Awreye

November 29, 2005

She's Officially a Hipster Now

November 28, 2005

They Say It Comes in 3's

Found out about two deaths over the weekend: an ex-colleague, who was in bad shape from a car accident last summer, and the grandmother of a college friend. Condolences to their families and friends.

They say bad things come in 3's. Almost 4 years ago my grandfather passed away. Within a week, grandparents of two co-workers passed away too. 3 deaths within 7 days. Keeping my fingers crossed that this will not be the case and bad things are limited to 2's...

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Scenesters Spotted

Final Fixed of '05. The (mostly male) crowd of parka-clad scenesters, hipsters, who either didn't leave town for Thanksgiving/returned early from visiting family, packed Tribeca Grand sub-level one last time. The Cribs threw down. Happy times. Disappointed that a mosh pit didn't break out. No crowdsurfing either. What gives?

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November 27, 2005

Thanksgiving Memories

Memorable Moments from My Thanksgiving 4 Day Holiday 2005:

My first realization that I'm not in Brooklyn anymore: the obnoxious honking of a dozen BMW SUVs, Jaguars, Landrovers clogging the streets outside my hometown's train station, trying to attract the attention of disembarking passengers.

The yummy Austrian/Chinese/Italian flavored Thanksgiving dinner.

After OD-ing on too many hors d'oeuvres, passing out on the couch during an unsuccessful attempt to read Vogue Knitting.

"Honey, remember to always leave your clothes in the dryer for at least an hour. I heard this story about a woman who came back from a trip to Africa with dirty clothes from her trip. When she washed them back in the states, she didn't dry them long enough. There were worms and parasites still living in the clothes that burrowed into her skin. The heat kills the bugs. Please remember this." - Mom with important advice

"Wow, you lost so much weight! You know if you dab this on your face, you'll get rid of your blemishes and be pretty." - Grandaunt & Aunt meaning well, but...

Inching around Woodbury Commons for 30 minutes looking for a parking space.

Blinking in disbelief at the hardcore shoppers lining up in the bitter cold to get into Banana Republic, Timberland, The Gap, Gucci (at least 10 more) outlet stores.

Driving by a minivan engulfed in flames on the side of a sububan road.

Watching my dad trying to sneakily shoot funny photos of the family with my digicam.

"Why aren't you dancing, huh? Huh?" - Striped-shirt man trying to "entice" us to dance by gyrating and shaking his ass 10 inches from our faces at Tribeca Grand.

Eating a delicious 2am omelette post-Fixed.

Sleeping a good 8 hours every night.

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November 21, 2005

New (To Me) Restaurants

Taking a short break from babbling about music to babble about food.

I like eating. I like trying new restaurants. Therefore, I give you my short reviews of new (to me) restaurants:

Beet - Good, not stellar. To be fair, I haven't had stellar Thai food since I was in Bangkok a few years back (dur). Couldn't really tell the difference in quality between their U-Noodle and the Pad See Ew of Rice Thai, located only a block away, or Song, another competitor 10 blocks north. Felt like I was dining in a downtown lounge. Owners obviously took a page out of Peep's pink neon, wacky lighting, minimalist furniture aesthetic.
Verdict: would return, but would not go out of my way to eat here.

Acqua Santa - Great service, warm atmosphere, awesome food. So good that I ended up spending more money than I intended on a delicious filet mignon with prosciutto, porcini in a light creamy sauce. So good that I didn't even mind that the entire restaurant vibrated every 10 minutes, when the B61 rumbled by the bus stop out front.
Verdict: definitely would return, oh yeah.

Cafe Lafayette - Excellent food (their brunch is especially good). Has a cute old-world feel (read: cramped for people who need at least a foot between tables -or- cozy, if you dig that basement bistro vibe). Pains me to point out their unsatisfactory service. The waiters were pleasant, the few times which we were able to get their attention (we practically had to wave our hands in the air like an air traffic controller to do so). But our food took over an hour to reach our table. Maybe starving us is part of their strategy to make the food seem tastier when finally served?
Verdict: would return, if I was in a particularly patient mood and wasn't all that hungry to start.

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Sleepy? No

It's 1:18am. I slept too much this weekend and now I don't feel sleepy at all. 7 hours and 42 minutes until I need to be in the office.

That is all.

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November 20, 2005

Good Weekend

means playing Red Stripe-fueled connect four at my local, dancing to revolution rock, freaky soul & cosmic disco in a half-empty basement lounge, and watching Harry Potter and The Goblet of Fire on IMAX with cool friends. And sleeping past 8am (the best part of any weekend).

Unfortunately that means I spent only 5% of the weekend on work stuff, though I did manage to do some grocery shopping (mmm, orange juice), and sorta clean my apt. Sorta.

It's barely Sunday evening, and I am already looking forward to next weekend -- the final Fixed at Tribeca Grand, and my final set of photos of red/green-lit rockers. Last week's Fixed featured Art Brut (the UK indie band, which actually lives up to the hype).

Oh yeah, also looking forward to gorging myself on turkey, basil-mashed potatoes. Mmm...

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November 17, 2005

Kapow! (and a Bit About Monkeys)

Spent a rainy Wednesday night at the Bowery Ballroom. No, I wasn't there to see the latest Insanely Hyped British Indie Band to Hit NYC, but Kapow! Had a fun time at their last gig, so when I found out about their middle slot for last night's concert, I had to go. Their catchy music is a perfect antidote to yesterday's crap weather. "Make You Mine" is rapidly approaching earworm status (without that annoying aftertaste).

