TBELL:

Well, lunch was great. I went for the TLT at Veg City Diner, delicious. Then I picked up the new +/- record (I've always been a closet Versus fan) at Other Music along with the new Notwist single.

Now i'm going to try to squeeze a nap in before the show tonight, lulled asleep by my new music.
posted by TBELL at 1:52 PM ***

TBELL:

Dan, I feel your pain. Speaker phone sucks. You are in the right to be so thoroughly irratated. Damon would just call me on speaker phone, then pick up when I answered. I still hated it. Who does that guy think he is?

I'm in Brooklyn safe and sound, It's warm out and I'm deciding what vegetarian delight I'm going to venture out for for lunch. hmmm.

Records rocked on the flight via Midwest Express: 50,000 B.C. and The Queen is Dead.

Going to see Q and Not U again tonight (for the second time this week) with Wisconcin faves Paris, Texas at North Six here in Brooklyn. Be there. Late.

posted by TBELL at 9:30 AM ***

dan:

Is it normal to feel somewhat dominated when someone has you on speaker phone? Do the people that talk to you on speaker phone have underlying issues about control or something? Sometimes I want to put those people that have me on speaker phone on speaker phone..better yet I sometimes feel the urge to talk in broken up words like there's a bad connection or something so they'll take me off speaker phone..When someone has me on speaker phone I picture them sitting way back in there leather chair with thier hands folded behind their head, feet up on the desk talking in the air and pretending to be all
important or something..I'll talk to you and everything but you don't rate me picking up the hand set..maybe I'm being too sensitive..If the speaker phone is of high quality and it doesn't sound like you're in a huge room it would be ok..at least get an expensive phone so it doesn't sound like crap..whats the use of pretending to be all top notch when your phone sounds like stupid kids talking..And another thing if your package was so important how come you didn't know it was being sent next day..or why didn't you call to see if it was in...? so there..god bless, good night, we love you all..
posted by dan at 11:24 AM ***

TBELL:

I'm back on the blog, though briefly.

I'm off to NYC tomorrow and I'm damn excited, Damon will be dropping me off at the airport in the evening via slow drive by and a shove. All is good and I feel I'm caught up on all my monthly tasks and small errands enough to stay a solid week and be around for my girlfriends birthday and not worry about everything back in Milwaukee, which I'll probably do anyways. Roomates, please keep the cats away from the fish!

When I get back, it's serious.

The band will have a busy month after my return and I'm excited about it. Tour dates will hopefully be confirmed soon (as well as other things) and I'm itching to write songs. Enough about that.. On another note, me and my two friends have relaunched the GTA website, and our newest band Tiara is on tour. Holy smokes I'm a head honcho. Please go to the site and look around if you have time.

The two newest worthwhile records in the player: Promise Ring and The Notwist. The latter will eventually come out domestic, I assume on Drag City who released their Trashing Days 12" earlier this year..

I'm out. I'll post from Brooklyn soon. Hugs.



posted by TBELL at 7:36 PM ***

dan:

I'm leaving friday for you know what..
posted by dan at 2:32 PM ***

dan:

I want to travel south this year..

heroin with f you up..

posted by dan at 2:22 PM ***

Robert:

Uploading new goodies to the Pod. Elvis Costello, Wilco, etc. I'm thinking I'll need to wake up a little earlier to better handle my slow, planned out mornings.
posted by Robert at 7:47 AM ***

Robert:

There are exceptions, though. Usually one dollar Old Styles would be one, but not this morning. Everything seems clear, clean, painless. It's because I know what I'm in for today, as opposed to yesterday. No more "new-temp-job-how's-it-gonna-be" jitters. No wait and see. It's pretty much reduced to plain old wait. For the bus. For the train. For lunch. For 5. For the train. For the bus. For home.

When companies want to condense all of the many many collected hard copy files onto CDs or make them available on the internet, they need to be scanned. I know what you're thinking - he's scanning them all, what a pain. But you'd be wrong. Before they get scanned, someone needs to go through every file and remove all of the staples, paper clips, and binding from the pages. That's where I come in. Woohoo. I also flag double-sided sheets with sticky notes.

In no way am I complaining. There's no dress code, I could throw on the headphones if I wish, and the thing pays surprisingly well.

There was music again today from the alley, but it was much quieter and started much later. As I was in between snoozes, I imagined the alley as being one giant flute or whistle, with the spaces in between the garages acting as the air holes. When the wind rushes into the corridor, it produces different sounds based on how deep and wide the walkways are, how many garbage cans are blocking the paths, if any garages are open... That's sort of what the music sounds like. But then again, I have no worldly explanation for the deep male voice that interjects every now and again.

I've been conditioned to only make coffee in intervals of 4 scoops grounds to 6 cups water, hence I never have time to finish the whole pot. What causes shin splints and how can I make them go away? Thank you. Any other news I can drum up is solely dependent upon speedy delivery of news from others. So now we play... the waiting game. Ah, the waiting game sucks, let's play Beans.
posted by Robert at 7:56 AM ***

TBELL:


Going to see the Q and Not U tonight at the Globe with Since By Man. I suggest you come.


posted by TBELL at 2:18 PM ***

Robert:

It's going to be cold out there today. It seems like only yesterday I was working on some color. Won't my Vegas returning compadre be in for a shock when he steps off of the plane? I'm working today, thanks to the temp company. Thankfully I won't be calling any pizza shops or inviting real estate brokers to fundraisers. It should just be some good old filing. Yum - this is great material... for many things.

I'm in one of these moods where I just want to sell everything and give what little possessions I have left a ton of room to breathe. Just yesterday, I thought of the poor old broken jukebox in the basement at the p's practically suffocating among all of that junk. I dreamt about a valiant rescue, stealing it and giving it a wide open home in some expansive empty room. Maybe I'm just getting a little more claustrophobic every day and i'm taking it out on the inanimate objects around me.

This morning I woke up to booming echoing orchestral music, and occasionally a deep male voice, reverborating through the alley behind my apartment. Seriously. It was so surreal, and I didn't want it to ever stop... I got up and turned the heat up to 72 (it was 64 in the place last night). It's a good idea to turn the heat way up so that when you jump out of the shower, shivering, you can sorta huddle over the vents and dry off the way the good lord intended... with no intervening towel. Or maybe I just need to do some laundry.

I like to wake up super early on these "first days" of work, with not a care in the world. Plenty of time to dig some breakfast, some coffee, and maybe even a little music of my own selection. Things are looking up. These talks help. I should stop worrying that they won't.

I saw Elvis Costello yesterday. Almost damn near knocked him over at Tower Records. He played a few songs from his new album and "Watching the Detectives", with the aid of a (way-too-hands-on) drum machine. Far be it from me to criticize the wonderful man, but if you're going to use a drum machine, I would just prefer not seeing its manipulation. It's better when it just happens, as opposed to being constantly hunched over the thing, maniacally dependent on its electrical performance. Maybe electricity and I just don't get along.

Well, it's almost time for me to leave. Got a bus to catch. I'll keep you updated on how everything's going. But for now, know this as I do, we've got a 6 week tour starting on July 11, cities and tourmates to be announced. I will think of this often over the next 8 hours.
posted by Robert at 6:53 AM ***