.

Goodnight.

-Sergei xo

Song of the Day:
Band of Horses - Detlef Schrempf

A New Decade

2007-12-09T22:15:00.001-05:00

Holy crap! I'm 30-years-old! How the hell did that happen? It feels like only yesterday I was playing on the playground at Idle Hour Elementary School. Ok, that's an exaggeration, but it is weird. I sort of miss being in my 20's. It was a good ride. I had a lot of good times. I met amazing people. It would be nice if I can slow time though. I'd like to make things last longer. Every day spent waiting for the next day to come is another day that goes by too quickly. Enjoy what you have while you have it. Nothing lasts forever.

Student teaching is almost over. I have three more weeks (not counting the Christmas break). I should be finished by the end of the first week of January. This will be weird. I've grown attached to my students. They treat me like I'm their teacher, not their student teacher. I can't even begin to tell you how amazing this experience has been. My seminar class ended last Wednesday also. It was my final class in the Master's program. I can't believe it's over... almost. I'm going to miss being a student. I've been one for so long it has become a part of me. B ut I know myself. I'll find an excuse to take classes. My seminar professor gave me some fantastic compliments as well. I was surprised. I only hope I can be as good a teacher as some of the teachers I have had.

Hmmm... what else. Magdalene bought me a Firewire Solo for my birthday. Now I can record guitar and vocals on my computer. I can't wait to start writing and recording songs again. It's not like I'll be playing them at shows, but I love writing songs. Karen and I have tossed around the idea of starting a band. I definitely want to do this. It's just going to take some effort and extra free time. I miss playing. But for now, at least, I have my new toy for recording.

Ok, well, I guess that's it for now. Later on.

-Sergei xo

Song of the Day:
matt pond PA - Until the East Coast Ends

October

2007-10-16T22:23:00.000-04:00

I'm almost halfway through student teaching. Originally, the plan was to be in the High School until October 25th, then switch to the Junior High to complete my student teaching experience. My cooperating teacher in the High School decided she wanted to keep me for the entire time because it would be better to stay with the same class for the entire time (I liked this idea). Of course, due to State regulations, I am required to have teaching experience on the Junior High School level in order to be certified. As a result, I am teaching in the High School and Junior High School simultaneously. I spend my mornings in the High School teaching periods 2, 3, & 4, then I drive down the road to the Junior High School where I teach 8th period. 10th grad honors in the morning and 7th grade Regents in the afternoon. needless to say, I am exhausted by the time I leave; and getting up at 5am doesn't help. But it has been fun thus far. The kids are great. I'm definitely going to miss them when student teaching ends.

I had my first two student teaching observation last Friday. I was nervous, but they went well. My seminar professor told me that I remind him of himself as a young teacher. I was surprised and flattered. Perhaps I'm not so crazy for choosing to become a teacher.

Magdalene and I went to 4 shows in a week and a half: matt pond PA, The Good Life, Minus the Bear, and Jeremy Enigk. We were exhausted, but the shows were fantastic. This Saturday, we're seeing Owen @ Southpaw. Should be a fun time. The time we hung out with Mike Kinsella (Owen) we were at Southpaw seeing Maritime. Next it's The Color Fred, then Jimmy Eat World, and then Brand New.

Saturday, Magdalene and I went to Rembrandts in Hicksville to see Speed Speed Speed for Steve's b-day. They were amazing. Such a good show. We narrowly escaped getting sprayed with beer several times. I swear, no one brings the rock like they do.

Ok, I have to get ready for bed. I'm getting up at 4:50am tomorrow.

Later on.

-Sergei xo

Song of the Day:
The Good Life - On the Picket Fence

Fall 2007, day 2

2007-09-22T23:43:00.000-04:00

I've been student teaching for 3 weeks now (though the first 2 weeks were 3 school days long) and I am having a fun time. The instructors of the Master's program at Stony Brook asked that we spend the 1st week observing our cooperating teachers before we begin teaching ourselves. Things didn't quite work out his way. I was in front of the class on day 3. And if you consider that day 1 was spent observing my cooperating teacher go over the course outline with the students, I actually only observed her teaching for 1 day. Things have gone surprisingly well though. The kids in my classes are great, as are the teachers I have met along the way. They are all extremely helpful, which has made my student teaching experience fantastic thus far. I'm extremely fortunate to be working and learning from so many extremely helpful and considerate educators.

Monday starts my first week of my three week unit plan on Julius Caesar. Am I nervous? Well, that's an understatement. With any luck, I'll do ok. I really like the students in my classes. They have a lot of personality and they make my mornings a lot of fun.

What else?

Well, Magdalene and I have tickets to a handful of shows over the next few months.

matt pond PA - 9/28
The Good Life - 10/04
Minus the Bear - 10/05
Owen - 10/20
Jimmy Eat World - 11/9
Brand New - 12/04

With any luck, I'll be able to get Van Halen tickets for November as well. That would be amazing. DLR. That's what it's all about!

I missed John's B-Day celebration on Friday night. That sucks. I started feeling sick on Thursday night. My left sinus passage began burning and I started feeling body aches. Friday wasn't much better. I was feeling the illness in me through most of the day. After teaching, I went home where I lay in bed for 20 minutes before going to work at Journeys until 10pm. Realizing I would never survive the drive to Howard Beach, much less the drive home, I opted to go home and sleep. I fell asleep just before 12am and woke up at 10:30am the next morning. I still feel a bit sick, but the aches have left. Perhaps the faucet that is my nose will be turned off by tomorrow.

Ok, I have some work to do and sleep to attempt, so this blog is over.

Later on.

-Sergei xo

Song of the Day:
Cursive - Big Bang

Here's to new beginnings!

2007-09-02T00:34:00.000-04:00

Tonight was my last night as a manager at Journeys. After 2 years, I have returned to my role as a part-time sales associate. Gone are the days of decent pay (and excellent pay during holidays). I now begin my struggle to pay my bills. If one could buy financial floaties, I'd certainly pick up a set. To lighten the financial burden whilst I tend to my student teaching duties, I paid off my car insurance for the next 6 months. One less bill to worry about. I'm still nervous, but it's not only because of the money (or lack thereof). I'm mostly concerned with how I will do as a student teacher. My cooperating teacher is also the English Chairperson, which is both exciting and nerve wracking. Surely I will learn a lot from her, but I am also afraid of how my performance will be perceived. Though she does seem very nice. I'm trying to stay positive.

My head is in a much better place since my last blog. Much love and gratitude to all of my friends who sent their support. Life isn't an easy thing sometimes, and it's a wonderful feeling to have caring friends who are concerned about my well-being. We all eventually face troubling times. They make us stronger. They challenge our will and test our strength. I'll get through this. And to all of you who read this, know that I will always be here for you if you ever need me. Thanks again.

Moving on to music:
The Good Life's new album, Help Wanted Nights, is fantastic. It arrived almost two weeks early. Thank you, Saddle Creek! The Honorary Title's new album, Scream and Light Up the Sky, is another excellent new collection of tunes. It's nice to have some new music for an end of summer soundtrack.

I guess that's it for now. Maybe later I'll share the story of the flatulating 12-year-old and her gospel-loving, church-pushing, older-daughter-whoring mom. This mother/daughter made for an interesting Friday night at work.

Later on.

-Sergei xo

Song of the Day:
The Good Life - So Let Go

Every beginning has an ending

2007-08-15T23:17:00.000-04:00

With every new start comes the end of something else. We start college, leaving our high school life behind. We go off to school, leaving our best friends behind. We start a new job, leaving our former job behind. We start on a new life, and watch another life die. I'm not sure how to feel right now. It's like with every step forward I take, I get knocked back a step (sometimes two). In some ways it's small. I attempted to buy a desk & chair at Ikea on Monday, but due to the missing 2nd box for my desk, I left without my intended purchases. I returned tonight, getting in with minutes to spare, only to later realize I bought the wrong color desk. I have to go back tomorrow morning and get the correct desk. I have the chair though. I'm sitting in it. It's quite comfortable. Fake leather. I'm quite happy with this purchase. I may not have a desk, but I do have a nice chair. Sadly,even if I had the desk, I wouldn't be happy right now. I've been consumed by bad news and the potential result of this news. Now matter how many years I have had to prepare for this, I feel so unprepared. I felt this when I was 17-yrs-old for the first time. It was worse in August of 2004. Now I just feel numb. I think this is the worst feeling. Before it was a matter of fearing what could happen. This time I'm left to wait for what will happen.

I'm being vague, I know. it's just that this is not an easy topic for me right now. A few days ago, my mom told me that our family doctor thinks my dad may have pancreatic cancer. His health is so poor that, if this is the case, operating would be pointless. It's still not confirmed, but our doctor thinks it's quite probable. If so, he may have between 3 & 12 months to live. If it is pancreatic cancer, do we tell my dad he has a terminal illness? Nothing can be done. Do we let him live with the fear of death for his last days? How do you tell someone they are going to die and you can't do anything. It's not that my dad doesn't realize that he is ill. Since his scatter stroke in August of 2004, he has not been the same. But he survived. He came home. Now I feel like I should preparing to say goodbye. Fuck! I'm almost 30-yrs-old and I'm about to say goodbye to my father. Maybe I should feel lucky that I have had him around this long. In fact, I do. He lived long enough to see me graduate college. He's seen me pick up the pieces of my life and start over with direction (finally). It just hurts to think that he won't be there to see me married. He won't be around when I have kids of my own. Hell, he may not even be around when I turn 30 in less than four months. I feel helpless. I hate time. Fuck! I can't do this right now.

-Sergei xo

A night of vocals

2007-08-13T02:56:00.000-04:00

After an extended recording hiatus, we have returned to the studio and accomplished quite a lot. Over the course of 3 sessions, Sean recorded the last of his guitar tracks and I started recording vocals. We have tackled 6 of the full 11 songs. Sean & I met up on Friday night and recorded all of the vocal tracks for the first song, Perfect Endings. This past evening (Sunday), we worked on five more songs. Here is the list of accomplishments listed by track number:

1. Perfect Endings (all vocal tracks)
2. Channels (main vocals and one set of harmonies)
3. The Chemist (main vocals)
4. Silhouettes (main vocals)
8. Color Courses Red (all vocal tracks... unless I add more)
10. Bridge Lights (main vocals)

So that's that. If Austin ever gets back to us, we may record the new song tomorrow night which will be replacing Sound the Alarm. If not, perhaps we will work on more vocals. We shall see how things work out tomorrow.

That is all for now. Later.

-Sergei xo

Song of the Day:
The Appleseed Cast - Innocent Vigilant Ordinary

Hot Rod

2007-08-10T02:13:00.000-04:00

Have you seen Hot Rod yet? Why not? It is the best/worst movie I have seen in a long time. It's so bad that it is so good. I have now seen it twice. Same group (Nick, Kristin, Meg & I) went after work. It was a cheer-up mission for Meg, who just lost a family member. Sometimes we all need a good laugh at something ridiculous to cheer us up.

I think it is supposed to rain in the morning. That would be awful. I'm hoping to go running before work. I guess I'll run in the rain, if necessary. I don't fear soggy runs, but I can't bring my iPod on these days. We'll just have to wait and see.

Ok, I need some sleep. Later.

-Sergei xo

Song of the Day:
Maritime - Pearl

I need another vacation

2007-08-06T22:26:00.000-04:00

Work is stressful. I miss the good 'ol days. Things have not been the same since Frank moved to North Carolina. It's now apparent that the good times are over. I need to figure out my next move.

On a happier note, Sean completed his guitar tracks last night. We can now move on to vocals. Well, we still need to record the new song, but we will be doing that quite soon... perhaps this weekend. Anywho, after listening to the newly recorded tracks along with the rest of the album, I must admit that I am quite happy with the album overall. It took us a long time, but I think it will be worth it in the end. I can't wait to have a final product.

-Sergei xo

I'm on holiday!

2007-07-23T00:12:00.000-04:00

Since going to San Francisco in June, I have waited to go on holiday again. This time I will not be flying across the country. Hell, I probably won't be driving anywhere once I drop my car off at the repair shop. I'm bringing it in for its yearly inspection and, as always, will probably receive word that repairs are needed. What else would one expect from an 8 year-old Saturn with just under 200,000 miles on it? The "service engine soon" light is always on. Various other lights occasionally come on (and remain on) each time I start the car. Basically, the electrical system is fucked, the shocks are fucked, and, well, a lot more aspects of this vehicle are fucked. But it's my one and only mode of transportation for long journeys, so it's my fucked ride to deal with. One day I will have a new car. One day.

I took my second teaching certification exam on Saturday. I was quite nervous. I wasn't sure how exactly the test was set up, and I didn't begin to research the test until a few days prior to Saturday. In the end, I think I did ok. But we'll see. I don't like to assume the best. It will make the me feel worse if I fail. I really hope I didn't fail. Oh boy. The wait is going to be torturous.

I've seen a few movies since my last blog. I will, for once, not bore you with all of the films I have watched (or rewatched). Instead, I will discuss the two big action films of the Summer: Live Free or Die Hard and Transformers. I enjoyed them both. But Live Free or Die Hard was amazing. Truly amazing. I was afraid of being disappointed, as I was with Die Hard 2. In the end, I walked out with a huge smile on my face. Magdalene even loved it more than the original (I still say Die Hard is the best... heh heh). Anywho, Transformers was hyped up to be the best action movie of the Summer. People I know, as well as various customers in my store, all told me it was their new favorite film. I admit, Transformers was a fun film. I did enjoy it. But I probably won't buy it when it is released on DVD. Sorry, general public, I don't agree with your selection of Transformers as the best movie of the Summer. Live Free or Die Hard is wears the crown. Bow to its greatness!

Oh, and WEIH wrote a new song. We are so pleased with the new creation that we are adding it to the recording in place of Sound The Alarm, which we have still not been able to repair to our liking. Will we one day reconstruct a stronger, more interesting version of Sound The Alarm? I hope so. For now, we have the new track.

Alright, time for me to go back to being on holiday. Movie time? Perhaps.

Later on.

-Sergei xo

Song of the Day:
AM/FM - Virgins! Virgins!

One month and no blog?

2007-06-11T21:01:00.000-04:00

I truly have been a slacker. Over a month without a blog. There was once a time when missing a day of blogging was a lot. These days I'm lucky if I blog once every two weeks. Seriously, what's my problem? Have I become less interesting? Is it even possible for me to be less interesting? Hmmm... I must get to the bottom of this.

Here are a few things that have happened over the past month+:

I was informed that the location of my student teaching had switched from Farmingdale to Longwood. Despite requesting western Suffolk county, the department directors decided to move me to eastern Suffolk. For the days when I am driving out from East Meadow, I'll need to be up by 4:30/5am and on the road not too much later, since I have to be there by 6:45am (earlier if I expect to find decent parking, from what I was told). When I mentioned to my seminar professor, who is in charge of setting up student teaching, how difficult this would be she said she would try to change things. In the end, she wasn't able to, so I'll be doing quite a bit of driving this year. It's ok. My meeting with one of the administrators from the district went well, so I'm looking forward to the experience.

Magdalene and I just came back from San Francisco. It was my first California trip and it was fantastic. I could never live there, but visiting was fun. I love New York too much to live anywhere else. While we were there we visited Alcatraz and took the audio tour, we wandered around Fisherman's Wharf, visited the aquarium and the Ripley's Believe It or Not museum. We walked, drove, and took the cable cars up and down the treacherously hilly streets. Walking up was rough, but stopping at stop signs and lights at the tops of the hills while driving was frightening. It felt like we would roll backwards if I hadn't power braked. We also drove to Napa Valley, then Saulsalito. And we rented bikes and took a 16-mile ride from Fisherman's Wharf, across the bridge, through Saulsalito, and over to Tiburon, where we caught the ferry back. On out last day we went to the botanical gardens and Asian Tea gardens in Golden Gate State Park. All-in-all it was a fun week. Now we're back, and I'm broke. Yikes! Time to start scrimping and saving. I won't be working much next semester, so I need to figure out how I will be paying my bills when student teaching begins.

Since the flights were long (5 1/2 to 6 hours), we had a movie marathon on each flight. During the flight to CA, we watched The Number 23, followed by Wild Hogs, which was surprisingly funny. The Number 23 was so much better than I thought it would be. On the flight back, we attempted to watch Zodiac, but it wasn't working, so we watched Shooter, then Breach. Both fantastic.

Speaking of movies, I have been a bit of a movie junkie lately. On Saturday night, I watched Rocky Balboa (it completely made up for the train wreck that is Rocky V). Last night, I watched The Good German. It was good, but I was tired, so I didn't enjoy it as much as I hoped I would. Tonight's pick is X-Men 3. I finally get to see this film.

Ok, I have rambled enough. It's movie time.

Later.

-Sergei xo

p.s - To quote Melissa, Planet of Ice is perfect.

Song of the Day:
Minus the Bear - Burying Luck

Summer starts in Spring

2007-05-07T15:04:00.000-04:00

The semester has ended and, surprisingly, I have survived. Weeks spent teetering on the edge of insanity culminated in a handful of completed projects that I am awfully proud of. I'm still nervous about my Linguistics final project, but mainly because my professor is slightly crazed. She has unattainable, unknown expectations. I say this because no one in the class (as far as I am aware) has any clue what she expects. All I could do was cross my fingers and hope for the best. I'm quite sure I did well in my Theories in Composition and Rhetoric class. It was the class I feared the most, and I think I performed quite well. Or, perhaps, my professor was an easy grader. Either way, I'm happy.

Magdalene and I are going to see Ben Gibbard @ Town Hall tomorrow night. In fact, this entire month is shaping up to be fantastic; Sean & Celia's engagement party, playing OTMOP's final LI show, seeing the final OTMOP show ever, seeing Brand New in Atlantic City. Yeah, I'm liking May so far.

Today is my first day off in a long, long time. Besides doing laundry, I have absolutely nothing to do. And, so far, I have done nothing. I've sat in bed watching television and playing on my computer for hours. I plan to watch a few movies. As for the rest of my day, who knows? I'm going to do as little as possible.

That's all for now. Later.

-Sergei xo

Song of the Day:
Death Cab For Cutie - Title Track

Gas lines and late pizzas.

2007-04-06T20:03:00.000-04:00

I should be on the road to pick up the pizzas for Dawn's B-Day gathering at Sean & Celia's apartment. Instead, I'm sitting in my room and waiting for the fire trucks to move. A neighbor, two or three houses down, struck a gas line while digging in his yard. The result? Well, I didn't see it happen, but was told of a big, silver puff of something. Now I'm stuck here waiting. Damn!

-Sergei xo

Song of the Day:
Owen - Ugly on the Inside

One month to go

2007-04-02T14:54:00.000-04:00

I'm in my last month of the semester. In a few weeks I will be done with classes, and preparing for student teaching, provided all works according to plan. The past few months have been the most difficult due to the amount of work I've had to complete for my classes. I'm in need of a long vacation.

WEIH is actually playing some upcoming shows. Two this month and one next month. Of these shows, two are very important to us. The second April show is a benefit show for Callum Robbins, son of J. Robbins (Jawbox/Burning Airlines/Channels), who as diagnosed with Spinal Muscular Atrophy. The May show is one of the three reunion/farewell shows for On the Might of Princes. We used to play with them often years ago, so it will be nice to play with them one last time. Also, Sean has allowed me access to the WEIH myspace page, so I have made a few changes. The background was changed slightly and new songs were added, one of which is a new demo.

My car is in the shop again. I don't even want to think about how much it's going to cost me this time. It seems like every time I start to get my bills in order, my car starts to fall apart. Well, all I can do now is wait and keep my fingers crossed that it doesn't cost me a ridiculous amount of money to fix the problem.

Ok, back to doing homework. Later.

-Sergei xo

Song of the Day:
Modest Mouse - Missed the Boat

Braid

2007-03-21T20:41:00.000-04:00

Braid's "Frame and Canvas" is one of the best albums ever. It's certainly in my top 5. I wish I can go back in Doc Brown's time machine and relive the Braid Tour 2004. That's it. I just wanted to pay my respects to one of my favorite bands ever.

More later.

- Sergei xo

Song of the Day:
Braid - Collect From Clark Kent

The shortest month

2007-02-25T00:16:00.000-05:00

February is almost over. Sadly, the semester is not. This is a rough set of classes packed into two days. As the weeks pass, I find myself slowly slipping away from my social life. Last night I stayed in and read. Tonight I went to the Lake Grove diner with Magdalene and read while she worked on a presentation. Eventually, it will be over and I'll be able to see the world again.

Schneider & Paula got married on the 17th (making her Mrs. Schneider). It was quite a party. We all did quite a bit of drinking, keeping the hotel bar open until 4am. So many drinks. Such a good time. This time, I wasn't doing mid-air splits. Had someone asked me too, though, I probably would have. Thankfully, no one asked.

A few days earlier, I spent Valentines Day with Magdalene. We decided to stay in and make diner, then watch a movie. The weather was quite awful: sleet, snow, rain, repeat. The only two movies I had with me were Saw II & Batman Begins. So, realizing that no movie screams romantic like Batman Begins, we watched it (my 5th time, Magdelene's 1st). All-in-all, it was a fun night.

I need new music. Lately, I have been enjoying The Shins "Wincing the Night Away" & "Chutes too Narrow," as well as The One AM Radio's "A Name Writ in Water." I'm also quite excited about thhe prospect of getting tickets to Ben Gibbard's solo tour. I've seen him play two acoustic shows. Both were quite amazing. Also, I have tickets to see Owen @ The Knitting Factory and Sparta w/ Aloha @ Warsaw in March.

In a few weeks, WEIH will be playing our first show in many, many months. I've missed playing with them. We've been working toward relearning the songs we've been (slowly) recording, and messed around with a couple of new ideas. What will happen next? Who knows? I just like playing music.

Ok, I have to get back to homework.

Goodnight.

-Sergei xo

Song of the Day:
The Shins - Kissing the Lipless

Groundhogs Day!

2007-02-02T17:51:00.000-05:00

February 2nd. Groundhogs Day. The day of Punxsutawney Phil and his crazy, little shadow. A day to celebrate. A day to watch Bill Murray in the classic film, Groundhogs Day. With any luck, I'll celebrate by bowling tonight.

Magdalene and I bought bowling balls & shoes the other day. Neither of us have ever owned our own balls & shoes, so we're quite excited. It's not like we're skilled in the art of bowling, but, at least, we can look stylish while we fight to keep from throwing the balls in the gutter.

I saw another awesome film the other night: Night Watch. Magdalene convinced me to finally watch it, after months of telling me how good it was. She was right. As a trade off, I got her to watch Saw. She's not a fan of scary/suspenseful films. In this case, I was right. She liked it. Now she's looking forward to seeing the two sequels. Ahhh... Saw! Always a good time.

The semester has begun. It's going to be a rough one. Tons of work. Wish me luck.

Ok, I have to run. Hope all is well with the rest of you.

Later on.

-Sergei xo

Song of the Day:
The Shins - Spilt Needles

Soooo...

2007-01-20T22:11:00.000-05:00

Winter break is almost over. Spring classes start on Monday. I'm not ready to be the diligent student again. It's too soon. I'm feeling too lazy. It's only two days a week, but Tuesday means two classes, three hours each, back to back. This will surely be a rough semester. So before my free time is consumed by class work once again, I figured I should type another blog to catch you few readers (if there are any left) up on what has happened over the past few weeks.

I'm blogging from Magdalene's apartment. She did a friend a favor and covered his on-call shift for the weekend. Of course, as we're making plans to watch a movie, they paged her. I hope she doesn't have to stay long. It's a cold night. It's the type of night where people should be sitting at home, curled up in front of the TV watching a movie and drinking hot chocolate. Perhaps they'll let her leave early.

We (WEIH) practiced last Sunday for the first time since August. We were quite rusty, but that was to be expected. It was a fun time. We ran through all the songs from the "album," fumbling over parts and occasionally stopping to sift through the recesses of our brains to uncover the parts we had once written, but have since forgotten how to play from lack of practice. Overall, it wasn't too bad. The big shock of the night came when Sean gave a little speech that ended with him explaining how he wants Austin, Lou & I to be in the bridal party. Austin & Lou are going to be the ushers, and he asked me to be his best man. I'm still shocked. I was expecting his best man to be one of his brothers. I admit, I'm truly honored that he chose me. I'm surprised, but truly honored. Luckily, I have a year and a half to plan his bachelor party.

I saw some really good movies this week. Magdalene and I both had off on Monday, so we went to see Children of Men, which was fantastic. Later in the week, we watched Kung Fu Hustle. I accidentally bought it a year ago and finally took the time to enjoy it. Wow! I can't believe I slacked on this movie. The next night we watched Art School Confidential. Another fine film that pokes fun at art school stereotypes. Last night we went to Sean & Celia's apartment to watch Jackass 2. Funny and disgusting. A good night.

I just got a call from Magdalene. She's stuck at the hospital until morning. Damn!

Ok, I think I'll go back to watching Deep Impact, or try to find something else to do. Later on.

-Sergei xo

Song of the Day:
Owen - Skin and Bones

The 1st of '07

2007-01-03T21:23:00.000-05:00

A new year. A chance to start over. A chance to try new things and live life a little more like the way we want it to be lived. This year i see it more as another year to push forward with what I am doing and the way I am living. It's a different feeling. There are plenty of things I still want to try, but this goes along with living my life the way I have been. I have been trying new things. I have been seeing the world through a different set of eyes. It's quite nice.

Here's a wrap up the events of Xmas: Sean wasn't the only person surprised with a guitar this year. While I was thinking I was smooth by teaming up with a bunch of people to surprise Sean with his new acoustic guitar, Magdalene was laughing to herself about how she was going to surprise me with one. Needless to say, I was blown away when I saw the case. She bought me a beautiful, new Taylor acoustic/electric. I can't begin to tell you how gorgeous it sounds. She's truly amazing.

New Years was a lot of fun, as we said goodbye to 2006 and hello to 2007 at Celia's apt (I guess you can say Celia & Sean's apt now). We had a small gathering, which was nice. Celia and I took our usual fill of Patron shots, and I had a few Cap'n Zero's. (I used Cap'n Morgan's Private stock in the Coke Zero this time. So good.) Mmmmm... Delicious. I didn't even have to work the next day, like I had initially assumed. No work = more sleep. I had wanted to stop by my friend's store in NYC in the morning, but the rain and post-New Years headache prevented me from doing this. Luckily, I didn't go. My friend was sick and didn't go to work that day. Another day, perhaps.

Though you can't tell from the length of this blog, I have been typing this off-and-on for the past 3+ hours. This is what happens when I multi-task. i get wrapped up in doing so many things that I forget to finish everything, or I do not complete things as thoroughly as I had initially planned. Sometimes I lose interest. Sometimes I get tired. Tiredness is the cause of this shortened blog. Also, I can't remember everything I wanted to talk about. Well, so be it. I'm sure I'll remember my thoughts later. Perhaps I will find new and semi-interesting things to talk about for next time... Or not. Either way, this blog is coming to a close.

Goodnight.

-Sergei xo

Song of the Day:
The Appleseed Cast - February

Xmas

2006-12-25T14:50:00.000-05:00

Merry Xmas! And a belated Happy Channukah to all our Jewish and fellow honorary Jewish friends!

This is my first, actual day off in a long, long time. I can't complain though. This has been a great December. Many fantastic occurrences. It all started on Dec. 3rd when Magdalene and I saw Owen, then hung out with Mike Kinsella for the night. This you may remember from my last blog. Since then, I survived the semester, receiving an A- in each class. Not too shabby. Also, I won an essay contest in my Methods I class. We had to write an essay as if we were going to submit it to the Teacher-to-Teacher column in the English Journal. The essays were submitted to an undergrad class sans names, and my class received the undergrad class' essays. Both classes selected their favorite essays from the other class and three winners were chosen from each class. Mine was one of the Graduate level essays chosen. I was shocked, I assure you. I, also, won a sales contest at work for selling the most Pumas in my region (I believe that's what happened). My prize was a $125 Puma computer bag. I was surprised at how nice the bag is. These are the first times I have won anything big since the jelly bean contest at the Dowling College Easter Egg Hunt when I was 10-yrs-old. I hope this doesn't mean a heap of bad events will befall me now. My fingers will remain crossed for a while.

Sean was quite surprised by his Xmas present. A bunch of his friends and I got together and bought him a brand new, Martin electric/acoustic guitar. It took a lot of work to get everyone to sign the card without Sean finding out, but it was worth it. Sean's a great friend and deserved to have this done for him. I'm sure Celia feels the same, especially now that Sean has proposed to her. He did it in a really sweet way, although he set the bar rather high for everyone else with the way he did it.

I watched Cars this morning. That was fun. I'm going to watch The Benchwarmers in a minute. I have some time to kill before my brother and his fiance, Donna, stop by so we can have Xmas here. These days, we do Xmas late in the afternoon, since no one else lives here, except me & my parents. It's ok though. I like the lack of pressure. And it delays the celebration so it builds up the anticipation.

Also, I donated $100 to the Callum Robbins Family Fund. This is a fund set up to help Callum Robbins, the son of J. Robbins (Jawbox/Burning Airlines/Channels), who was diagnosed with Type 1 SMA, or Spinal Muscular Atrophy. I figured, J. Robbins' music has been a big part of my life for many years, and has influenced me in many ways. The least I could do was donate to the fund set up to help him and his wife with medical bills for their child. If you're interested in donating, go to Desotorecords.com and you'll find a link.

Yesterday at work was fun. I have great co-workers, so it's not so bad having to work all the time. Frank and I even bought each other the same present. A Patron Anejo gift box. Too funny.

Ok, I have a movie to watch. Later.

-Sergei xo

Song of the Day:
Death Cab For Cutie - Christmas (Baby, Please Come Home)

The day after

2006-12-07T00:14:00.000-05:00

My 29th birthday just ended. It's weird to think that I'm 29-yrs-old. One year closer to 30. Now that I think about it, this has become a countdown of days until my 30th birthday. With every minute that passes, I am moving closer to "months before," then "weeks before," soon after comes "days before," then "hours before," which quickly turns to "moments before," and then I finally reach it. The big three-oh. Well, so be it. Who am I to fight against the inevitable forces of time and aging?

Funny thing about aging: Mike Kinsella was surprised that I was almost 29-yrs-old. He told Magdalene I looked like a baby. Oh yeah, I forgot to mention that we hung out with Mike Kinsella (aka: Owen) at the Maritime show @ Southpaw. We were talking with him at his show @ Irving Plaza and mentioned that we were going to see Maritime. He was jealous because they are friends of his, so we offered to let him come with us. He was surprised by the offer, and asked how he would get back, so we said we would drive him back afterwards. He wanted to come, but felt weird leaving his own show. In the end, after Appleseed Cast played, he decided to follow us in his car, since he didn't know how to get to Southpaw. Then he bought us drinks. We tried to buy him drinks, but he wouldn't let us. We chatted off-and-on during the night. It was a really amazing experience, since we are big Owen fans. Hanging out with Mike Kinsella made us see him as more than just the guy who is "Owen," who's CD's we listen to and enjoy. Now he is also just Mike Kinsella, a really cool guy we befriended. Such a good night.

This week is rough for me. I have a ton of things to do before the semester ends. I have work tomorrow morning, then two seminars at night. Friday is work, then Brand New. Saturday morning I take the LAST, then I work until 11pm. Sunday is work, then tons of work for my Monday class. Monday morning I'll do more work for my Monday class, then I'll go to class, then I'll work on things for Tuesdays class. My Monday morning class meets again on Wednesday, and I'll have more projects due. See? I'm even worn out from typing this. Ugh! Moving on...

Oh, this past Saturday, we went to a moustache party @ Austin & Virginia's apartment in Bushwick. What a hilarious night. I actually grew a dirty-stache for the event. Everyone had either a real or fake moustache, or they had a unibrow. The party was to celebrate their birthdays, since they are so close together.

Ok, it's late and, as always, I have work in the morning. Goodnight.

-Sergei xo

Song of the Day:
Owen - One of These Days

Happy Tofurkey Day!

2006-11-23T18:20:00.000-05:00

Thanksgiving 2006. I have my tofurkey. That's right. For the first time in my 10 years as a full vegetarian (12 years of no red meat), I have my tofurkey. Year after year, I wait until the last minute, and Trader Joe's is sold out. This year I went early. This year I get to eat a tofurkey. *sigh... I am thankful this year.

Also, I am going to see Saw III tonight... Finally! I'm probably going to be freaked out, since I am going by myself to the 10:15pm showing. But, it's ok, I'll be fine. I'm actually quite excited. Of course, it's raining, so it will be extra creepy when I leave the theater. I'll probably be the only person seeing the film. That will be really creepy.

Ok, time to go eat my tofurkey. Later on.

-Sergei xo

Song of the Day:
Brand New - Millstone

Waiting for snow

2006-11-20T08:02:00.000-05:00

There's no snow scheduled. I haven't heard anything mentioned, at least. Today looks like a snow day though. I hope snow doesn't fall until after the semester's end. I'm not in the mood to commute to school during a storm.

The new Brand New record is pretty darn good. Definitely the best recordings I have heard from them. Darker. More Radiohead/Cure influenced. I've heard that some people don't like it, but I'm assuming it's because they didn't put out a record filled with poppy tracks.

Magdalene and I saw Death Cab @ The Theater (Madison Square Garden) with Ted Leo/Rx a few weeks ago. Two amazing shows. We missed Ted Leo the first night, but we did have Rosa's Pizza and tequila shots, so it was ok. The second night was one of the best Death Cab shows I have ever been to. The people dancing around like idiots (especially the guy who looked like he was river dancing on MTV's The Grind) were kind of annoying, but we ignored them to the best of our ability. All-in-all it was a fun two days.

We saw Speed Speed Speed on Saturday night @ Lit Lounge. I've missed them. They played a short set, but we got there to catch all but the first song. And it was great to see a bunch of our friends there. The Thai restaurant next door was quite fantastic as well.

I have a lot of work to do right now, so I'm ending this blog now. Just wanted to stop in.

Later.

-Sergei xo

Song of the Day:
Brand New - Not the Sun

77

2006-11-05T21:31:00.000-05:00

I was born in '77, and this is my 77th post. Connection? There isn't one. I just felt like sharing.

Magdalene and I went to Crash Mansion last night to see Nicole's band, Young Professionals. They were up from TN to play CMJ, and were quite fantastic. I hadn't seen Nicole since the wedding in May. Plus, a lot of friends whom I don't see often enough were there. Rock music, alcohol, and good people. That's what I call a winning combination. After the show, we hung out at the venue for a short while, then made our way over to the Hop Devil Pub for more drinks. So, yeah, it was a great night.

We went to the movies with Alphonso, John & Sean on Friday night. The original plan was to see Running with Scissors, but Sean was running late, so we decided to see The Prestige. This worked out well, since I am a huge Christopher Nolan fan, and the film was fantastic. I really can't wait until the next Batman film, The Dark Knight, comes out.

The best part about this weekend was that Magdalene got to meet a lot of my friends. I was also excited for them to meet her. Ahhhh... good times!

Things are crazy at work. The holiday shopping has begun, so the store is busier than it has been in a while. This is good for my paycheck, but the busy days can really wear you out. Or, in this case, it can wear me out.

School is, well, school. Not much else I can say about that.

I guess that's it. I don't have much to type tonight, so I'm just babbling.

Goodnight.

-Sergei xo

Song of the Day:
Owen - One of These Days

Time flies

2006-11-02T00:30:00.000-05:00

November has arrived. It's weird to think that in just over a month I'll be entering my final year of my 20's. So strange. I don't feel like I should be saying "I'm almost 30-yrs-old." Eh, whatever. I guess age is just what you make of it. Moving on...

I have my last observation to complete for this semester tomorrow morning. I'll be back in Sayville, which is nice, since it is where I did my first observation. Once this observation is complete I'll be able to focus more of my time on my school work. I have quite a bit to do before the semester's end.

Nicole will be in NY this weekend playing a show with Young Professionals. I'm extremely excited about this. It will be the first time since her wedding that I have seen her. It will also mean that a lot of my friends, whom I haven't seen in quite a while will be together. Good times!

Sean has finally gotten back to recording his guitar tracks. This has put me in a better mood about the recording. I was starting to feel like we would never finish. Who knows, maybe it still won't ever reach completion, but Sean's return to his guitar tracks is a step in the right direction.

My fingers are healing nicely. This makes me happy. My middle finger ia still a little sensitive, but it will get better. Magdalene said it looked like I cut it down to the muscle when she first saw the injury. Yikes! But, like I said, the healing process is going well.

I'm also getting over being sick (again). Being sick has become the norm at work, since everyone comes to work and shares their illness with everyone else. I attribute my latest illness to Frank. My sinuses were burning all weekend, and I have only just begun to recover. I still have a ton of crap in my sinuses. Ugh!

On a lighter note, Magdalene and I carved a pumpkin the other night, then watched Shawn of the Dead. We considered going to a Halloween party at my brother's new house, but I really wasn't feeling well. This was Saturday night, and I had really started feeling sick that night. But the pumpkin we carved is fantastic. She had never carved a pumpkin before, so it was a special night for that reason.

The new Owen album is amazing!

Ok, it's late and I'm tired. Goodnight.

-Sergei xo

Song of the Day:
Owen - A Bird in Hand

So much going on...

2006-10-26T23:50:00.000-04:00

Life has been hectic of late. Between work, school, and Middle School observations I've been running around like a madman. Feels like there aren't enough hours in the day. I need a day off. I mean a real day off. I've been taking two days off from work, but it's not enough. I haven't had a day when I didn't have something to do in quite a while. I've had classes and observations on both days off. And when I don't have observations, I have a ton of work to do for school. It's rough.

I've been to a few shows though. That makes me happy. Minus the Bear was amazing as always, and Maritime was the best small show I have been to in a long time. They're playing in December again. In fact, it's the same night that we have tickets to see Owen. Soooo... we're going to see Owen, then we're going to hop in my car and drive to the Maritime show. Should be fun. The Death Cab shows are coming up soon too. That will be nice.

Bumped into Big Willy Steez (aka: Will Noon) at Ray's Pizza after the Maritime show. Hadn't seen him in a long time. Good to know he's doing well.

I guess that's it. Ok, I'm out. Later.

-Sergei xo

Song of the Day:
Owen - Pietro Crespi

Hey, is that a machete? Uh oh...

2006-10-13T23:31:00.000-04:00

Friday the 13th, and not a serial killer in sight. So sad. Oh well, I guess we'll all get butchered next year.

Saw Minus the Bear @ Irving last night. Quite fantastic. Love that band. We got a fantastic spot about 30-ft from the venue. And we got there with plenty of time to see Minus the Bear. A great night... until trying to get out of the city. Construction being done everywhere. Ugh! Paving on Delancey, so we couldn't get onto the Williamsburg, some type of construction being performed on Manhattan Bridge, which squeezed us into one lane, more construction, as always, on the BQE, squeezing us into one lane from three, then opening up, then doing it again. Lastly, the entrance to Hempstead Tpke East closed, forcing us to drive down to Southern State, so we had to backtrack at 106. Damn you construction.

Ok, I'll type more tomorrow... perhaps.

Later on!

-Sergei xo

Song of the Day:
Minus the Bear - Fulfill the Dream

So, what's new?

2006-10-06T00:09:00.000-04:00

I pre-ordered the new Owen album today. It's entitled "At Home with Owen," and it comes out on November 7th. Though if you pre-order it it ships on October 27th. It's weird that his albums are often so short -- this one is only 8 songs. They are like long EP's. Regardless of the amount of songs, it will surely be fantastic. I have heard a good portion of the songs already either from his Myspace, demo versions from Polyvinyl comps, or live. I can't wait. Also, Owen is playing Irving Plaza on December 3rd. I bought tickets this morning.

What else? Well, I have barely slept in the past few days, though I am not super tired right now, hence the past-midnight blogging I am doing. I will be getting up at 5:30am, though, so I should get to sleep soon. Perhaps that last venti iced coffee from Starbucks gave me some added spunk.

I have so much work to do for class this coming week. My brain may crash. Ugh! Eh, whatever. I'll survive. I do have to call a couple of people back though. And I'm in need of a haircut. I have such thick hair that it gets unruly when it starts getting long.

I bought a new Threadless Tshirt. This excites me. I have decided that I can only buy shirts from them from now on if I truly like them. It's not that I don't like my other eight Threadless T's. It's just that with this new shirt I have purchased nine T's over the past few months. This is not good financially. I have to be more thrifty with my money, now that I have to start buying dress clothes for when I do observations, and eventually begin student teaching. Luckily, I don't start student teaching until next Autumn.

I'm trying to get into the habit of saying Autumn as opposed to Fall. I prefer the former over the latter, but it takes effort to reprogram my brain.

I need an oil change severely. I keep putting it off. If this keeps up, my car may grow to resent me. Not that it likes me much to begin with, but I don't want it to start getting all crappy on me again like it did before the rebuilt tranny. That would be awful.

Ok, I think I'll attempt sleep now. My eyes are starting to get tired.

Goodnight.

-Sergei xo

Song of the Day:
Owen - Bad News

A day to catch up

2006-10-02T12:01:00.000-04:00

No class tonight. Yes!!! I can finally get some things accomplished that I have put off... like my oil change. Whoops! I need to be a little more responsible about car maintenance. And I'll have extra time to work on assignments for class.

I have a meeting tomorrow with someone at one of the middle schools I'm hoping to do observations in. If all works well, I'll be doing 20 hours of observations there. I still need to set things up in other schools for the remaining 3o hours. Ugh!

This past weekend was fantastic. Jam packed with shows and room rearrangement. On Friday, Magdalene and I went to Bowery Ballroom to see The Long Winters. We ordered a couple of shots of Patron, which were poured quite high, so we had to drink them like a regular drink. The show was a lot of fun. We had hoped they would have played "It'll Be a Breeze," but, alas, they did not. The set was good nonetheless. Afterwards, we found a crepes place while walking back to the car. The crepes were delicious, and while waiting on line we struck up a conversation with a guy named Tim, who was originally from the west coast. It's fun to have conversations with random strangers. And before we left, Tommy and Luke came in, so we chatted for a bit. Sadly, as we reached the car we discovered the ticket on my windshield. I didn't fully read the sign. There was section about not parking on the road on Saturdays between 12am and 3am. Or, perhaps, because it was Friday I didn't think about the fact that it becomes Saturday at 12am. Oh well. At least it's just a parking ticket. And the way I see it, had we not parked there we never would have found the crepeteria, nor would we have had the random conversation, or bumped into Tommy & Luke. So it all evens out.

I worked almost all day on Saturday. After work I did some laundry, then proceeded to unpack some boxes and hang a guitar. Now that my brother has moved into his house, I have extra room. It's nice. Of course, I stayed up until almost 4am. This severely cut into my sleep time. I woke up an hour early on Sunday to meet Bryan and nick at the store to watch "The Movie." Yes, I am referring to "Night of the Day of the Dawn of the Son of the bride of the...." I don't feel like typing out the full name. Too long.

Too cap off the weekend, Magdalene and I went to Webster Hall to see Cursive. Though we knew we were going to a show, neither of us felt like we were. We got to the venue at the perfect time. We only had to endure a couple of songs by Men, Women, and Children. They are so completely awful. We made fun of them for a few minutes, then they left the stage. Cursive was good, but Tim wasn't as chatty as he was at the Bowery show. At one point he stated that he spent the last 5 songs thinking about how he wasn't into the show. It sounded like he may have been kidding, but perhaps he wasn't. Regardless, they sounded good.

Ok, that's all I feel like talking about. I'm done. Feel free to return to whatever you were doing.

Later.

-Sergei xo

Song of the Day:
The Good Life - Off the Beaten Path

Almost Sunday

2006-09-23T23:58:00.000-04:00

Saturday night is coming to a close and I'm trying to get some work done for class. With my busy work schedule and a full class load, I have to spread out my class assignments, so as to not overload myself. I'll survive though. It will all be worth it in the end.

So, here's some random tidbits that will cover the past few days:
I finally made it to the DMV to renew my registration and get a new license photo. My registration expired on the 14th, apparently. I knew it was up this month, but I didn't check the actual expiration date. No worries. There was no late fee. As for my photo, well, I just never liked it. I have been mulling over the idea of changing it for a long time. Sure, I'll miss saying that the t-shirt I'm wearing in the photo is my Huey Lewis & The News tour shirt, but since I rarely show anyone the photo, the story was being told with little frequency. Let's hope this photo comes out better. I'm far from photogenic, so I have my doubts about how it will look.

Magdalene and I had dinner with Christian and Lydia on Friday night at a little Italian place by their apartment. Sadly, I didn't pay attention to the name of the restaurant, but I know the location for future reference. There was an outside, courtyard area, which had a nice garden-like look. It was a nice night, so eating dinner outside was nice. And it had been a while since I had hung out with Christian & Lydia, so that was nice. They are two of my favorite people.

I also picked up tickets to the second Death Cab show. Carrie offered to sell me two of the tickets she bought for the Wednesday show, and I figured why not buy tickets for the second show as well. I now have tickets to several shows over the next couple of months. Quite exciting. Here's the list:
9/29 - The Long Winters @ Bowery Ballroom
10/1 - Cursive @ Webster Hall
10/12 - Minus the Bear @ Irving Plaza
10/21 - Maritime @ Mercury Lounge
11/8 - DCFC w/ Ted Leo @ The Theater at Madison Square Garden
11/9 - DCFC w/ Ted Leo @ The Theater at Madison Square Garden

I'm also considering seeing Nakatomi Plaza with Channels on October 8th @ North Six. This, of course, depends on the amount of work I have to do for my classes. Ugh! I should really get back to reading. I have to write another response paper for my Adolescent Lit class, as well as post some responses on the discussion board. I'd rather take a nap though.

I guess that's all for tonight. Later.

-Sergei xo

Song of the Day:
Dismemberment Plan - Superpowers

Take a breath

2006-09-21T10:37:00.000-04:00

I've been so busy lately since school started. It's going to be a long, tiring semester. I've started taking naps on the floor, behind the counter at work before the store opens again. It's been a while since I did that, but I need the extra sleep sometimes. Today I had planned to go around to middle schools and drop off the request form to do observations, but after getting up early, I fell back to sleep and woke up late. I still have time to go, but I really need to go to the DMV. My registration is up this month and I want to get a new license. I should be doing that now, but, as you can see, I'm slacking. Since I haven't updated this in a while, I wanted to update it quickly.

School is going well. I'm starting to figure out what is actually expected in my classes. On the first day of class you are bombarded with statements like, "there is going to be a lot of reading and work," but, in actuality, some classes are easier than they are made out to be. For example: my Human Development class. We were assigned several chapters of reading for the second class according to the syllabus. I read three of the five chapters assigned. In class, my professor talked as if we only needed to read chapter one and also gave us a breakdown of the chapter on the overhead projector. There are also no tests and the final paper is only;y 4 pages. Brilliant! This will take off some of the pressure so I can focus on my more demanding Methods I class. Once I start doing the classroom observations I will be really busy. I'm excited to be back in school, but I can't wait for the semester to end.

I saw a couple of movies with Magdalene last week. We saw Hollywoodland and The Black Dahlia. Hollywoodland was awesome. Great cast, great storyline, great acting. The Black Dahlia, on the other hand, was, well, it was actually really bad. This was quite disappointing for both of us. We spent a couple of days looking up information on the actual murder and looking at death photos. And since James Elroy wrote the book, I was convinced it would be good. I was so wrong. I love LA Confidential. The Black Dahlia is no LA Confidential. The acting was awful, aside from Aaron Eckhart, who was mostly good, & Hillary Swank, and the story was confusing until the end. It's fine if a movie keeps you guessing, but this one had us saying, "I have no idea what's happening." So if you have the urge to see it, I suggest you better spend your time staring at a wall. You'll be more entertained.

Ok, I need to shower and go the DMV, then work. Later on.

-Sergei xo

Song of the Day:
The Good Life - Album of the Year

No subject

2006-09-03T00:02:00.000-04:00

I'm feeling a bit under the weather. Not sure if my feeling sick is a result of the not so inviting weather of late or the few people I know who have been sick these past few days. Eh, whatever. Colds happen. Anywho, I started feeling the dry sinuses kick in at work on Friday. They were a tad raw this morning as well, but I didn't truly start to feel sick until I was getting to work. Running around like a maniac wasn't helping at first. Eventually, the DayQuil kicked in and made me a feel a little better. Back-to-School shopping was in full swing today, so I didn't have time to be sick. It's funny, when it's really busy, I really enjoy working at the store. Sure, you occasionally encounter an obnoxious customer. But, for the most part, I have had some great customers these past couple of weeks. I really enjoy it when I get the customer who seems like they are frustrated and I put them in a better mood. Maybe I'm weird, but I like making people smile.

Today started out great the moment I woke up. Magdalene and I went to the Peter Pan diner before I had to go to work. There we bumped into Sean, who was waiting for Rachel. So we combined our two parties and got a table for four. It was great seeing them. Sadly, Celia wasn't able to join us. Perhaps next time. I tried another item from the Peter Pancakes menu; the peanut butter & chocolate chip pancakes. I opted for the whole wheat pancakes, as always. Imagine eating three giant cookies smothered in syrup. That's what this was like. So sugary. Sooooo delicious!

I received some sad news today. A few years back, we (WEIH) played a show with a band called The Waiting Process. Nice guys. A fun band to play with. We later played with them a few more times before they eventually broke up. The bass player, James, was a really nice guy. He used to stop into my store in Massapequa every so often. I never really knew him too well, but I knew he was a good person. James was diagnosed with cancer a few years ago and fought hard for several years to beat it. James lost the fight on Thursday. I don't know the full details, but was told it had something to do with him developing an infection. I know he had gone into the hospital for a bone marrow transplant somewhat recently, so I'm assuming it had something to do with this. James was 24-yrs-old. RIP James.

It's crazy to think of someone so young passing on. I can't even begin to fathom what it must have been like live with cancer. It really makes me realize how precious life is. Sometimes we take for granted how important each moment of life is. We go about our days with little thought about our friends and family. Lately I have been enjoying life more, taking mental notes on each moment. Hearing about James has made me appreciate my life even more. I'm a truly lucky person. I have a great family. Sure, their odd and can often drive me crazy, but I still love them. I have amazing friends, whom I would do anything for. They are like my other family. I work with fantastic people, who are also like family. And I have a beautiful girlfriend who inspires me to be a better person and makes me smile so much that my face hurts. She is my life. I'm constantly surrounded by people I love and trust. Knowing this removes all negativity from my life.

Ok, I'm really exhausted. Goodnight.

-Sergei xo

Song of the Day:
Shades Apart - Getting Over It

Master

2006-08-30T18:58:00.000-04:00

It's official. As of today, I have been accepted into the MAT program for teaching English. No longer will I be taking courses as a non-matriculated student at Stony Brook. Instead, I am officially in the Master's program and will be taking courses toward my degree. You have no idea how excited I am about this. After all the headaches that I have endured over the past few months, I am now on my way toward becoming an English Teacher. Hooray!!! Ok, I'm off to celebrate with Magdalene.

Later on.

-Sergei xo

Song of the Day:
Owen - Nobody's Nothing

Time

2006-08-28T08:24:00.000-04:00

Time seems to be flying by so quickly. It's amazing how quickly the days and weeks pass. I keep this blog as a way of holding onto the moments and the memories, but I have been so lazy about updating on a regular basis. Work has kept me busy for the past week or so, what with back-to-school kicking into gear. All the running around has left me exhausted for the past few days. It was so busy Saturday that I felt my vision blurring from exhaustion. I was in serious need of a cup of coffee, but couldn't leave the store. When I finally had the chance, I bought a "dead eye" (a coffee w/ 3 shots of espresso). I opted for the iced version. Talk about an intense drink. Despite the high dose of caffeine, I still didn't have the energy to even watch a movie after work. I attempted to nap for an hour at midnight, thinking I would then have the energy to watch A History of Violence, which I rented two weeks ago. This didn't work. I'll try to watch it sometime this week. Classes start next week, so I'll soon be busy with homework.

Speaking of classes, after months of trying to track down the department head for the MAT in English, I finally spoke with him... indirectly, that is. He came back from his extended vacation on the 15th, but hasn't been available during his office hours. So I gave up trying to speak directly with him and sent an email. In his response, he informed me that despite the problems I've had with trying to obtain the 3rd letter of recommendation, I may be able to matriculate into the program this Fall. Keep your fingers crossed for me.

Life has been fantastic lately. Issues at school may be working out, I'm in an amazing relationship with a girl I'm completely in love with, I have a lot more space at my house now that my brother moved into his new house, and even work has been better. I'm seeing Owen next week at Knitting Factory, and I have tickets to a few more shows coming up (The Long Winters @ Bowery, Cursive @ Webster Hall, and Minus the Bear @ Irving Plaza). Now if I get a call from Sean saying that his computer is functioning again and he will be getting back to recording guitars, things will be perfect. Well, that and if I get approved to matriculate this Fall.

We played a show recently in Bushwick. It was a lot of fun. Mainly because I got to see some friends I haven't seen in a while, and I got to be a part of a send-off party for a great friend who is going to teach in Beirut for the next 2 years. Personally, I think he is crazy, but I'd never try to keep him from what he wants to do. I just hope he comes home safe.

Ok, I'm off to run some errands and get a haircut. Later.

-Sergei xo

Song of the Day:
Owen - Use Your Words

So...

2006-08-16T19:19:00.000-04:00

Where to begin? Hmmm... Well, I guess I'll write whatever springs to mind. Must everything be chronological?

We didn't see Jeremy Enigk last week, but the night turned out to be a lot of fun regardless. I like to think of it in relation to when I almost saw Chamberlain when I was 20-yrs-old. Chamberlain was playing at Brownies (I miss that venue) during that years CMJ fest, and I went to The Continental to see 6 Going On 7 and some other bands with Owen and Billy Gargulo. We walked to Brownies after the show only to find out that it was a 21+ show. My underage status kept us out. So we stood outside for a while and, at least, got to hear them play Magnetic 62nd. In its own special way, hearing the muffled sound of that song through the walls of Brownies was better than seeing the show. At least that's how I like to remember it. As for this past Friday, I picked Magdalene up from work around 4:30pm, then we stopped by the Roosevelt Field mall and did some shopping. Then we went by her apartment so she could get ready. When we got to Bowery and found out the show wasn't starting until 11pm, with Jeremy Enigk going on at midnight, we decided we shouldn't stick around. We had to be up at 5:30am the next morning, which wouldn't have left time for sleep. Especially for Magdalene who was "on call" the next day, so she had to work from Saturday morning until Sunday morning. We decided to go in for a drink, and to hang out for a bit before heading home. I tried tequila for the first time, and it was quite tasty. Then we bumped into Tommy Orza and Meg and shot the crap with them for an hour. Always a good time. Prior to going in to the venue, we bumped into Brian Ward, who walked up the block with us when we went for pizza. He told us how he bumped into Jeremy Enigk in Starbucks a few minutes before and shared an awkward moment with him:

Brian: (to Jeremy) "I'm really looking forward to the show."
Jeremy: "Sweet."
(awkward pause)
Brian: "Ok, I'm going to get some Starbucks."

I believe it went something like that. Anywho, so we didn't see the show, but it was one of those nights that turned out to be a fun adventure that will always be remembered. It's not always about what you do, as it is about who you do things with. At least that's how I like to see it.

I finally have my car back from the shop. It only cost me $2,400. Ugh! At least it works. That's what's important. I got it back Thursday morning, then Magdalene and I tested it by taking it out to Briermere farms in Riverhead for muffins, then Greenport, where we walked around for a while, then had coffee and gelato. Yes, it was a very healthy day. heh heh. Originally we planned to go to the beach, but we got a late start, having been out late the night before hanging out with her friend who was visiting from Japan, and getting my car. Plus, the weather was leaning toward the cloudy/rainy side. We may go tomorrow though. I haven't been to the beach in a long time. In fact, I only recently bought a pair of board shorts. It's weird, I used to go all the time in junior high & high school when I was attempting to improve my poor surfing skills. Now I never go. Let's hope the weather holds for tomorrow.

What else?

I bought a few more shirts from Threadless tonight. One new design, one reprint, and one I had never seen, but they apparently had one left. All were $10. They are having a Back-to-School sale. Speaking of BTS (as Bryan has been saying), it has begun at work, so we have been quite busy. The money will be nice, now that I have a bigger credit card bill due to the car repairs. But I'm not looking forward to being exhausted all the time.

I'm signed up for two classes this semester. Both are education courses. I'm still unsure of the status of my MAT application, though I tried again today to hunt down the department director, but at least the credits from these courses will still count toward my degree. I'm going to email the department director to set up an appointment to speak with him. Perhaps this will help. Cross your fingers.

On the WEIH front, Sean informed me on Monday that his computer should be up and running soon, so we'll be able to get back to recording. Most importantly, what we have recorded thus far has not been lost. This makes me happy.

Ok, I've probably damaged your eyes with the length of this blog, so I'll stop before I cause permanent blindness.

Later on.

-Sergei xo

Song of the Day:
American Football - Letters and Packages

Some observations

2006-08-05T00:15:00.000-04:00

1) The people who complain about the price of an item the most, making great attempts to haggle for a lower price, are often carrying the largest billfold.

ex) A guy kept annoying me about the price of camo Clarks Wallabees, trying to convince me to drop the price from $109.99. Eventually i got so annoyed I said, "You can keep asking me all you want, but you're wasting your time. The price isn't going to change." Then at the register he pulls out several hundred in $100's, $50's, and $20's. Yet he continues to say, "You're killing me, man." In the back of my mind I was thinking, "No, but I'm feeling the urge to kill you." heh heh.

2) Most people don't pay attention when you explain a simple concept, hence the concept becomes way to complex for their feeble brains.

ex) A girl I helped on Monday comes back with her mom and dad and tries on the same shoes again. She was wearing a size 8 in the same model in brown, but wanted the pink & white version. I had a 7 1/2 & 8 1/2. Neither fit when she tried them originally, and I explained that I could no longer order the style because it was consolidated, meaning it was under the same stock number as other styles. As a result, the style would register as unavailable if I attempt to place an order because the system won't know which style under that new stock number is being requested. Also, no other store nearby had the style in a size 8, since I have recently called around for that particular size. When I told the mother I could not order them, she said, "My daughter was in on Monday and they said it could be ordered." My response: "Ma'am, I helped your daughter on Monday and explained to her that it could NOT be ordered." Then I explained why. Her response: "That doesn't make any sense. I don't understand why it can't be ordered." I attempted to explain again, and she repeated, "This doesn't make any sense." I finally said, "It's an old style. It just can't be ordered. I'm sorry." Ugh! Some people are idiots.

ex 2) All too often when someone comes in to try a shoe and I don't have their size in stock, I offer to bring out the same shoe in a different color so they can try it on for size, then I can order the color they want. Here's a scenario: The customer wants to try on their size in a black shoe. I explain I am out of their size in black, but can bring out their size in brown to see how it feels. If they like the size and want the shoe, I can order it in black and have it shipped to them. Usually, I hear, "Nah, I don't want it in brown." So I have to reiterate my statement and emphasize that I can order the color they want. I'd only bring out the brown pair to check for the correct size. Sometimes they get it, other times I have to continuously repeat myself. Other times, I offer to order the shoe and ship it to them and the customer says, "No thanks. I don't live around here." So, of course, I explain AGAIN that I will ship the shoes to their house. Again, sometimes they get it, other times I have to continuously repeat myself. But in all cases, I stand dumbfounded, shaking my head, and feeling my brain cells slowly commit suicide.

3) I am not a good shopper because I can never find what I want and I can never decide if I like something.

ex) Ok, that one is self explanatory.

4) Spiders are creepy, little bastards.

ex) No examples. Fuck spiders!!!

I guess that's it. I really didn't have a lot of observations, mainly dumb customers. This rant is now over. Later on.

-Sergei xo

Song of the Day:
Jeremy Enigk - Been There Before

Defects (an update)

2006-08-03T16:50:00.000-04:00

So, I won't be getting my car back until tomorrow. As it turns out, the brand new solenoids my mechanic got directly from Saturn and installed were defective. So, he is getting them from a different Saturn and my car, supposedly, will definitely be ready tomorrow. Ugh! This is the longest I have ever been without my car. Well, let's hope it works perfectly when I get it back.

Enjoy the rest of your Thursday!

-Sergei xo

Carless

2006-08-03T11:22:00.000-04:00

I haven't had a car since Monday of last week. My mechanic told me on Tuesday that he would be finishing my car Wednesday. So, I called on Wednesday, just before 1:30pm, to see when he thought the repairs would be completed. He said he planned on finishing that day, but did not have an exact time. Picking it up first thing in the morning today seemed like a better option. The shop opens at 8am, and Joe, my mechanic, told me to call in the morning before I come down. After getting up at 7:15, showering, and getting ready for work, which is where I should be right now, I called only to get more bad news. Apparently, a shift solenoid (yeah, I don't know what it is either) that he put in wasn't working correctly, so he had to replace it. It will be another few hours. Ugh! As a result, I had to call my manager, Frank, who now has to work open to close, since I can't come in tonight. I'll make it up to him. There will be a bottle of bourbon in his future. I wish I had called before I showered, I would have waited and gone running. I still went running, since now I don't have work, but I had to shower again.

Speaking of running, I have the strangest habit of choosing incredibly hot times to run. Yesterday i went at 11:30am, when the heat was already over 90 degrees. Today I went just after 10am. I think it had just reached 90 degrees. It's now 93 degrees. Crazy! It was so hot yesterday that I took my shirt off after two blocks. I feel bad for anyone who passed me. I'm so pasty that they were probably blinded. Drivers with daytime running lights probably caught a nasty glare off my pale skin. Sorry, Oakdale residents and passers-by. It was just too hot. Well, maybe I'll get a tan. I can surely use it. I did get some color. In fact, I ran shirtless again today. Luckily, I passed fewer people. I think everyone is starting to hide indoors until they know it is safe. Who likes being blinded by pale-skinned runners? Nobody.

Tonight is Christian's 30th B-Day dinner. I'm quite excited, since I haven't seen Christian and some of the hilo crew since the most recent Bouncing Souls video shoot. Some crew members I haven't seen in months and others I haven't seen in over a year. Also, Magdalene will be meeting Christian, as well as the rest of the crew, for the first time. She'll finally have a face to put to the stories. Today will be perfect if I get my car back soon. Cross your fingers.

In recording news, Sean's Mac has decided to, as he put it, "blow up," so things are on hold. My greatest fear is that somehow we lost the recording. Sean doesn't believe it is lost, but he doesn't want to say for sure until he knows something. Again, cross your fingers.

Ok, I'm off to slack on the internet until my car is finished. Later on.

-Sergei xo

Song of the Day:
matt pond PA - Kc

Nobody moves and no one gets hurt

2006-07-28T07:04:00.000-04:00

I have to take the rental car back in a few. They didn't rent me a Saturn this time, fortunately. This time it's a Mazda 3. But it is gold... just like my Saturn. Somewhere someone is laughing. And, hey, at least it works. It's new. Under 4,000 miles. No slamming into gear when I shift into reverse. No worrying about the transmission forgetting to shift into gear. Such a nice feeling. But at $45 per day, I'll be glad to return it to Enterprise. Besides, my car should be back from the shop soon... I hope.

Brand New was fantastic last night. There was once a time when I didn't care for this band. But back in 2004(?) Dawn burned me a copy of Deja Entendu and I was shocked to find that I enjoyed it. Since then I have come to realize that I like Jesse Lacey's lyrics quite a bit. And the new demos (aside from one) are fantastic. They played some of the new songs last night as well. Some were from the demos, but one we had never heard before. It reminded me of The Cure. So good. Anywho, we had a great time, despite the person standing nearby who had some nasty breath. And though we got off scot free, we did leave with a parking ticket. $65. Eh, who cares? It was worth it for the sweet parking spot. We took a chance and were ticketed by the fuzz. So be it. The show was great. Magdalene and I had fun. All is well and good.

Ok, I have to go drop off the rental and go to work. Later on.

-Sergei xo

Song of the Day:
Brand New - Untitled 5 (Cleanser)

Good days... keep 'em coming!

2006-07-26T13:30:00.000-04:00

So, Monday turned out to be a fantastic day off. After all the good events of the morning/afternoon, I took a nap, then Magdalene stopped by and we went to Village Pizza. Mmmm... Pizza! I wasn't expecting to see her, since she had to be up super early for her first day in the ICU, so it was a great surprise and nice end to an excellent day off. I figured the next day (yesterday) would be bad to add balance. And, I guess, some would consider aspects of it to be bad, but not me. After all the positive events that unfolded on Monday, nothing on Tuesday could bring me down. I spent most of the day waiting for feedback on the status of my car's transmission issues. As the hours passed, I realized I could no longer lay idle. I had to get to work. My brother dropped me off and Sean agreed to pick me up. Then the news came. My mechanic called me around 4:30pm to inform me that after looking through most of my transmission, he found that the sensors all tested positive, so they weren't the problem, but some clutch was shot and needed to be replaced. He said he still had some looking around to do, but it looked like he would need to rebuild the transmission. Rough estimate? $1,700. I'm assuming this does not include the front brakes and inspection. So I'm figuring I'll be dropping around $2,000 on repairs. But you know what? I'm not concerned. I dropped off my car expecting the worst, so I wasn't caught off guard. In the end, I'll have a fully functioning car. A car that will get me to school this Fall. Hooray! So, yeah, I'm excited.

Later last night, I spoke with Magdalene and she said she would pick me up after work, so Sean would not have to come all the way to Lake Grove after work. And so she wouldn't have to travel so far in the morning, nor have to drive al the way back to Lake Grove after dropping me off, she stayed over. She got to experience the zaniness that occurs in my house so early in the morning as my mom and brother get ready for work. Always a funny time. My mom and I always have the funniest conversations early in the morning. I think it is when we are both in our silliest states.

I went running again today. I have some extra time, since my rental car won't be ready until 3pm. I decided to rent a car for the next couple of days while my car is being worked on. I figure if I'm already spending two grand on my car, what's another $100 for two days? Anywho, I'm kind of excited to pick it up. Cross your fingers that I don't get another Saturn. The one I drove in Tennessee was nice, but, C'mon, I've been driving Saturns for years. Give me something new.

The next two Thursdays should be a lot of fun. Magdalene and I are seeing Brand New at Webster Hall this Thursday (and we're seeing Jeremy Enigk Friday, Aug. 11th), and Christian's 30th birthday party is next Thursday. And I had a chance to talk with Christian today. I haven't had too much of a chance to talk with him due to our crazy schedules. I'm looking forward to seeing him, as well as several members of the Hilofilms crew, next week.

Oh, and another good thing about today... Honey Nut Cheerios! I walked up to 711 this morning for a cup of coffee and a box of cereal. I love Honey Nut Cheerios.

And in strange news, one of my friends from work, after a conversation regarding work related fanclubs (which I still say I don't have), decided to create a myspace group called "The Sergei Wears Little Jeans Fanclub." So absurd. I'll put this in the same file as Nick from Syracuse naming his pet tarantula "Sergei" because of my fear of spiders. I guess when you're an odd person, odd things surround you. hahaha.

Ok, I'm done dishing out the jibba-jabba. Later on!

Damn right it was a good day

2006-07-24T15:19:00.000-04:00

Ok, so the day is not yet over yet, but it has been a really good day thus far. So far, I woke to find an email from the woman at the teacher's certification center at Stony Brook stating that she was able to speak with the director of the department regarding my Master's application. She informed me that Dr. Lindblom will review my application when he returns mid-August, and if I'm accepted I can matriculate in the Fall. This set my good day in motion. Next I stopped for bagels and headed to Joy's house for a haircut. We chatted for a while, eating our bagels and drinking coffee. It's always a nice time hanging out with Joy. Then she gave me a much needed haircut, making it look more like hair and less like a helmet. Oh how my thick hair engulfs my head. Next stop was the bank to deposit a check my mom gave me, and finally I dropped my car off at the mechanic. My car, as some of you know, has been acting crazy lately. The inspection is up soon, so getting the repairs taken care of is essential. I have an awesome mechanic too. I've been taking my car to him for several years now, following a "Holy crap! My inspection is up and I have no time to take care of this!" episode. Anywho, he just called and said that he doesn't believe my transmission needs to be replaced (Woohoo!), but there is something definitely going on inside it, so he needs some time to figure out the problem. It may be a sensor sticking causing the transmission to not shift correctly -- or at all -- at times. And the front brakes need to be replaced in order to pass inspection. I knew the brakes were an issue, and luckily he said it's only the front brakes. So, perhaps it won't be as horribly costly as expected. But I'm still prepared for anything.

After dropping off the car, I went for a run around The Dale. It felt good. I haven't run as much this summer, but I have been quite active, so I don't feel lazy. Though when I get the time to run I do feel good about it... a little sore, but still a good feeling. The good events did not end here either. In addition to finding out that I may still have a chance of being accepted into the program in the Fall, I received written approval from the School of Professional Development at Stony Brook explaining that I have been approved to take six more credits as a non-matriculated student. Of course, the credits can only come from two specific classes, but I'm fine with that. The approval letter did mention that I should still try to find another professor to write the letter of recommendation. I plan to email my professor from last semester to see if she will do me the favor and write the letter. I hope she is on campus this summer and is willing to help me out. She was kind enough to allow me join her class last semester despite my non-matriculated status. But even if I don't get into the program this semester because of the letter of recommendation fiasco, I can still take classes. This puts me at ease. And not only have I had fantastic luck with school today, but I received my copy of The Long Winters' new album "Putting the Days to Bed" this afternoon. It's quite a good disc so far. I can't wait to hear it in my car... once it's back from the shop and working well. Oh, and Sean transferred me both Keane albums last night, so I have a lot of new, good music.

I watched 16 Blocks last night. I liked it. It was a tad predictable, but still a good movie. I still need a really good movie to make up for Superman Returns and Jarhead. I got so bored with the latter that I almost turned it off, which I don't like to do. Even the worst movies I try to watch from beginning to end. Hey, I sat through Syriana, didn't I? Ugh! That one was boring.

Magdalene & I went to Sea in Brooklyn with Sean & Celia last Friday. We had been talking about going out for Thai food for a while, and Celia is a big fan of Thai. Sean, on the other hand, is not, but he was a good sport about it. Sea is a bit trendy and the music can be a tad loud, but the food is really good and reasonably priced, and the drinks are quite tasty. Mmmmm... pomegranate mojitos! Anywho, we had a fun time. It was nice hanging out with them, as it always is. And Magdalene got to meet Celia's dog Coco (I still think her name should be Walter). Coco, I think, is part penguin. Her front feet point out to the sides. Quite funny and adorable. A friendly dog with a fetish for feet and shoes.

Yeah, I really like The Long Winters' new album.

So, yeah, this has been a really good day. In all honesty, despite all the headaches I have suffered over the issues with school and work, especially working 27 days straight without a day off (until today), I have been quite upbeat. Sometimes you just need to find something that makes you truly happy and focus on it. So I guess I really have nothing to complain about. There are times when I hate working in the mall, mostly when things go wrong with school, but one really good thing came out it. For this I am happy. Just when you think life has past the point of youthful excitement, someone comes along and shows you how being alive should feel. It's a nice feeling... Happiness.

Ok, I'm off to play on the interweb (I felt like Nicole typing that).

-Sergei xo

Song of the Day:
The Long Winters - Seven

Catching up

2006-07-21T00:33:00.000-04:00

Cursive was amazing. Yeah, I know it was over a week ago, but I have been busy. But I'll get to that soon. Back to Cursive... For the tour, they brought along a small horn section -- trumpet, trombone, & saxophone -- to play on the Happy Hollow songs. They even had someone on keyboard, so Tim Kasher could focus on guitar and vocals. Also, a cellist was brought on for the songs Greta had played on. Cursive sounded great and Tim was hilarious. Definitely the best Cursive show I have attended. The first band, Lasalle, was ok. I liked them better when their set started, but I got bored quickly. Make Believe was extremely entertaining. I've never been a fan of Tim Kinsella's voice, but his stage antics were highly entertaining. Some poor kid's head was used several times as a leaning post while Kinsella leaned into the audience. Cursive was definitely the high point of the night though.

I saw Superman Returns with Sean & Celia last weekend. Sadly, I was disappointed. Maybe it was because I was tired. Or maybe it was the couple of Cap'n & Diets and the scumbag shot I did with Celia. (*Note: a scumbag consists of vodka and peach schnapps. Sounded better than it tasted.) Regardless, as a fan of Bryan Singer's work, especially Usual Suspects, I was hoping for a better film. In the end, I liked the performances of Kevin Spacey, Brandon Routh, & even Parker Posey & Kal Penn, who didn't have a single line, but was irritated by everyone else. And the story was too focused on the relationship between Superman & Lois Lane. Ugh! Perhaps I need to see it again when I'm not so exhausted. Maybe then I will like it. Who knows?

Today was my 24th day of work since my last day off. Granted I only went in for 3 hours and took two other short days, but I did my share of 12 1/2 hour shifts. Needless to say, I have been trying to unlock my house with my store key and the store with my house key. I need a vacation. Better yet, I need to get my car repaired and inspected. Better yet, I need to get all of the issues with school settled. Did my professor forget to mail the letter? Did she submit it directly to the head of the department? Will the women in the teacher's certification center ever contact me? Will the school approve the petition I submitted to have the 12 credit max lifted for non-matriculated status while I work out these aforementioned issues? Ugh! I don't even want to think about it. I'm going to sleep. I'm picking Magdalene up from work in the morning & going to breakfast, so at least I have a positive thing to think about. Then we're going out for Thai food with Sean and Celia in the evening. Should make for a fun Friday night.

Ok, I'm off to sleep. Goodnight.

-Sergei xo

Song of the Day:
matt pond PA - Kc

Two in one day?

2006-07-09T21:47:00.000-04:00

Jeremy Enigk is playing a solo show at Bowery Ballroom on Friday, August 11th.

End transmission.

-Sergei xo

BEEP BEEP!

2006-07-09T17:44:00.000-04:00

Sooooooooooo... Here we are again. Several days have passed (again) since my last blog. What can I say? Obviously nothing since I have been slacking so heavily. Oh well. I'm back, so let's get to the updating...

I worked 68.5 hours at work this past week. My manager, Frank, is on vacation and will continue to be so until Thursday, so I have been putting in extra hours. Sadly, I no longer receive overtime pay, so I have to rely on sales to fill my paycheck with bill paying funds. Ugh! Bills. Not a fan of bills. But who is? Though I like dollar bills, so feel free to place some in an envelope and mail them to me. Your money will be greatly appreciated.

I went to a new (at least I think it's new) restaurant in Bay Shore called Tula Kitchen. The menu is small and somewhat limited, but the food and the atmosphere were excellent. And the French pressed coffee was fantastic. You know you have a good coffee when you can drink it black and really enjoy it. Of course, I only drink black coffee these days, so I have become more accustomed to the taste. But, trust me, the coffee is delicious. Mmmm... coffee.

Seeing Cursive tomorrow with Magdalene. I can't wait to hear what the new album sounds like live. Will they have a horn section? If so, will they be used on any of the songs Greta played on? All-in-all it should be a fun day. And I'm getting out of work early, so I will have some freedom from the store finally. The last week wasn't so bad, in actuality. But a few extra hours away from work will be nice.

The worst day of work last week was the 4th of July. After working 7+ hours on Sunday and 12 1/2 on Monday, the 10 hours I put in on the 4th were rough. Mainly because the mall was dead. What was mall management thinking when they decided to remain open until 7pm? I'm sure the management staff was off. Seriously though, no one was shopping for the last 3+ hours. Everyone was where they should have been: out or at home drinking and cooking (non-meat products) on the barbecue. Anywho, after getting out, I went to get some ice cream with Magdalene in East Setauket, then we decided to walk around The Dale drinking wine out of plastic water bottles and looking for fireworks. To our surprise, a family living on my cross-street was setting off professional fireworks. So we stood at the end of my street watching the sky explode with celebratory splendor. So, despite the long, irritating day of work I was forced to endure, it turned out to be a great 4th of July.

I watched Walk the Line finally. Great film. I've been slacking with my film watching, but it's ok. I have been enjoying life, so what else can I ask for?

Not sure what's going on with the recording. I have to get in touch with Sean and kick him in the arse to get him back in to record more of his guitars. The lyrics are coming along more and more, so by the time Sean is finished with his tracks and we have finally figured out what we are doing with Sound the Alarm, I'll be ready to go in to record vocals. I can't wait. I love recording vocals. Since getting past the fear of people listening to me in another room, I have embraced the act. And I love trying new and different vocal melodies and experimenting with harmonies. Usually I figure out harmonies while I'm recording them, but I have a bunch of possible ideas already, so I think this will be one of the strongest of our recordings vocally.

I guess that's all for now. Later on.

-Sergei xo

Song of the Day:
Jets to Brazil - Sweet Avenue

July

2006-07-03T01:27:00.000-04:00

Another month is upon us. July. The month of fireworks and summer parties. A month of endless possibilities.

I bought a couple of tshirts recently from a company called Threadless. They make new designs every month, creating a limited supply of each design, thus making the shirts more rare. It doesn't make the shirts more valuable, but it does make them a little more special. Not sure when they should be arriving. There a bit slow with shipping, but they are a small company, so this can sometimes happen.

I've been in a really good mood lately. Even when things have gotten stressful, I have retained an unusual level of happiness. And I'm feeling quite accomplished, having completed a lot more of the lyrics and more tightly focused the song themes and concepts for the new recording. The basic ideas were there and a good deal of the lyrics, but I feel like things are really coming together now.

The 4th of July Twilight Zone Marathon is on. SciFi channel comes through for me every year, picking up where channel 11 left off when they decided to start airing a Star Trek marathon. It's not that I hate Star Track (or that I really like it... the TV show, not the movies). I just don't enjoy it as much as The Twilight Zone. Though lately I have become more anti-Star Trek due to the rising number of Bluetooth wireless headsets for cell phones. Those little devices annoy me. But I won't get started on that.

I bought a new cell phone on Saturday. My number is still the same, but I have upgraded to the LG V phone. It's a bit bigger than my last LG, but this phone also flips open to reveal a keyboard. Now I can check my email and slack on the internet even when I'm not home. And you thought I could become even more addicted to the internet. hahaha.

It's getting late, so I may attempt sleep. Goodnight.

-Sergei xo

Song of the Day:
Ben Folds - The Luckiest

Nothing on TV

2006-06-26T02:29:00.000-04:00

I use television as background noise. I'm not a big TV person. And though I don't really pay much attention to what I'm watching, I don't want it to be something terrible. Sadly, there is nothing on worth having on as I type. The awful movie with Patrick Swayze that's on is making me want to bash my head against the wall. I could change it, but I'm lazy. Ugh!

Ok, moving on... I went to the Gallery 4222 Friday night to see a film with Magdalene. Her friend Pedro runs the gallery and they screen movies occasionally. Last night's film was a mockumentary, called Man Bites Dog, about a serial killer. It was in French with English subtitles. Despite being humorous at first, it lost its charm early becoming awfully boring. It wasn't a horrible film. Pedro put it best when he said, "it would be better if it were 45 minutes shorter." All-in-all it was a fun time. And afterwards we went up the road to Tara's for a drink and some food. Mmmmm... Smithwick's. So tasty!

Today was a pretty normal Sunday at work. The day moved quickly which was nice, and I'm finally getting over this horrible illness that has tortured me for the past several days. And I'm off tomorrow, so I'm pretty excited about that.

Ok, I should be getting to sleep. Goodnight.

- Sergei xo

Song of the Day:
Cursive - Big Bang

p.s. - RIP Lenny. You were a good fish.

*cough... Ugh!

2006-06-23T19:13:00.000-04:00

Sick? What the... ? I'm not a fan of being sick. The whole "mind over matter" approach failed me this time. Sometimes it works. Not this time. Worst part is that Sean and i were supposed to play an acoustic show tonight at Katy Mc's. I tried to fight off the sickness, but it didn't work. My throat is too raw to sing, especially in a smokey bar. So we bowed out. My apologies to anyone who planned to come.

I haven't shaved since last Sunday morning. I'm getting rather bearded. I may shave tomorrow. Maybe. We'll see what happens.

Ok, that's all for now. Later on.

-Sergei xo

Song of the Day:
Cursive - Opening the Hymnal/Babies

p.s. - Quick note about my last blog: I meant to say that I picked up my brother and his fiance, not his wife. They are not married yet. Apparently I don't pay attention when I blog sometimes. hahaha.

Why am I such a slacker?

2006-06-21T00:57:00.000-04:00

Has a week really passed since my last blog? More than a week actually. I need to start updating more frequently. Well, let's see if I can recap on the past week+'s events, shall we?

I've been more active on my weekly day off lately. I slept late last week, which is surprising, since I never sleep. Then after accompanying Magdalene on some errands she had to run for her dad, we drove east looking for some farm that is supposed to have great muffins. But we chose the wrong side of the split in the rode, so we never found the farm, but we did find a nice restaurant in Mattituck, where I tried a delicious Austrian beer. Mmmm. Wednesday we went to Toast and I finally tried one of their cheese fondues. I forgot what kind it was, but it was really good.

I switched my opening and closing shifts for Friday & Saturday this week, so after getting out of work on Friday night, I went by Joy's for a haircut and to shoot the crap about Nicole's wedding and share photos. Seeing some of Joy's photos made me remember more of the trip. Oh boy! I was really drunk. She actually has video footage of me doing mid-air splits outside of the hotel bar at 2am or so, while being cheered on by 15 or so friends. Yeah, I was a mess. Hahaha. Then on Saturday I worked until 4:30pm, then had to pick my brother and his wife up from the airport. Thanks to baseball game related traffic, it took me 2 hours to get to Laguardia airport. Ugh! It only took me an hour to get home though. Then I went to Steve's parent's house for the tail end of his graduation party. I got to see a bunch of friends and shoot the crap for a while. Always a good time.

Sunday I went to a wedding reception in NJ for Magdalene's former roommate. It was a lot of fun. I didn't get intoxicated like at Nicole's wedding, so I didn't do a lot of dancing. Yeah, that's right, I danced again. hahaha. I'm definitely more confident dancing when I have alcohol-filled bloodstream. Anywho, the reception was nice and I met some equally nice people. After getting back from NJ yesterday, we stopped in Oyster Bay and went to Chelsea Manor in Muttontown and strolled around for a while, then ran through the sprinkler because it was kind of hot out. Next we stopped in Oyster Bay, walked around the town, then grabbed a drink at a local ale house. They had a beer selection on par with the place in Mattituck, so we tried a couple of different kinds. One Belgian, the other Scottish, both delicious. Later last night we went to see Nacho Libre which was hilarious. If you like Jack Black, you'll love it. So funny. I'd see it again.

Sean and I practiced tonight for Friday's acoustic show. I'm going to have to call Lou tomorrow to get some details, since he set it up and I have no information yet. I have some rumored info, but that isn't enough to go by.

Melissa transferred me the new Cursive album, Happy Hollow. It's so weird, but I really like it. I can't wait to hear it in my car. I do my best album listening while driving. I get to really experience the music.

Ok, I guess that's all I have to report tonight. I'll try not to wait so long between blogs again. But I say that a lot lately, so don't hold me to it. But I will try. Honestly.

Goodnight.

-Sergei xo

Song of the Day:
Cursive - Dorothy Dreams of Tornados

Geetars, day 8.

2006-06-12T02:50:00.000-04:00

Tonight was very productive in the studio. Aside from the one song that we are reworking, all of my guitar tracks are complete. Once we actually make the changes to the final song, I'll record the guitar tracks and be completely finished. Sean even tracked his first guitar track tonight. So, here's the list of tonight's accomplishments:

The Color Courses Red - choruses and bridge (layered Nashville and Fender)
A Game of Lines Crossed - choruses, layered bridge, and single, clean, sliding note at beginning of verses (Fender)
Fixtures - choruses & bridge (Fender)

Sean found such a huge sound for the Fender that we were able to use the same tone for all the Fender tracks tonight. Some of the Fender parts that weren't layered tonight were layered with other distortion tracks.

Also, Sean recorded his main chorus and bridge tracks for Fixtures using his Brian Moore. Our tracks sound huge together. I can't wait to finish this album.

Ok, I guess that's it. I'm off to sleep, so I can get up and go running in a few hours. Goodnight.

-Sergei xo

Sunday, Sunday, Sunday

2006-06-11T19:17:00.000-04:00

I started a blog last night, but could not find the right tone. It started well, but I didn't want it to come across the wrong way. It's easy to have one's words taken the wrong way, which is something I wanted to avoid. Perhaps I will get it right in this attempt. Basically, the point of this part of the blog is that I am, for the first time in a long time, happy. For longer than I admitted to myself, I was not feeling alive. I had forgotten who I was and what made me happy. I spent more time feeling guilty about what I wanted in life and less time actually being happy. If anyone is bothered by this, I'm sorry, but I don't see anything wrong with wanting to feel alive and excited about life again. It has been so long since I have felt this way.

Ok, so Gracer's second record release show was amazingly fun. Of course, it's always fun to hang out with a large collection of friends. And it's even more fun when there are great bands involved. God's Gift to Women played their first show, and despite the low guitar volume they sounded awesome. I just hope this first show means that there will be several more to come. Gracer, as always, sounded huge. I couldn't be more happy for them. The new album sounds incredible. There all good people. I hope the record does really well, so go buy it if you don't have it already. As for us, it was one of the best shows we have played in a long time. We even played a song off the last record in its original format. It was great to see so many faces I haven't seen in a long time. Huge thanks to anyone who came out. xo

Sean and I are supposed to record later tonight, so I may have some new updates in a few hours. Keep your fingers crossed.

That's it for now. Later on!

-Sergei xo

Song of the Day:
Elliott Smith - Bled White

Bouncing Souls video premiere

2006-06-06T10:28:00.000-04:00

So, today is 06/06/06. I find it amusing how everyone is calling it 666. It's not fair to completely overlook the 0's. I mean, what the hell did the 0's ever do to you. Ok, I admit, I'm just annoyed that they remade The Omen. Must every film be remade? Is there a shortage of original ideas in Hollywood these days? C'mon, film industry, give me something new and original.

The new Bouncing Souls video for "The Pizza Song" airs tonight on Steven's Untitled Rock Show on Fuse. There will also be an appearance by the Bouncing Souls, and if you look carefully you just might spot me standing online in the pizza place.

We have a show coming up this Friday. Gracer's second record release show. Along with Gracer, we'll be playing with God's Gift to Women, which is Lou & Austin's flamenco indie rock band. It is their first show ever, so we're all really excited. We'll also be playing some new songs, two of which we haven't played at the past few shows, and two songs from the last record. Though only one will be in its original form.

Speaking of Gracer, they sounded amazing at their first record release show on Friday. And Walter Eakman was incredible, as was Con Amore. It was one of those shows I would have gone to even if I didn't know people in these bands. Plus, I had some fantastic Thai food before the show, so the night was great from beginning to end. Oh, and if you haven't heard Walter Eakman, go search them out on Myspace. Walter Eakman is actually only one person, Brian Ward, but several of our friends play with him during live performances, and the songs are unbelievably good. I've had the demo now for two days and I'm quite addicted.

I don't have the details yet, but Sean & I may be playing an acoustic set at Katie Mc's on Friday, June 23rd. Once Lou gets us the info, I'll post it.

Ok, well, today is my one day off, so I should be productive. Later on!

-Sergei xo

Song of the Day:

Rants, ramblings, and the like

2006-05-31T21:00:00.000-04:00

I often type in the dark. I'm not a fan of lights, which explains my often pasty complexion. But, hey, it takes a great amount of effort to avoid sunlight as well as I do. So if you see any major typos, it's because I'm too lazy to get up and turn on the lights in my room.

Sayville is a weird town. Those of you who are familiar with it will most likely agree. Don't get me wrong, I like Sayville. It's just that there are a lot of nutty people there. But I guess that''s true of most towns. Anywho, last night I was on a mission to get a cup of coffee with Magdalene and we stopped in Sayville. Choosing to not enter the greasy spoon (Sayville Modern Diner, for those who aren't familiar) we decided to leave town. Just before backing out of the parking spot, some nutcase in a pickup truck pulled up at a weird angle, got out of the vehicle, yelled, "What the fuck is wrong with people?," and threw a lit cigarette at her car. Glowing ash from the cigarette came in the window on my side. He then walked over to a bench and left his truck running. He wasn't even in a space. Mind you, there was an open space next to us. Choosing to not get stabbed, we locked the doors, rolled up the windows and drove away. What the fuck?!? Who does that?

I seriously hate the president. He's such a piece of shit. I was planning a huge rant about him, but it's pointless. We all know what kind of bullshit he has dumped on us -- and if you don't, you're just lying to yourself -- so why bother? Anyone who voted for him should be forced to wear a sign around his/her neck that reads, "I am a jackass!" Ok, I'm done.

Going to Gracer's record release show in Brooklyn tomorrow. Should be good times. Lot's of friends and friend's bands. Convenient parking. What else could one ask for?

I bought Orgazmo on DVD today for $12.99. I also picked up used copies of Brand New's "Deja Entendu" and Channel's "Open" EP, for $9.99 and $7.99 respectively. Not a bad day for purchases. Perhaps I will watch Orgazmo tonight.

Hmmm... I guess that's it. No recording took place this week, so I have nothing to update there.

Ok, I'm done. Later.

-Sergei xo

Song of the Day:
Jets to Brazil - Chinatown

Oh boy! Seriously, what's my problem?

2006-05-28T20:13:00.000-04:00

Ok, so I am finally finding the time to blog. My apologies to the handful of people who may actually read my rants and ramblings. I have been away from my computer and/or utterly exhausted, so I have not been able to write in a while. But here we are again. Sunday night. Memorial day weekend.

Last weekend around this time I was in Franklin, Tennessee. My friends, Nicole & Keith, had tied the knot a few hours earlier and I was several drinks into a nice drunk. I had surely moved on to the white wine by this time. It was a multi-drink celebration that resulted in an overly intoxicated Sergei dancing. For those who know me, you understand that dancing is not something I do... Ever! But it was Nicole's wedding day and she is one of my best friends in the entire world. And on top of that, there weren't a lot of people tearing up the dance floor. Had my alcohol level been lower, I may have rethought this choice, but, hey, I did get to recreate the fight scene from Michael Jackson's "Beat It" video with Sean. Following the reception, we went back to the hotel bar for an after party. There I nursed a Cap'n & Diet for most of the night. Being so drunk, I forgot that I had finished my drink and began drinking straight rum our Scottish friend Andy kept pouring into my glass. Oh boy, did this mess me up. I only vaguely remember walking back to my hotel room with Sean & John to retrieve the beer that sat chilling in my sink for the after-after party. I do remember trying to unlock room 526, though I was in staying in room 530. And I remember constantly bumping into the walls. To make a long, drunken story a little shorter, I don't remember what time I left the after-after party in John & Joy's room, but it was late. Very, very late. The next day I woke up early to return my rental car. I still don't know how I came to possess a second room key. Perhaps it was John & Joy's, from when I went to let Sean into my room, so I could get back to the after-after party. Anywho, I, luckily, did not throw up that night or the next morning. And I made it back to Long Island in one hungover piece. Thanks to all my friends who were there for making it such a fantastic mini-vacation.

Friday night I went to see Krylls & Speed Speed Speed for Dan's B-Day show with Magdalene and Scott. We got in to the city early and walked around intending to stop for falafals, but after a decent walk we backtracked and went to another restaurant. I didn't catch the name, but it was quite tasty. Then it was off to the show which was at the Pussycat Lounge, which meant, of course, topless dancers. We went downstairs to the strip club section, only to find Maria and Mark already there. One stripper took an interest in Scott right away, and Magdalene passed her a dollar with her teeth. We then went back upstairs, where Krylls blew me away with their new singer. So much better than before. SpeedX3 played next. They had a couple of surprises in store. First, a cover of Soundgarden's "Face Pollution." Second, a Bravado reunion. That's right, all four original Bravado members, with the help of Josh from SpeedX3, played "Heart Attack." For those who did not come, you blew it. Way to go. hahaha. Anywho, we left the club at 1:45am, after watching one of Magdalene's friend's bands and I got home really, really late. But it was an amazing night. I wouldn't have changed a moment of it.

I wanted to go running tonight, but I can't find my earphones for my iPod. Damn! I need music when I run. Ugh!

I may go to Lou's place tonight for a party, but I'm feeling kind of tired. I don't know. We'll see what happens. I need a nap. I need to do laundry too. Hmmm.... The choices.

It's way too hot in my room. I need to buy an air conditioner. Or, at least, sculpt some clothing out of ice. This heat will surely melt me.

My life has been pretty good lately. I have been going out more, and feeling alive for the first time in a long time. It's nice. And now that my former professor has informed me that she would finally be sending out my much needed letter of recommendation, I am feeling less stressed. Not stress free, but I'm certainly not freaking out anymore.

Ok, I have ranted for too long. I'll try not to have such long breaks between blogs again.

Later on!

-Sergei xo

Song of the Day:
Death Cab For Cutie - 20th Century Towers

One week later

2006-05-24T02:43:00.000-04:00

It has been a week since my last blog, I know. I'm sorry. I have been busy. Sadly, I don't even have the time to blog right now. I have to be up for work at 7:30am. Another open to close shift tomorrow. Ugh! I will fill in all the details of the past week very soon. I have a bag of stories involving my trip to TN for Nicole & Keith's wedding. And, yes, there was a lot of alcohol involved in this one.

Ok, goodnight!

-Sergei xo

Song of the Day:
Jawbreaker - Ache

Geetars, day 7.

2006-05-15T01:03:00.000-04:00

Tonight's recording session went quite well. There were a few parts that I drove myself nuts trying to play perfectly, but in the end I got them. The guitar tones Sean found were exactly what we both had in mind for each part, and they were found quickly and with much ease. The Gretsch Nashville finally made its debut on the recording. There was an issue with one of the pickups causing the guitar to cut out, but some folded paper wedges cured the problem. It gave us some of the sweetest sounds we could have asked for. So, as always, here is the list of tracks worked on:

Bridge Lights - chorus/interludes & doubled 2nd verse (Nashville), 1st bridge section (Broadkaster)
Blueprints - verses, doubled choruses, bridge (Fender), clean section of 3rd chorus (Nashville)
The Chemist - verse intro leads & doubled choruses (Fender), clean section of bridge (Nashville)

So, yeah, I'm feeling quite accomplished. Sean and I reviewed the remaining parts I have to record still and realized my parts are almost complete. Soon Sean will begin tracking his parts. Oh this is a truly exciting time!

I watched Match Point last night. As a Woody Allen fan, I was surprised by this film. It's so far removed from his dry, witty style that one can easily forget that it is a Woody Allen film. In fact, it's not a comedy and he doesn't even appear in the picture. The story itself isn't anything that hasn't been done in film before, but it is a well made drama/thriller.

Less than a week until I leave for Tennessee. Hooray!

Ok, I'm done. Goodnight!

-Sergei xo

Song of the Day:
Death Cab For Cutie - Scientist Studies

Who needs sleep anyway?

2006-05-12T20:53:00.000-04:00

Last night was so much fun. We don't play shows too frequently, so it was fun to play with so many friend's bands. Slingshot Dakota amazing, Nakatomi Plaza was mind blowing, Villa Vina was insane, and Gracer was epic. Not sure how else to put it. It was great to see so many friends in one place.

I slept just shy of 3 hours last night. Surprisingly I'm not too tired. I was this morning, but I got over it. I was having too much fun to go to sleep. Who needs sleep anyway?

Next weekend I fly to Tennessee for Nicole & Keith's wedding. I can't wait. My first vacation and years and I'll get to share it with great friends. And I'll see one of my best friends tie the knot. Crazy!

I think I'll watch a movie.

-Sergei xo

Song of the Day:
Nakatomi Plaza - The Strikes

Hooray for completion!

2006-05-09T02:51:00.000-04:00

I'm finished with my paper. Well, I'm almost finished. I still need to write the works cited page and proofread for errors in form and structure, but I feel content enough to go to sleep. I started writing around 12:30pm and finished at 2:30am. Fourteen hours of writing and research, with periods of mental rest thrown in for the sake of sanity. Having this paper completed makes me feel a thousand times better. Were I to receive my final letter of recommendation tomorrow, I would feel two thousand times better. And if I receive an "A" in my class, I'll reach three thousand times better status. And that's the kind of status I want to reach. At least for now I'm 1/3 of the way there.

I ordered a new pair of Vans slip-ons tonight from the Vans site. I finally ordered the brown classic slip-ons I've been meaning to buy for a while now. After placing the order I realized I probably could have saved some money if I had gone to another service like Zappos, but I was also up to my eyeballs in paper writing, so my brain was not in logic mode. Que sirrah, sirrah! Or as Hey Mercedes once phrased it, "Que Shiraz." Mmmmm... Shiraz! I may drink some in celebration of my class ending. Not now, of course. It's 3am and i have more pre-submission paper work to complete in the morning. But I do have a bottle of Yellow Tail Shiraz-Cabernet in my possession. So perhaps later this week I will have a glass or four.

Ok, I'm housed. Goodnight.

-Sergei xo

Song of the Day:
Fugazi - Foreman's Dog

Pre-writing slacking

2006-05-07T22:39:00.000-04:00

Tomorrow is the day I squeeze a 15-page paper out of my brain, through my fingertips, and onto my computer screen. Its going to be a loooooooong day. Tonight I will attempt some pre-writing research. If I'm lucky, I'll assemble enough quotes together to fill up the bulk of the paper. It's all about quotes. Of course, it's important to use quotes that support your thesis. I don't suggest throwing in quotes regarding the Ringling Bros. Barnum & Bailey Circus' "unicorn debacle" of the mid-to-late 1980's. Yeah, that would be ridiculous. Unless, of course, your paper were about said debacle. Sorry, I'm having a flashback to a conversation had at yesterday's video shoot. Those of you who may remember the "unicorn" know how ridiculous it was. I mean, it was a freakin' goat who was surgically altered. One horn was removed and the remaining horn was moved to the center of its head. Yeah, it was totally fucked up.

So, we practiced tonight. It went extremely well. We have been messing around with the arrangement of an older song. We're all quite excited about the final product. It still retains aspects of the original version, but, at the same time, it sounds like a new song. Some of you may love it. Some of you may not. But we're excited, so that's something, I guess.

A Time to Kill is a fantastic movie. The book was amazing as well. Yeah, I'm currently slacking.

Ok, I'm going to take a nap before beginning my research. If I don't, I'll never get anything accomplished.

Later.

-Sergei xo

Song of the Day:
Lifetime - 25 Cent Giraffes

The Pizza Song

2006-05-07T01:17:00.000-04:00

For the first time in a long time (two years?) the Hilofilms crew reunited to shoot a video. Today's shoot was for The Bouncing Souls' "The Pizza Song." Sadly, I wasn't able to be there for the entire shoot, but I did make it down by 5:30pm, and was there until the end. It was great seeing everyone again. Some of my favorite memories are from Hilofilms shoots. The snow storm during Breaking Pangaea, the blackout during Rufio, drunkenness during both Coheed & Cambria shoots (the band was drunk, not the crew), etc. If I had a time machine, I would go back and do these shoots all over again, problems and all.

I'm still awfully exhausted from the past few days, but I'll survive. Minus the Bear was amazing as always on Friday. They played a new song which was quite fantastic.

I'm looking forward to practicing tomorrow night. I'm not looking forward to all the writing I have to do afterwards though. Luckily, I have Monday off from work this week, so I'll have all day to work on my paper. I have no choice. The paper is due on Tuesday. Ugh! But once it is submitted, the semester is over. I can't wait. I still don't have the third letter of recommendation though. I'm not sure what's going on. I'm going to have to hunt down my professor and see what is happening.

Oh, and speaking of practice, we have a show on Thursday, May 11th @ the Masonic Temple in Smithtown. Here's some info:

bands:

Gracer
Villa Vina
Nakatomi Plaza
With Every Idle Hour
Slingshot Dakota

Start time: 6pm
Doors: $8

Ok, I guess that's it for tonight. I'm housed and need some sleep.

Goodnight.

-Sergei xo

Song of the Day:
American Football - Letters and Packages

Sorry for slacking

2006-05-06T02:07:00.000-04:00

I've been bad about blogging these last few days. Sorry. I'm just so damn tired right now that I don't have the energy. I slept fewer than 4 hours last night, worked until 5pm, then drove to Brooklyn with Lou, Dawn, & Carrie to see Minus The Bear. Now I need to get some sleep, since I'm working the morning shift tomorrow, then driving back to Brooklyn for the end of the Bouncing Souls video shoot. I promise a more interesting, more indepth update soon.

Goodnight.

-Sergei xo

Song of the Day:
Minus the Bear - Fine + Two Pts.

Geetars, day 6.

2006-05-03T02:11:00.000-04:00

Since we have mainly been recording on weeknights following work, meaning start times of 10:30 or 11pm, we don't often get a lot of tracking complete. But the sounds we are finding are quite fantastic. Since we are experimenting with different guitars and different tones, it takes a little extra time between different songs, or sections of songs. Tonight turned out better than expected. I've been nervous about recording the verses for "Fixtures," but somehow I nailed it. We tested the Broadkaster first, but the sound was too muddy, hiding the subtleties of the part. So we switched to the Fender, which, surprisingly, worked well. After one minor error, I laid down the parts in one shot. No punches needed. We also worked on "The Color Courses Red." Here's tonight's list (all were clean tracks):

The Color Courses Red - both verses ('67 Super Chet), middle section of bridge ('74 Broadkaster)
Fixtures - All verses & pre-choruses (Fender)

Today turned out to be a fantastic day. I survived my oral presentation. It came out much better than I had anticipated. And as it turns out, I didn't have to read the novel listed on the syllabus for this week. In fact, I don't have to read it at all, since today was the last day of actual class. This worked out perfectly, since I didn't read it. Our professor let us leave early, so I was able to get some extra time in at work. It has been slow lately, so I'm trying to get as a many sales in as possible. I want to make sure I have enough money on hand for when my brother and I buy my mom the fridge for Mother's day. I also have to make sure he still wants to split the cost. Worse case scenario, I'll buy it myself. My credit card is clear, so I won't feel bad charging it if need be.

I have so much energy right now. The 24oz coffee from 711 may have contributed a little. I'm going to have to convince myself that sleep is necessary, or I may never sleep tonight. I'll need sleep this week if I'm going to write this 15-page paper. Luckily, I have an idea of what I'd like to write about.

Nicole & Keith's wedding is only a few weeks away. I can't wait. My first trip to TN. Woohoo! Oh sweet vacation! How I need thee.

I sold shoes to a midget tonight. That put me in a good mood. I was helping a customer with a pair of Van's slip-ons, and mentioned that we had full length mirrors, in case she didn't want to use the small, foot mirror, saying, "The other mirrors are kind of small, and we don't get too many midgets in here." A moment later, a midget walked in. Talk about perfect timing. He wanted Diesels. I was sold out of his size (he wore size 7), so I recommended the women's version. The men's & women's versions are identical, but the women's version is on sale for $30 less. The only time I felt awkward was when I tried to get him to buy socks, saying, "We also have short, little black socks on sale, which you can hide in the shoes." The "short, little" reference was to the socks being ankle socks. But I still thought he may have assumed I was referring to his height. Anywho, he was a midget and it made my night. I just wanted to set a coffee cup on his little head.

Ok, well, I guess that's all.

Goodnight!

-Sergei xo

Song of the Day:
Rory Allen Phillips - Hope

It's getting close

2006-05-02T02:41:00.000-04:00

The semester is almost over. I have my oral presentation, finally, in a few hours. I'm still not excited. I'm glad to get it overwith, but not to actually carry out my report. Not excited at all.

Unlike Saturday, which dragged at work, today went by quickly. It was quite slow, but the time passed at a rapid pace. At least until the last hour and a half. 8pm to 9:30pm dragged. But it ended. Hooray for that!

Hmmm... I guess I have nothing to report. Ok, I'm going to attempt sleep. I have much work to do before class.

Goodnight.

-Sergei xo

Song of the Day:
Death Cab For Cutie - Talking Like Turnstiles

Well, I didn't puke

2006-05-01T02:46:00.000-04:00

Ugh! Too much diner food. I almost threw up after walking outside. But I survived, luckily.

We practiced tonight for the first time in a few weeks. It felt good, and sounded quite fantastic despite the time between practices. We even started working on a new version of one of our older songs. If we're lucky, we'll be able to work it out for the May 11th show. If not, perhaps the show on June 9th. We even jammed on a new idea. It kind of just happened, but it was pretty sweet. I hope we remember it for next practice. I miss practicing every week.

I have bee multi-tasking my way through several conversations using a few different conversational tools. AIM, myspace messages, and text messages, all at the same time. I must have a lot to say tonight.

Overall, today was a good day. And I was in a much, much better mood. I think there was really something in the air yesterday. Today I woke up feeling fine. Well, better not to question it.

Ok, I'm extremely tired.

Goodnight!

-Sergei xo

Song of the Day:
Fire When Ready - They Call Her Echo

Most days and...

2006-04-30T01:04:00.000-04:00

If you were fast enough, you may have actually read my last blog. If not, you are better off. It wasn't the most cheerful rant to date. Not sure why. I guess we all have off days. Perhaps there was something in the air today. A handful of people I spoke with were in a similar mood. Not upset or depressed, just a bit out of sorts. I think it was just a semester's end funk. I think tomorrow will be a much better day.

Goodnight.

-Sergei xo

Song of the Day:
Death Cab For Cutie - Stability

An empty bottle

2006-04-29T00:06:00.000-04:00

Never before have I drank Bordeaux. It's not bad. Quite intoxicating, actually. Ahh yes! Alcohol humor. But, yeah, the bottle of Mounton Cadet I've been drinking is quite good. And I'm feeling quite good as a result.

I realized tonight that I haven't been going out much lately. I have so much to take care of with school, especially since I'm still waiting for my former prof to send me the letter of recommendation she promised to write for me. She better not screw me over. Ugh! Not fun to worry about such things. Well, nothing I can do about it tonight. And once my class is over I plan to go out more.

Today was a fun Friday. I didn't open the store for the first time in months, so I felt a bit off. I didn't stick around until close though. I left an hour before close, but at least I wasn't there until 9:30pm. I attempted to buy magazines to cut up to make mix CD covers, but I ran into someone I knew and was trapped in a conversation which kept me from my mission. Damn!

I just finished watching Four Brothers. I didn't think I would like this movie when I saw it in the theater, but it was quite good.

Hmmm... Yeah, I'm pretty sure I'm drunk.

Ok, goodnight!

-Sergei xo

Song of the Day:
All-Time Quarterback - Rules Broken

The One Up Downstairs

2006-04-28T00:01:00.000-04:00

Welcome to another post-midnight installment of the Sergei Chronicles!

So, here I am sitting on my bed with my iBook, watching Law & Order: SVU, and wandering the internet looking for new and fun things to occupy my time. I'm on my third Cap'n & Diet and hoping this one does its job. I poured the last of the bottle into this drink. Luckily I have some Jameson left if I'm in need of a sleepytime cocktail. I'll need to stop at Slim & Harry's tomorrow for a fresh supply. While I'm there I should get some wine. Perhaps a nice shiraz. Mmmm... Shiraz!

I paid off the plane tickets I charged to get me to TN for Nicole & Keith's wedding. It's just over three weeks away. I'm look forward to the end of May. Just a few more weeks.

Polyvinyl release The One Up Downstairs on iTunes a few days ago. It features Mike Kinsella (Owen, American Football, etc) as well as Steve Lamos (American Football) and members of Very Secretary. It was the pre-American Football band that broke up shortly before their sole 7" was released. It's only $2.97 to download, and it's quite worth it if you are a Mike Kinsella fan.

Hmmm... Well, I guess that's it for now. Perhaps I'll be struck with something entertaining to write about later. For now I'll just watch some TV & play the ol' geetar. Goodnight!

-Sergei xo

p.s. - (added 45 minutes later) I'm not a phone person, but I love drunken phone calls!

Song of the Day:
The One Up Downstairs - Champagne

Delays can be good

2006-04-26T23:43:00.000-04:00

I was scheduled to give my oral presentation in class today, but the lecture we attended ran late, and a good portion of my class wouldn't be there, so it was postponed to next week. Though I'd like the presentation to be out of the way, I'm glad to have more time to prepare. And once the presentation is over I'll be forced to write my 15-page paper. This does not excite me.

Phones should not chirp. Hence Nextels should not exist. That is all.

One good thing about today is that I worked from 12-3pm, left to go to the lecture, then worked from 6:30-9:30pm. I got a sweet break in the middle of my day. Granted, I had no idea what the lecturer was talking about, nor what anyone who asked her a question was talking about, but I did get a break from work.

Family Guy... so good!

I'm pretty bored right now... with the exception of Family Guy being on. What to do? What to do? Perhaps I'll watch a movie. I hear the Anchorman bloopers are funny. Perhaps I'll watch them.

I hung my regional manager's coat from the ceiling today. I have a habit of messing with my co-workers. Usually hanging their personal items from the ceiling in the stockroom. Well, our regional manager, Ben, was doing a visit today. So I decided to include him in the fun. Luckily, he has a sense of humor and knows I'm an odd person, so he appreciated the joke. The way I see it, just because he can fire me, doesn't mean he should live outside the range of my twisted sense of humor.

I can't wait until this semester is over. No homework for the entire summer. It would be nice to get another class out of the way, but having a few months to myself will be nice as well. I won't know what to do with myself. It will probably be a lot of working, then coming home and watching movies. I know, I know... I lead a crazy life. Feel free to be jealous.

Ok, I'm done.

-Sergei xo

p.s. - Here's a fun tidbit of info: The lyrics to the chorus to Taking Back Sunday's "My Blue Heaven" from their new album were written by Fred. How do I know this? Well, they are the same lyrics to the chorus of "Wedding Dress" by Breaking Pangaea from their album 'Cannon to a Whisper.' Hearing those lines included on the new TBS album is a like a nod of respect for where Fred came from. I miss seeing Breaking Pangaea, but I'm extremely happy for Fred.

Song of the Day:
Taking Back Sunday - My Blue Heaven

Long day

2006-04-26T00:35:00.000-04:00

Since waking up this morning I've been working on my oral presentation. My brain is now officially fried. I worked on it in my car at the laundromat, then I sat on an uncomfortable, metal, folding chair for ten hours while I organized the outline, wrote a two-page reaction paper, and filled out a myspace survey during a procrastination down time. So, yeah, it has been a semi-eventful day.

So the old WEIH website is no more. I got the news a few minutes ago. Sean met with Lee tonight and found out the site has been lost forever. Although, Lee has a team of web designers on staff whom he will be using to build us a new site. Lee is a fantastic person who is nicer to us than we deserve. Thank you, Lee!

I hate our president. Not just because the gas prices have gone through the roof again, but because he is a complete douche. Every time I see him I get angry. I'm not an angry person, but he really pisses me off. Seriously, fuck that guy.

That's about it. I didn't do much else today. I didn't even leave the house to get pizza like I had planned. I didn't have the time.

Ok, this blog has been pointless. I'm done.

-Sergei xo

Song of the Day:
Volcano, I'm Still Excited!! - 2nd Gun

Sometimes the jokes fail...

2006-04-25T01:23:00.000-04:00

And sometimes people fail to get the jokes. I was at work tonight (as usual) and a woman came in and set a pair of shoes on the counter. She had purchased them in another Journeys thinking they were guys shoes -- they were not. Still unaware, she asked me, "Are these girls?" I responded, "No. These are shoes. Girls are much different." She didn't get it. The "What?" that she shot back at me was filled with much angst. All I could muster up, having been taken aback by her nasty reaction was, "Uhhh, it was a joke. Never mind." A girl was standing to the woman's right (my left) holding some shoes. She got the joke. She even chuckled slightly. I thought I had found an ally in the face of madness. I was wrong. Though she seemed like a normal person, who had a sense of humor, she apparently did not. I tried joking with her while I helped her and her friend with shoes, since joking is just what I do, but the jokes fell flat. The friend laughed. I realized i was dealing with another crazy, bitchy customer when I mentioned that Cleopatra was Greek & not Egyptian. She thought I was lying, so I explained the emails i receive once a week filled with random tidbits of information. It did little to quell her bitchiness. Well, at least her friend was nice. 1 out of 3 customers isn't such a bad ratio, I guess.

Sean sent me the new TBS last night. Fred is amazing. I know I've said it before, but I never liked this band until Fred joined. Such a good guitarist. I couldn't be happier for him. And i wish I had half of his guitar playing abilities.

I fell off the wagon tonight... I bought another CD. I had no desire to buy a CD until I heard "Head Over Heels" playing in the stockroom on Bryan's iPod mini. I have the best of Tears For Fears, but I really wanted the album, "Songs From the Big Chair." And I found a used copy at FYE for $7.99. A new copy was being sold for $19.99. So the way I see it, passing on such a bargain would be foolish.

For the record, I am not Steve Carell. Just thought I should put that in writing.

I guess that concludes tonight's installment of Sergei's Idiot Theatre.

Goodnight.

-Sergei xo

Song of the Day:
Tears For Fears - Head Over Hills

1 split lip, 2 black eyes

2006-04-24T03:05:00.000-04:00

I look like someone beat the crap out of me. My lip is split and I still haven't had a chance to get replacement blistex. Tomorrow I will surely pick some up. As for the black eyes, well, that's from lack of sleep. Seriously, I look housed.

My oral presentation is on Wednesday. Not looking forward to it. Not a fan of presenting in front of a class filled with my peers. Luckily, the criticism I'm presenting on is an easy read. Some of the essays we read this semester would have made as much sense if they were written in Sanskrit. I still don't know how to pronounce the writer's name; Ngugi wa Thiong'o. I'll need to look it up before I present, or try to only mumble it quickly and never mention his name again.

I drove through lakes to get to work today. Damn rain! Some guy in a minivan must have assumed his vehicle was impervious to water damage. As I slowed down and drove through the middle of the road attempting to find the highest ground, the jackass in the minivan blasted past me. Refusing to slow down, the driver sped through a second lake-like puddle. This time the water had the last laugh. The minivan jerked a bit, slowed down, and eventually stalled at the end of the second puddle. I drove by grinning. Mean? Yes. But still satisfying.

Ok, it's late and I'm housed. Goodnight.

-Sergei xo

Song of the Day:
Antarctica - Absence

Wine & Film

2006-04-23T00:04:00.000-04:00

Yeah, I'm pretty much drunk. I'm not completely housed, but I still have some sips left in the bottle. I may be drunk by the end of the bottle. The film of choice this evening is Wedding Crashers. Christopher Walken is a brilliant man. He can make even the worst movie ok. Yeeeeeeaaaaaaaaaah! Sorry, that was the wine talking.

I need to go to the movies. Once school ends, I'm going to attempt to see at least one movie per week in the theater, not to mention how many I plan to rent. I haven't seen as many as I would like to lately. Just a couple of weeks until I can feel free of school again. It's funny, when I'm in school I can't wait for it to end. When it's over I can't wait for it to start up again. It will be nice to have the summer off though.

Ok, I'm pretty drunk right now. Hitting all of the letters on the keyboard is becoming difficult, so I think I'll stop.

Goodnight.

-Sergei xo

Song of the Day:
Van Halen - Jump

Lost my blistex

2006-04-22T02:03:00.000-04:00

I can't find my blistex. Damn! And I split my lip. I'm not a fan of having split lips. It's the worst. If I laugh, it hurts because it reopens the wound. I must pick up a new one tomorrow. Perhaps I will buy a few to have backup blistex.

Knowing that the current semester is almost over is quite exciting. Knowing that I still have to give an oral presentation and write a 15 page paper is not. Ugh! The next few weeks are going to be hell. How I survive each semester's end is beyond me.

I upgraded my phone plan today. Since I rarely use my phone for standard conversational purposes, choosing to send text messages instead, I decided that the messaging aspect of my plan was extremely limited. Having only 100 text & 10 picture messages available, and sending/receiving more texts than that any given week, I realized I needed a better deal. Now I have unlimited messages to Verizon customers and 500 to outside users. I think this includes text & picture. I was strung out on caffeine when I made the change, so the details are still cloudy. Anywho, feel free to message me all you want. I may stop talking all together.

I may buy a new phone this summer. I was tempted to buy one tonight after finding out that I was eligible for the promotional rate, but the Verizon representative I spoke with told me they were getting new phones this summer, so I think I'll wait. Perhaps a new, fancy phone will become available.

Hmmm... What else?

I assembled another mix CD tonight. These are the things I do when I should be reading for class. It's ok though. I'll be trapped at home all weekend preparing my presentation and figuring out what I want to write about. At least I only have one paper this semester.

It's after 2:30am. I should be sleeping, since I haven't slept much in the past few days. Sadly, I'm not too tired. Perhaps I will attempt sleep after this. We'll see.

Well, I guess that's it. I can't think of anything else to talk about. Ok, I'm done. Goodnight.

-Sergei xo

Song of the Day:
Con Amore - The Shore, The Waves, The Ocean

Friiiiiiiidaaaaaaaaay!

2006-04-21T00:28:00.000-04:00

I missed a day of blogging. I was busy watching The 40-Year-Old Virgin and having five hour internet conversations. Updating the blog slipped my mind. Not like my life is so exciting that I need to pour out the details every day. But I do like to stay constant with my entries.

I saw Elbow tonight @ Webster Hall. They were fantastic! The first band, on the other hand, was not. In fact, I was so bored I was falling asleep. Of course, having slept just under 4 1/2 hours the night before, working all day, forgetting to eat following the bagel I had at 8:30am, and drinking two strong Cap'n filled drinks didn't help me stay awake either. Regardless, the first band was awful, but Elbow's set made up for the shows terrible start.

I have a ton of work to do this weekend. Achoo! (Sorry, I sneezed). Anywho, so I have a lot of work to do this weekend. I have my oral presentation on Wednesday. Normally, my class is held on Tuesdays, but we're meeting to go to a talk being given by some author. I think that's what she is. I can't find my notebook, so I can't say for sure. But I do know we are meeting on Wednesday this coming week for the talk, and our class is meeting afterwards to discuss the talk and then I'll give my presentation. At least this gives me an extra day to work on it. Though I also need to start preparing for my paper. It's to be 15 pages long, and the due date is May 9th. But as soon as I finish it and hand it in, I'm done until Fall... provided they accept me into the Master's program. Keep those fingers crossed.

Ok, I feel like I'm rambling. I think I will stop for the night.

Later.

-Sergei xo

Song of the Day:
Cara Beth Santalino - Life is Sweet

Geetars, day 5.

2006-04-19T02:36:00.000-04:00

I feel accomplished. It's been a good day. Somehow I wrote a 2 page reaction paper on a book I never read, comparing it to two books I have read, and sounded like I knew what I was talking about in class today. After class I got my haircut, thanks to Joy. She did a fantastic job with the massive head of hair I had upon arrival. To close out the evening, Sean and I went to APT to track more guitars. It was another late start, but we did get one full song completed. We worked on "Kill Broadcast," which, despite being the shortest song on the album, is not the easiest one to play. Actually, I should rephrase that. It's not that it is a difficult song to play, it's that with the amount of gain we were using to get the sound we wanted every little sound was emphasized. So it took several attempts to get a decent recording. We then thickened the choruses with the '74 Broadcaster. Such a sweet combination.

I took some pictures of the amp setup and some of the guitars. I open a new picture site to post recording pics. I think it will be a nice, visual compliment to the recording blogs. Ya know, something for the music/recording geeks out there.

Tonight's track:
Kill Broadcast - Fender on entire song, Broadkaster on choruses

Perhaps next recording session I will accomplish more. I am close to finishing my tracks though. This is quite exciting. The record is coming along nicely. Oh, and we're playing on May 11th with Gracer, Villa Vina (ex-OTMOP), Nakatomi Plaza, and Slingshot Dakota. I can't begin to tell you how excited I am to be playing with these bands again. They are definitely some of the most talented people I know. And there awfully nice people as well. And my class will be over two days prior, so I'll be in Summer mode. So exciting.

I'm watching Wet Hot American Summer on Comedy Central. Ever see it? Such a funny movie.

Here's a little fact about roosters: If you're not careful, they will hypnotize you, thus affecting your judgment. Some affects of rooster hypnosis include watching bad movies like Cradle 2 the Grave and liking it. So be careful. You don't want this to happen to you.

Ultimate Crumb Cake is delicious.

Ok, it's late and I'd like to get up early for some reason. Goodnight.

-Sergei xo

Song of the Day:
The Snake The Cross The Crown - On the Threshold of Eternity

Thank you, backup pair!

2006-04-18T10:03:00.001-04:00

My love for Vans has just increased. I was going crazy searching for my letter of recommendation, trying to think of what ridiculous place I would have I possibly could have stored it. Finally, I thought, "Hmmm... I wonder if I put it in the box of my backup pair of Vans Old Skools." And there it was. So I feel less insane now.

-Sergei xo

Vacations aren't vacations anymore

2006-04-18T02:04:00.000-04:00

Class tomorrow. I didn't get half as much accomplished as I needed to. I can't seem to locate one of my letters of recommendation. It must be here, but I can't remember where I put it. I thought I knew, but apparently I don't. This makes me quite nervous. I need to find it before class tomorrow. And I have a ton of work to do for class tomorrow. Ugh!

More guitar tracking tomorrow night. I'm hoping to get a haircut after class. I have to call Joy tomorrow and see if we are still on. I so need to get this head of mine fixed. The hair situation is terrible.

Ok, I have nothing interesting to say tonight.

Goodnight.

-Sergei xo

Song of the Day:
Death Cab For Cutie - Talking Like Turnstiles

Owen

2006-04-17T03:29:00.000-04:00

I saw Owen @ Knitting Factory tonight with Sean & Dawn. This show was even better that the NJ show in February, not just because I didn't have to go to Jersey. He played a longer set this time. Some new tracks I didn't know and some I did, as well as songs from his albums. And, as always, the humor level was set to ridiculous. I got a chance to talk with him after the set, and he didn't ask me if I was depressed this time. We joked around for a few minutes. I told him how I went running today and felt weird about wearing my Owen hoodie with the pink writing, since my next door neighbor is named Owen. He then asked me my name, and suggested I have Owen make a "Sergei" hoodie. He then asked if I was Russian, and when I said no and explained that my parents just liked Russian names, he said, "Can I do that? Like, can I give my kids Asian names even though I'm not Asian?" This may not seem as funny to you, the reader, but to Sean, Dawn & I it was quite amusing. Especially since it was his second Asian-related joke. The first involved getting an Asian instead of a dog. That sounds bad, but it really wasn't.

I bought two new Owen shirts. One of which is the "Owen Hates Kids" t-shirt. So excited! He was out of it when I saw him in Jersey. Oh, and I bought two new CD's. The first band, The Snake The Cross The Crown, was surprisingly good. I didn't really like them when a former co-worker lent me one of their CD's, but they were really good live. Definitely different than their albums. Anywho, I bought their EP & full length. So I'm up to 17 CD's in 3 weeks. I've been told I'm out of control. There may be some truth in that.

Ok, It's almost 4am. I need sleep. Much to do in the morning. Well, in a few hours, that is.

Goodnight.

-Sergei xo

Song of the Day:
Owen - Lights Out

Post 3am post

2006-04-16T03:09:00.000-04:00

I say post, but I mean blog. Blog 3am blog doesn't make sense. You get the idea.

Another Saturday night gone. I saw V for Vendetta tonight with Alph & John. Damn good movie, but the pre-film drink session made me tired. I wasn't even too buzzed. The late nights and lack of sleep of late may be taking its toll on me. How I don't have mono is surprising. Running myself into the ground is how I got it in 12th grade. But I was also more of an idiot back then. Anywho, the film was great. Not only was I excited about the Shakespearean quotes, which I already knew were used, but the entire Guy Fawkes concept running throughout the film. I learned of Guy Fawkes from my Shakespeare professor this past Fall. So if you are not familiar with the gunpowder plot, you should look up his name. Perhaps a Google search. For me, at least, it made the storyline more interesting. But I'm also quite geeky at times.

I received the greatest set of IM's tonight while I was at the movies. I tried to copy and save them, but my AIM decided to be a jerk and turn off. So I have permanently lost them. Damn you AIM!

The new Maritime album is awesome. It's nothing like the last album. I do enjoy their first CD, but this one is much more mature and more interesting. Still catchy, but not in the super-pop kind of way. Best part is that it comes out Tuesday, but Insound shipped my CD early. Kudos to you, Insound. If only AIM was as reliable as Insound.

I have a ton of reading to accomplish before tomorrow night's show. Let's hope Owen doesn't cancel this show. I'm not a fan of New Jersey, so I don't want to be forced to go back just to see him play again. Though I will if it is deemed necessary. This is the price I pay for good music.

My friends at the Kidz store had a Sergei drawing contest on Friday night at work. It was all a joke at first, but it turned into a contest. This is how I understood the story, at least. Definitely flattering -- the thought, not the pics -- but so, so strange.

I'm awfully tired, but I could definitely go for a cup of coffee. Mmmm... Coffee!

Ok, I'm done. I have bored you enough with my daily recap. Join me again next time. Same Sergei time, same Sergei channel... er, web address. Oh, to be Batman!

Goodnight!

-Sergei xo

Song of the Day:
Owen - She's a Thief

And the knot tightens

2006-04-15T10:27:00.000-04:00

I just submitted my online Master's program application. Though I'm relieved to have finished this part of the process, I can't shake the nervous feeling in my stomach. Waiting for an answer from Stony Brook is going to be rough. While I wait to find out if they accept me, I'll have to start figuring out a backup plan for if they reject my application. Ugh! Cross your fingers for me. Mine are all crossed and I need all the hope I can get.

-Sergei xo

p.s. - "Ugh!" is my new favorite expression.

Death Cab x2, and so on

2006-04-15T01:11:00.000-04:00

I'm back from my two-day Death Cab adventure and it was quite a couple of days. I went with three people who had never seen them live before. For me it was show #10 & 11. What can I say? I'm an addict. But to be a party to their first live Death Cab For Cutie experiences was amazing. Knowing they were in for a fun show made it worth the price of admission. Day one I went with KB = Fred. Death Cab opened with Passenger Seat, the one song off Transatlanticism I had not yet heard live from that album. Franz Ferdinand was not our band of choice, so we spent their set laughing at the funny dancing styles of those around us. There were two guys who had a dance style that involved bobbing their heads heavily and thrusting their butts at us. Disturbing to say the least. Day two was with Alan & Meg. I was somehow able to buy an extra ticket despite the show being sold out weeks before. Strangely, the initial tickets I bought were for the mezzanine. The third ticket was for floor level. Though I wasn't able to watch the show with them, I was excited to know that their first experience was from a spot they could see everything. Besides, I had The Cap'n to keep me company. I'm very tired, but I had a great two days.

I have to be up in a few hours to finalize my letter of purpose for my Master's application. I have to submit it tomorrow.

I am being stalked by a big, black spider. I tried to kill it, but failed. He's in my room. If I die mysteriously tonight, it is because this spider killed me in my sleep. Ugh! I hate spiders!!!

On a lighter note, the new Maritime CD arrived today. It's supposed to come out on Tuesday. Woohoo! If I survive the night, I'll have a new CD to listen to tomorrow. Wish me luck.

Ok, I should be sleeping. Goodnight!

-Sergei xo

Song of the Day:
Death Cab For Cutie - Passenger Seat

And the stacks increase

2006-04-12T23:19:00.000-04:00

I bought four more CD's and one DVD today. I'm certainly out of control. My intention was to buy one specific CD, as well as the DVD. Here's where I went astray: I went to FYE looking to purchase Minus the Bear "Menos El Oso" and the Death Cab "Directions" DVD. Well, the DVD was available and not too expensive (only $15.99 surprisingly.) Minus the Bear was nowhere to be found. So, of course, I checked the used bin where I discovered Morrissey "Bona Drag" for $7.99. I could not pass up such a bargain. Still needing a copy of Menos El Oso to replace the low volume files on my computer, and needing a better copy to finish a mix CD, I stopped by Best Buy on my way home. I found the CD right away, then figured I would finally buy the last Elliott Smith album. Strangely, there was no Elliott Smith section. I've seen his CD's there before, but neither the CD's nor a section marker were present. Then I spied a copy of John Vanderslice's "Pixel Revolt" for $11.99. I figured I would get it if I couldn't find Elliott Smith hiding anywhere else in the store. I looked around some more, then picked up the John Vanderslice album. But before i could leave, I needed to look in the section where Elliott Smith should be stocked one last time. This time I found it, completely out of its alphabetical order position. I figured, "Fuck it!" And I bought all three albums. I need to be stopped.

My right hand was shaking today every time I tried to hold anything in my grip. I noticed it after making a coffee @ 711. I picked up the cup and my hand began to shake. It was disturbing. The uncontrollable shaking was definitely noticeable. I think the muscles in my arm were spazzing out. That is the only explanation I have. The tremors have finally subsided, but I was freaked out thinking I had developed some type of nerve damage. Anywho, I'll see how it is tomorrow. If it starts up again I may go see my doctor. It may just be that I'm old and decaying. Damn you, 28-yrs-old!

Ok, laundry & essay writing time.

Later.

-Sergei xo

Song of the Day:
Death Cab For Cutie - Talking Like Turnstiles

An actual day off?

2006-04-11T19:12:00.000-04:00

I decided kind of late in the day to not go into work tonight. I don't have to go in since it is my day off, but I usually go in after class. Not having class tonight, but having tons of things to take care of, left me multi-tasking for the past 5+ hours. I have spent a good portion of my day burning my entire iTunes library from my old computer to data discs to move them to my new computer. Now I'm in the process of importing 2,300+ songs back into my iPod. I'm currently in the 1,700's. Should be done soon, then I get to walk the dog. Exciting! (Yes, that was meant to be sarcastic). Most of my time has been spent burning the data discs, importing them, as well as other CD's, into the iBook, and reading for class. I need more hours on the clock and more days on the calendar. Can anyone put me in touch with the people who can make these time related changes?

I'm almost in the 2,000's with the importing. Soon I'll be back in action. I had wanted to go running today, but that didn't happen. It's getting kind of dark now, so I don't think I'll go running today. My legs will thank me. It has been months since I last ran. I'm not looking forward to the first few days following the first run. My legs will be a disaster.

Ok, time to walk the parent's dog. Let's hope he doesn't spy a woodland creature and decide to take off running. He almost ripped my arm from the socket the last time. This is why I like cats and small dogs. Preferably cats.

Later.

-Sergei xo

Geetars, day 4. "Short night"

2006-04-11T02:15:00.000-04:00

Another night of guitar tracking. Not much recorded tonight. We spent a lot of time trying to find sounds. Testing out the '73 Nashville & the '67 Super Chet. There may be a loose wire in the Nashville, so we scratched the idea of using it tonight. We did get a couple of tracks from the Super Chet for layering though. We then attempted to get a good sound for the Strat, but were having a tough time finding a distortion sound we liked for the song we were working on. It was almost 1am, so we decided to hold off for another night instead of forcing sounds we would be unhappy with later. Besides, we were all a little tired.

Tonight's tracks (it's a very short list):
Blueprints - Choruses & 3rd bridge section (Super Chet)
A Game of Lines Crossed - Bridge (Super Chet)

I woke up early this morning. Well, in actuality I overslept. But in relation to the time I fell asleep, I woke up early. I had promised Brian that I would go with him to Middle Island so he can pick up his grandmother's car. She fell outside of a King Kullen the other day leaving her with stitches in her forehead and hand, I think, and possibly breaking a bone and bruising herself severely. I don't remember the specifics of the injuries, but she did mess herself up quite a bit. So he said he would drive her car back to her place. I went along to follow Brian back in his truck. Then I went to work, thinking it would be busy due to schools being closed for Spring Break. It wasn't busy at all. Well, at least I had some extra slacking time. That's always nice.

I received one of the best voice mails ever tonight. "I Dream of Jeannie! I Dream of Jeannie!" Drunk friends are awesome.

I have so much to do and no time to do it. Can I get an extension on the calendar please?

Hmmm... I guess that's it. Until next time...

Later on.

-Sergei xo

Song of the Day:
American Football - For Sure

"Long night, last call...

2006-04-09T21:02:00.000-04:00

Bloodshot eyes from some drinks too tall."

Last night was one of the best Saturday nights I have had in a while. Nicole & Keith were on the island for Nicole's grandfather's birthday, so we all met up afterwards @ Dave & Buster's for some drinks. It wasn't about where we went, as much as it was about getting everyone together. These days I don't get to see my friends often enough. And I never get to see Nicole & Keith, which made it even more special. Our group stayed until it closed at around 2am, then Nicole, Keith, John, Joy and I went to The Irish Times for some additional drinks. We closed out the bar at 4:30am. By the time I got home and in bed it was 5am, leaving me just under five hours to sleep before work. Surprisingly, I woke up feeling ok. Not too tired. I was probably still riding high on having seen so many of my best friends at the same time. I really can't wait until TN.

I may finally get a haircut this week. I spoke with Joy last night, and she may be able to pencil me in one night to fix the disaster that is my hair. She has always done fantastic work on many of my friends, so I'm quite excited. It will be nice to not have to go to my local barbershop this time. Haircuts there are always a crapshoot.

I bought a few more CD's over the past few days. I picked up Spoon's "Kill the Moonlight" and The Cure's "Pornography" on Friday, then I ordered Maritime's "Glass Floor," and pre-ordered their new album "We, The Vehicles" before going out last night. It's funny, despite all these purchases -- 11 in the past two weeks -- I still don't feel inspired. *sigh. One day I will feel it again. Perhaps Mike Kinsella will put out a new Owen record and fill the void in my musical world.

Ok, time to restring the Nashville and the Super Chet. I'm hoping to use them for some guitar tracking this week. Oh sweet, sweet Gretsch tones. How I love thee.

Later on.

-Sergei xo

Song of the Day:
Owen - Poor Souls

Abre Los Ojos

2006-04-08T01:54:00.000-04:00

It's too bad Tom Cruise is such a maniac. Vanilla Sky is a good movie, and knowing how ridiculous he is changes the way I see that movie. I can't stop thinking, "Yeah, this guy is a moron." But I'll still buy the movie eventually.

In less than 24 hours I'll be hanging out with one of my favorite people in the world. This makes me happy. She and her fiance will be visiting from TN. It has been many, many months since I last saw either of them. Crazy! It may have even been a year, or close to it at least. Damn! Too long, I tell ya.

I still need a haircut. Tomorrow morning. Seriously. It has to be done.

Yeah, I have nothing to say tonight. Oh, except for that all pets should be named Walter. Yeah! That's it. The end.

-Sergei xo

Song of the Day:
Spoon - The Way We Get By

Geetars, day 3. "The acoustic hangover"

2006-04-07T02:17:00.000-04:00

I'm tired, hungover, and I just recorded some acoustic tracks for the album. Not much tracking tonight. We got a late start and then decided to stop by the Peter Pan diner for some chipotle-smothered goodness. But the tracks we did record sound pretty sweet. Many thanks to my brother for lending me his acoustic guitar.

Tonight's tracks:
Perfect Endings - layered acoustic track for 2nd verse & bridge
Bridge Lights - verses

Eventually I will record some tracks for the other songs I have not yet touched. I hope to be less hungover when I attempt them.

Does anyone else find it odd that Iron & Wine's cover of "Such Great Heights" is used in an M&M's commercial?

Ok, I'm housed. Goodnight!

-Sergei xo

Song of the Day:
Sun Kil Moon - Floating

Tennessee

2006-04-05T18:21:00.000-04:00

I finalized my travel plans for my trip to Tennessee in May. I'll be flying out of Laguardia @ 6:50am and arriving in Nashville @ 8:12am. I didn't want to fly out of Laguardia, but it was the only direct flight. I didn't feel like sitting in an airport for 3 1/2 hours waiting for my transfer flight. And my hotel is booked as well, so I'm pretty much set. It shall be a crazy, drunken escapade. I can't wait.

Ok, I have to go work on my Letter of Purpose for my Master's application.

Later.

-Sergei xo

Song of the Day:
Slowreader - Politics, Music & Drugs

Corrupt documents... ugh!

2006-04-05T01:49:00.000-04:00

I just spent the past 2+ hours attempting to correct corrupt Word documents. In order to get the last recommendation I need, my former professor has asked me to give her copies of papers I once wrote for her. I may have mentioned this in another blog, but I am in no mood to check. Anywho, I don't have the originals, so I had to pull up the old files. Here's where things get tricky. I originally wrote these papers on my computer when it still had Windows Millenium Edition. When I wanted to use my iPod, I had to switch over to the free copy of Windows 2000 my friend Dan got for me. So, Sean helped me save my papers to a CD. I had no problems, at first, when I loaded the papers back into my computer. But one day they ceased to open. And the CD would no longer work as a way of pulling up the files either. Somehow I was able to open the files through Word on my iBook, but the files were all messed up. There were strange characters scattered throughout the documents, and several portions were out of order. I had to replace the strange characters with the correct punctuation and cut and paste sections that had been moved around. I think now I may have three somewhat cohesive texts to present her. Let's hope it's enough. I still need to write my Letter of Purpose. I think I'll do that tomorrow morning. I'll explain it's a rough draft. Maybe she'll give me some tips on how I can make it better. I just hope I get this letter and get into the program. If not, there are going to be some major changes in my life. It may get wacky.

One of my Kind of Like Spitting CD's (You Secretly Want Me Dead) arrived today, as did my Weebl & Bob DVD. I can't wait to check out that little gem.

Ok, I need some sleep so I won't be a complete wreck in the morning when I write this essay.

Goodnight.

-Sergei xo

Song of the Day:
Ryan Ferguson - Wait For Me There

Life?

2006-04-04T01:48:00.000-04:00

My Ryan Ferguson CD arrived today. Now I'm awaiting the two Kind of Like Spitting CD's. This urge for new music is consuming me. It's been a while since a band has really sparked my interest. I like all of the CD's I have purchased over the past few months, but I still don't feel fulfilled. Few albums since the past two matt pond PA releases and the Owen collection have really gotten me excited about music. Maybe I'll feel better after the Owen show on April 16th. It's funny how music as depressing as Owen's can put me in such a calm mood. Maybe I'm a permanently depressed person and I feel normal listening to depressing music.

I just typed some weird paragraph about two customers I had a music related conversation with tonight. Then I realized how pointless and boring the paragraph was. So I erased it and decided to jump right to the moral. Don't prejudge a person's musical preference based on their appearance. People can surprise you sometimes.

On to sweatpants... Do you know what's funny about sweatpants? Everything. I hate sweatpants. Seriously, when the hell did it become fashionable to wear sweatpants? When I was in Elementary school, boys wore sweatpants to school in place of jeans. It was the early form of jock wear. I never got into sweatpants though. I see them as "It's Sunday, I'm old, and I'm going to K-Mart wear." But these days people will spend $50 on sweatpants from places like Abercrombie (the store I hate more than any store ever opened). Do you know what the difference between sweatpants from K-Mart (insert any Mart-like store of choice) and sweatpants from Abercrombie (insert any overpriced, pretentious store of choice) is? The overpriced, fashionable sweatpants don't have elastic around the ankles. That's it. So, if you think about it, they should be less expensive since they contain fewer materials. And speaking of Abercrombie, what the fuck happened to Fitch? Why does every overpriced T-shirt say "Abercrombie," but you never see a "Fitch" shirt? Fitch is getting ripped off. Wait... Wait! Fuck Fitch too!

Ok, consider this rant over.

Goodnight!

-Sergei xo

Song of the Day:
Elliott Smith - Oh Well, Okay

Geetars, day 2

2006-04-03T02:06:00.000-04:00

More guitar tracks completed this evening. We decided to mix things up and record some of the heavier/distortion parts. Tonight's guitars of choice were the Fender Strat & the '74 Gretsch Broadkaster. Surprisingly, the Broadkaster worked well for some heavier, layered portions of songs. It added a new depth to the sections on which it was used. Our original intention was to use it for clean tracks only, since it has such a smooth, clean tone, but we discovered it's rough tones to be quite useful.

Tonight's recording session:
Perfect Endings - bridge (Strat)
Channels - verse, chorus, bridge (Strat)
The Chemist - verse, chorus, bridge (Strat)
Silhouettes - chorus & 2nd bridge section (Strat & Broadkaster)
Bridge Lights - bridge/end (Strat & Broadkaster)

I guess that's it for tonight. Not much happens 'round these parts.

Goodnight.

-Sergei xo

p.s. - Our show on Wednesday has been cancelled.

Song of the Day:
Supergrass - Tales of Endurance, Pts. 4, 5 & 6

Don't forget to wind your watch!

2006-04-02T03:21:00.000-04:00

Daylight savings. More like One Hour Thievings. I want my freakin' hour back. Why couldn't they do this next week? I have to be up in five hours for work. Damn!

So, we played a show @ Empire Discs tonight. First time in several months that we have performed as an entire band. It felt good to play again. Not sure how it sounded, since everything sounded like fuzzy mud to us. Gracer sounded huge. I love those bastards. Getting to hang out with everyone made it that much better. Playing in a record store and shopping for used CD's between bands and after the show was also a plus.

Tonight's purchases:
matt pond PA - I Thought You Were Sleeping
Supergrass - Road to Rouen
Sun Kil Moon - Ghosts of the Great Highway
Rye Coalition - Jersey Girls

As I got near work today, I saw four kids, probably around 12 or 13 years old, running up the block and turning onto Middle Country Rd. Of the four kids, one was wearing a costume designed to look like a beer bottle. So strange. I forgot all about it by the time I pulled into the parking lot. Something my friend Davecat said tonight made me think of this scene. Funny thing is that I now can't remember what Davecat said. Oh well, it's time for sleep.

-Sergei xo

Song of the Day:
Breaking Pangaea - Lullaby

Ugh!

2006-03-31T23:12:00.000-05:00

I spent 30 minutes standing outside of my former professor's classroom yesterday waiting to ask her for a letter of recommendation. Finally, the student she is conversing with left and I had my chance. It had been 3+ years since I last spoke with this professor, but she remembered me. Sadly, unlike the last two professors I asked for a letter, she wants me to bring her papers I wrote for her classes, and my letter of purpose that I will be submitting with my application for the Master's program. All this to get a letter. Bullshit! But I have no choice since most of my professors have retired or moved on to other schools since I graduated. I should be writing the paper now, but I'm exhausted.

Our show on Wednesday may be cancelled. Dearly Departed dropped off due to not having enough time to get their new guitarist, Jon, ready to play their older songs. I'm still waiting on word on the status.

On a lighter note, we have another show... Tomorrow night. We're playing @ Empire Disc in Garden City w/ Gracer and, well, I'm not sure who else. We were asked late last night and got a confirmation from all members just recently. So I'll try to get all of the details soon. I know it starts at 10pm.

I'm convinced that most customers suffer a mild mental defect. They never seem to hear what you are saying. They hear what they think you are saying. And sometimes they refuse to hear what you are saying. They live in denial. For example: I'll state, "We don't have that shoe in your size, but I can bring out the shoe in another color so you can try it on fir size, then I can order the shoe in the color you want." The normal response I get is, "No, I don't want it in another color." Notice how they ignored the part about 'only trying the other color for size' and 'ordering the color they want.' As for refusing to hear what they are being told, well, this one is my favorite. The customer will ask for a 9 1/2, and I'll respond, "I only have an 8 or a 13." To this I'm asked, "So you don't have 9 1/2? What about a 10?" I always want to ask, "Are you really this stupid? Did you listen to anything I just said?" Oh, people! Why must you push me closer to insanity every day?

Much to do. Later.

-Sergei xo

Song of the Day:
Burning Airlines: The Escape Engine

Ahhh... eBay!

2006-03-30T00:21:00.000-05:00

I love eBay. New CD's are on the way. Since yesterday I bought Ryan Ferguson's (ex-No Knife) solo EP, "Three, Four," and Kind of Like Spitting's "You Secretly Want me Dead" and "One hundred Dollar Room." Ahhh... New music! I considered searching for new t-shirts, but I'll probably pick some up at some of the shows I'm going to over the next couple of months.

Remember that stop sign mentioned a few blogs ago? It's gone. Either the town is messing with me or some daring person took it upon themselve to remove the pointless sign. If it was the latter, I commend this person for his/her actions. Kudos!

WEIH website update!
I forgot to mention this last night: Sean spoke with Lee, who found the backup disc for our website. They are meeting on Friday to get the site back up. This means the old blogger will be back as well. There is now a debate over whether we will make this blog the new WEIH blogger or if we will bring back the old blogger. It's a tough decision. I've grown attached to this blogger over the past few days. What we may do is bring back the old blogger, but put a link on it to this blogger. This way, if the other blogger goes down, people can access this blog for updates. And, of course, there will be a link to the WEIH blog set up on this page. Another idea I had was to post the new blogs on both sites. That's the direction I am leaning at the moment.

I need more new music. New bands to listen to. If anyone has any recommendations, email me: exmidget@hotmail.com. Just no metal, hardcore, or pseudo-emo nonsense (basically, no bands in which the members have silly haircuts and wear fake, vintage T's with $200 jeans). Thanks!

Time to do something else. Later.

-Sergei xo

p.s. - Midgets are nature's comedy.

Song of the Day:
Ryan Ferguson - Not On My Watch

Geetars, day 1

2006-03-29T01:56:00.000-05:00

I'm feeling rather accomplished, sitting here, sipping on my celebratory beverage. Can you guess it's recipe? If you know me, I'm sure you can. Guitar tracking began tonight and went smoothly. With Sean at the controls, and Lou out of control jokingly playing Metallica riffs in the control room to torture Sean, I recorded some clean guitar tracks for a few songs. My guitar of choice for tonight's session was my '58 Gretsch Clipper. What was extra special about tonight's recording session is that this guitar was my Dad's first guitar. It was given to him by his grandfather when he was 17. It will also be the first guitar heard on the album. I'm quite excited. I also plan to use the other Gretsch guitars my Dad gave me on various tracks. Here's the list of what was accomplished tonight. Feel free to scroll down if you don't care.

"Perfect Endings" - All clean guitars
"Channels" - All clean guitars
"Silhouettes" - All clean guitars
"A Game of Lines Crossed" - All clean guitars
"Bridge Lights" - Clean guitar during bridge

I didn't get that haircut. Perhaps I'll have time in the morning. It's not that my hair is long. I just have really thick, annoying hair. The longer it gets, the more difficult it is to control. Granted, even short it's bothersome, and most days are bad hair days. But I start to feel frustrated when its thickness becomes apparent.

Tonight we established that Lou hates the word "blog." Sean & I saying blog gets the same reaction from Lou as the one Sean & I give when Lou plays Metallica. Seriously, I hate that band. Lars is the worst drummer, and biggest moron I have ever seen. If anyone is in need of a good laugh, rent the Metallica documentary "Some Kind of Monster." So ridiculous.

Ok, I have more celebrating to do. Later on.

-Sergei xo

Song of the Day:
American Football - Five Silent Miles

Superpowers

2006-03-28T02:15:00.000-05:00

I'm beginning to believe that one, if not all, of my family members wield superpowers. What kind of superpowers you ask? None other than the ability to always use up to the last sheet on the paper towel roll, but never need that last sheet. How do I know this? Well, every few days I come home and find paper towel roll still on the dispenser with only the last sheet remaining. Impressive, I know. How does one always make it to the last sheet without the need to get a new, replacement roll? Luckily, I have my own superpower. I have the ability to replace the roll. I like to think I use my power for good... the good of the person(s) who seem to use up the roll but never replace it.

"Airline" is funny show sometimes. I just saw a guy complaining because a ticket checker stepped on the toe of his invisible wife, claiming that his invisible wife thinks it may be broken. He demanded an ice pack for her. An invisible wife... Wow! He even bought a second seat for her. ...... Wait! Wait! Damn it!!! It was an April Fools joke played on the manager by the staff. Great, they got me too. I could erase this to seem less foolish, but forget it. It's not the first time I felt foolish. It's too bad it was a joke. Crazy people are amusing.

I need to get some sleep. I'm hoping to get a haircut in the morning. It's time to start the cycle of bad hair days again. Life was much easier when I shaved my head every few weeks.

Goodnight!

-Sergei xo

Song of the Day:
Death Cab For Cutie - Tiny Vessels

*cough

2006-03-27T01:16:00.000-05:00

Fuckin' colds! It's in my lungs and has returned to my right ear. The sinuses are ok for now, but that can always change and often does. I'm feeling mildly feverish right now, so I despite a mild chill I don't want to put on my Owen sweatshirt. I refuse to give my sickness a warm place to set up camp. Perhaps this sickness is like the curse in The Ring. I have seven days to pass it on to some unlucky soul, who in turn will have seven days to do the same. This may be the only way to save oneself from certain death.

Today was supposed to be the start of guitar tracking. This, of course, did not happen. I left work feeling quite rundown. I faked it well over the course of the day, but I could feel the cold eating at my brain and leaving my body with slight aches. Luckily, there were external issues at hand which, with extensive bitching, helped take my mind off my internal battles. And so I continue the war for good health.

Speaking of my Owen sweatshirt, I bought it at the Asbury Park show back in February. Initially, I thought it was a T-shirt, but just before purchasing it realized it was a pullover hoodie. Though for only $20 it was hard to resist, despite it being too big. I now use it for lounging around my current living space. I considered using it for running on colder days, once I get back to running, but having a friend living next door named Owen, it seems a bit odd to run around town wearing this hoodie. Especially since the name "Owen" is spelled out in pink letters. I imagine his parents would see this and begin to wonder. So I guess it shall remain my indoor hoodie.

Ugh! I can taste the sickness in my throat.

Ok, I have to get back to reading. I'd rather take another long nap, but I have too much work to do.

-Sergei xo

p.s. Batman is awesome!

Song of the Day:
No Knife - Brush Off