Kapow! sounded tighter last night compared to their Northsix performance. But they seemed so serious on stage! Seemed more relaxed at their last gig. Randomish note: am I the only one curious about the band's story, which they told at Northsix, about being 7 brothers and riding an unstoppable bus? Whaa? Anyway, their set was definitely worth the wet trek across the LES.

Stuck around for part of the Arctic Monkeys' set. Despite the buzz about this band, I haven't actually heard that much of their music. Wouldn't say that that I was blown away. . .was more blown away by the uncharacteristically enthusiastic (Brit-heavy) audience screaming lyrics back at the boys (they are so young!), but I wasn't disappointed.

Now I have two bands to pimp to my friends!

View photos from last night here.

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November 14, 2005

Pee-worthy

This e-mail almost made my bladder explode earlier today:

From: Jason
To: The Crew
Date: Nov 14, 2005 10:02 AM
Subject: RE: Disturbing Album Covers

Eric Adams, the singer of Manowar (second to the right) accidentally hit me with a sword once in the head at one of their shows. The cut wasn’t bad, but it was embarrassing going home explaining to my mom why I went to a concert and came home with a sword mark on my head.

Not a good idea to read J's email while sipping a beverage.

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Stop, Drop and Roll Won't Save Me

Received a letter with the words Fire Safety Plan printed across the top from my building management company today. It revealed some fun facts about my apartment building:

Year of Construction: 1901
Type of Construction: Combustible
Sprinkler System: No
Fire Alarm: No
Public Address System: No

I'm fucked. I will probably die in my sleep because my stoned roommate accidentally tipped over her aromatherapy candle/incense/smelly burning stuff on a pile of dirty laundry at 2am.

Note to self: check the batteries in our smoke detector STAT.

Listening to:
CocoRosie - Tekno Love Song (it's been on repeat for the past week)

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November 13, 2005

Living in America...Again

The Sounds are back.

Last time I saw Maja (or her doppelganger) was on the dancefloor of Luke & Leroys over the summer. Now I have the chance to see them playing a proper gig.

And of course they're playing this week, which will be superbusy for me work-wise.

Am debating whether to check out the gig, then stumble into work, fortified by 30847+ cups of coffee, the next day. Done it before. Probably do it again. Maybe.

Ahhh, decisions!

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November 12, 2005

My Price Tag

According to some random Internet quiz, I would sell out for (on average):

$1,101,708

That seems low. Needs a couple more 00's, me thinks. What kind of crappy algorithim did the programmer use for this quiz, eh?

What's your price?

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November 10, 2005

Gimme! Sleep

Life has been busy lately. Work. Going out. Work. Updating Blog. Work. Photos. Gigs. Fighting off a cold. Little time to sleep.

Which makes me obsessed about sleeping. I cherish my brief catnaps during my subway ride to my office. I've perfected the art of napping while standing up. I've become dependent on my morning cup of java (preferably from Gimme! Coffee, which is sooo not on my way to the office) to kickstart my day. Odd, but I have little desire to slow down. Too much to do to stop. Too much!

But am aiming to sleep by midnight for the rest of the week.

Yeah, right.

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November 07, 2005

She Really Runs This City

Couldn't spot her as a spectator last Sunday, but saw her on the Internet -- Lete, my fabulous pacer! She runs with us 10+ minute milers in the running club and never loses her patience with our slow asses. 32nd woman finisher with a time of 2:54:52. Insane and inspirational.

Her impressive bio (first one listed). Must congratulate her when I see her next.

Listening to:
Madonna - I Love New York (Confessions On A Dance Floor)
Edit: I can't believe I liked this song. The lyrics are nonsense!

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Run This City

Cheered the New York City Marathon runners from the corner of Lafayette Avenue and Cumberland Street in Ft. Greene, Brooklyn. Since Lafayette is narrower than most spots in the race course, well-wishers were able to get pretty close (to the annoyance of some runners and cops who periodically pushed crowds back). Didn't spot my ex-boss or club pacer, whom I knew were running. Next year I'll keep my eyes trained for them..

Where the Crowd and the Runners Meet.

Speakers piped in music and announcements at several key points in the race course.

When Ft. Greene's race course dj spun YMCA, everyone got down!

Trapped! Trying to Figure Out How to Cross Lafayette.

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November 06, 2005

The Fiery Furnaces at N6

24 hours ago I was disembarking from the craptastic G train and heading towards Northsix for The Fiery Furnaces gig. (The G is my least favorite subway line. Why? Cut service, short cars, bold-as-hell rats scurrying on the platforms.)

Kapow! kicked off the fun around 10:30pm. Prior to last Saturday, I never heard of this band. Karen mentioned that it was fronted by an ex-member of The Fiery Furnaces, which made me expect something other than what entered my ears: happy harmonies, easily digested, guitar-driven pop that made me want to bop around like a dancer from Laugh-In or American Bandstand circa 1964.

The guy on the right looks familiar.

Crowd seemed to enjoy them. But few in the too-cool-for-school audience danced. People, don't be afraid to move your body! Don't recall the titles to any songs, except maybe "Can't Stop the Bus" (Not sure if that was an actual title or just something random, which we screamed at the band. The Red Stripe and G&T made us do that. Really.) Anyway, made a mental note to check out their next gig.

Then out came The Fiery Furnaces. Band started with a medley of songs from older albums, before launching into Rehearsing my Choir. I've been undecided about the album (is it horrible? too experimental? genius?). But hearing them play the album live made me jump off the fence.

I (sorta) like.

Eleanor sang most of the "grandma parts," which removed a lot of what made me uneasy about the album -- Olga Sarantos' harsh spoken word delivery. Some songs seemed rushed, but the concert overall was very enjoyable. Band mentioned that the concert was being recorded; perhaps we can expect a live CD sometime in 2006?

My photos: