High Fidelity The Musical on Broadway

High Fidelity The Musical on Broadway

If you know me, you know that High Fidelity is one of my all-time favorite movies and books (definitely in my Top 5). So when I read that they were turning it into a musical, I was kinda excited. Now that I've watched the preview video and heard some of the songs....uh not so much. Nice thought though...thanks for trying.

(Sidenote: In the John Cusack movie version, Kevin Bannister (the kid who makes out with and steals Rob's first girlfriend in high school) is played by the brother of one of my good friends. It was his first major role. He is now doing comedy and music in the NYC...check out Thunderwear!)

And the loser is...

ateaseweb.com | Thom Yorke Loses the Mercury Prize Award
Thom's performance of my favorite song off The Eraser, 'Analyse'
from the Mercury Prize (won by those crappy Arctic Monkeys)
(check out the evil face to start the song and the goofy face to finish)

GWAS » New Postal Service?

Good Weather for Airstrikes » Blog Archive » New Postal Service: “The Importance of Being”: "the new album will be divided into thirds with each band member (Tamborello, Gibbard, and Jenny Lewis) singing on a third of the album."

OR MAYBE NOT...may be The Northen Two actually...whoever they are.

Crikey

Steve Irwin killed in freak accident:
"...died instantly when struck by a stingray..."

Dang...sad story. He was definitely an entertaining guy. Friggin' Stingray barbs. It should have been Crocodile Dundee Paul Hogan...the Croc Hunter didn't deserve to die.

Labor Day - Best DUI Ever

In honor of labor day...an oldie, but a goodie...

Baby Rock Records - Radiohead

Baby Rock Records

Picked this up last week for my buddy's son's first birthday...pretty good stuff. Thankfully Glen is fan of the RH as well so at the very least he'll enjoy it. Of course, this was a completely serious gift in my mind. I have no doubt that lil' Warren's brain will now be wired in the same mold as the brilliant Thom Yorke (or Jonny Greenwood). I'm sure any kid that understands the complicated workings of Paranoid Android will be a hit in Pre-School. Plus I consider it an investment in my family's future as we have already arranged for Warren to marry my first daughter so that best friends finally become brothers (or co-fathers?)

Half Nelson - the film

Half Nelson - the film



really, really good movie.
really good performace by Mr. Notebook
really good soundtrack by Broken Social Scene

Music Makes Your Brain Happy

Wired News: Music Makes Your Brain Happy:

"Music activates the same parts of the brain and causes the same neurochemical cocktail as a lot of other pleasurable activities like orgasms or eating chocolate -- or if you're a gambler winning a bet or using drugs if you're a drug user. Serotonin and dopamine are both involved."

Samuel L. Jackson on The Daily Show

Snakes on a mothaF'ing plane...

Skeet Spirit: A Crunk Tribute To Radiohead

Skeet Spirit: A Crunk Tribute To Radiohead
(free to download)


What!?!?!?

Mew @ The Troubadour (08/07/06)

Finally got to see Mew...although we were late as usual and missed the first song (Special...my 2nd fav). All in all, a really good show. Lead singer has some crazy range. And Mew definitely join the list of bands with crazy background visuals. Good stuff...but borderline scary at times. And I'm not talking about the kittens playing violins.

Could have been us...

The onstage mayhem of Bloc Party...

Are you hoping for a miracle...

Band: Bloc Party
Cameraman: me!

Bloc Party at The Greek (Aug. 3, 2006)

My summer at the Greek Theater (4 shows in 5 weeks) concluded with last nights Bloc Party/Broken Social Scene/Mew show. Highlights included:

• Missing Mew...the band I ended up being the most excited to see. That's okay though since I'll be seeing their full show at the Troubadour on Monday.
• Being in the Pit...it doesn't get much better.
• Being in the Pit amongst celebrities which made my friends giddy (Pacey from Dawson's Creek, Scott Speedman from Felicity and a dude from Dead Poet's Society)
• enjoying Broken Social Scene for the first time (when they have 10+ people on stage they become the 'white Ozomatli')
• Enjoying Bloc Party for the first time - Great live show...very nice, genuine people. The lead singer Kele always has a smile on his face.
• Watching one song with the lead singer of BSS who hung out behind us in the pit.
• Getting THIS close to being on stage. During the encore, when Kele's guitar broke, he danced around the stage and was joined by 1...then 2...then 4...then 40 fans on stage. My friends and I went through the stages of, "we're thirty...what's the point?" to "holy crap, this is our chance at immortality" to "ah crap, security is here and we can't get onstage anymore". Missed opportunities. Plus, if you look at my 3rd pic below, I also missed out on making out with some girl on stage like that guy did!
• Final Highlight: Getting one of Bloc Party's guitar picks after the show. I've been in the pit for many a show and tried to get the premiere souvenirs of a setlist, a drumstick or a guitar pick but to no avail. This time I prevailed even if it took crawling on the ground and fighting some girl who said it was hers because it was under her foot.
  

Mentos + Diet Coke = Bellagio Fountain

YouTube - Mentos on Letterman
Skip to the end for the big 195 bottle finale

8 Treadmills Rock!

OK Go - Here It Goes Again

SingShot

online karaoke + youTube + american idol = SingShot

Surf's Up

Got to go surfing for just about the first time ever...pretty fun. Too bad I'm an idiot and I forgot sunblock and a rash guard. Now I'm red in many ways. I am proud to say that I got up on my very first wave. And the water was SO warm...it was perfect. Thanks for letting me borrow the board Pam...its still in one piece!

One of these days...

Gilroy Garlic Festival

I've always wanted to hit up the Garlic Festival...looks like I'm gonna miss yet another year.

Thom Yorke - IFC Rollins Show 'Cymbal Rush'

YouTube - Thom Yorke - Cymbal Rush

El cabezazo de Zidane a Materazzi

Ah the creativity of the internet...

El cabezazo de Zidane a Materazzi

I'll trade you this paperclip for that house...

Blogger's quest ends with keys to house - Yahoo! News

Thom Yorke's The Clock (Live Acoustic)

Thom Yorke - The Clock (Live on IFC The Henry Rollins Show)

Airs July 15 at 10 PM ET IFC with an encore July 20 at 11 PM ET
& features another performance by Thom with the help of Jonny and Nigel.

Borat - Trailer

Apple - Trailers - Borat - Trailer

The Great Taco Hunt

The Great Taco Hunt

Genius!

Radiohead - Follow Me Around

YouTube - Radiohead - Follow Me Around

Nacho Libre Music (Some Velvet Blog:)

Some Velvet Blog has some mp3s of songs from Nacho Libre. I really enjoyed the movie and that was largely due to the soundtrack, which at the time I thought was completely done by Beck (tonight's Concert of Concert Week '06). Turns out Beck left halfway through and then was replaced by Danny Elfman who also left and didn't want to be credited for the music or something. I don't know...but whatever happened, it may stop them from releasing a soundtrack so that sucks. Thankfully people like Some Velvet Blog are resourceful enough to track down some tracks.

Concert Week '06: Best Week Ever??

Mon: Radiohead in San Diego
Tue: -day off-
Wed: Beck at Wiltern
Thur: Radiohead at Greek Theater
Fri: Radiohead at Greek Theater
Weekend: Happy Eric

Sorry to rub it in Dave, but more reason for you to move back to LA.

Life advice from an email FW

This excerpt was definitely my favorite considering I was bombarded with this question at Alan's wedding this weekend:

HOW TO STOP PEOPLE FROM BUGGING YOU ABOUT GETTING MARRIED
Old aunts used to come up to me at weddings, poking me in the ribs and cackling, telling me, "You're next." They stopped after I started doing the same thing to them at funerals.

YouTube - Radiohead True Love Waits (EIIRP Version)

YouTube - Radiohead True Love Waits (EIIRP Version)

Copa Mundial '06: There's just a wee problem

The Observer | UK News | There's just a wee problem:
"Biologists have warned that trees in Berlin are in danger of dying because of male fans urinating in the bushes."

New Radiohead: All I Need

Radiohead News | ateaseweb.com
Me gusta mucho...(but what else is new)

NBA Finals

NBA Finals '06
Former Bruin Jason Kapono has a ring.
The unstoppable Eric Dampier still blows (once a Warrior, always a Warrior).
And Dwayne Wade is my new favorite player.

Father's Day

Spent Father's Day surrounded by nice cars at a Car Show on Rodeo Drive...this was my favorite - an Austin Healy.

 

Well Hooded...

I guess the robes aren't THAT bad...
(but just to clarify, this was for a Playa hata Degree not OWLs or NEWTs)

Time to get my HOOD on!

Doctoral Hooding Ceremony - Commencement 2006

No joke, my robes look like the hand-me-down's worn by Ron Weasley...
Atleast they don't include a tall, white hood.

6' 7" Mr. Roboto...

Freakishly tall...Like Chris Ott tall.
& although he appears to suck, he's one of my fav's for Copa Mundial '06

Lambert The Sheepish Lion

A blast from my childhood. For whatever reason, this song always pops into my head from time to time. For example, tonight when Becky asked me where World Cup Powerhouse Togo was located, I began singing the Lambert tune but with the lyrics "Togo, the friendly Lion"...don't ask me why.

Copa Mundial '06

Guess which one is MY view today??

Catch World Cup soccer live - Lifehacker: "Somewhat more promising are P2P streaming players like TvAnts, where you'll probably end up with all sorts of foreign language broadcasts (but, as Wired points out, there's no mistaking 'GOOOOOOAAALL!!!')."

Worldcup Preparations: More tips for online streams
(try the Tuvplayer...I got it working and it has English speaking feeds)

Gulfnews: "Artificial intelligence says Brazil will beat Italy for their sixth Cup"
(and no, I don't subscribe to Gulfnews)

BTW, if you love soccer, I recommend working for a guy from the UK...makes watching it during work guilt-free!

MUSE - Starlight

Muse - Starlight
from the new album Black Holes and Revelations

McSweeney's The World, Explained

when:	Sat 6.10 (8pm)
where:	Barnsdall Art Park, Municipal Gallery (4800 Hollywood Blvd, Hollywood, 323.644.6269)
price:	$20
links:	Event Info | McSweeney's

Help Cure Huntington's Disease AND kick it with PJ

Charitybuzz HD Auctions: "See Pearl Jam in San Francisco on July 15th or 16th in San Francisco. These amazing packages include; 4 VIP ticket to a sold out show, 4 signed posters, dinner with guitarist: Stone Gossard, band manager: Kelly Curtis, tour manager: Mark ‘Smitty' Smith and Liz Weber. "

Pearl Jam is all about my favorite diseases...definitely my soulmate band.

The "5-Second Rule" Rules

The "5-Second Rule" Rules: "Researchers at the University of Illinois say the so-called '5-Second Rule' isn't a myth. They say when you drop food on the floor, it's still safe to eat if you pick it up within five seconds.

That's because it takes at least that long for germs to devour dropped food. Sticky food though, will pick up bacteria faster than dry food."

Slimmed-down Kemp auditions for Nuggets

SI.com - NBA - Slimmed-down Kemp auditions for Nuggets:
"Nuggets coach George Karl can see a different Shawn Kemp -- not just a slimmer version of the former All-Star, but a wiser one."

He's my favorite player...but gotta wonder how the crack habit and 8 babies are doing.

If only I had $25,500+...

eBay Motors: DeLorean :
"get OUTATIME with an expertly converted Delorean Time Machine as seen in Back to the Future"

Love Will Tear Us Apart

Music blog MOKB has 20(!) covers of my favorite Joy Division song...

My Old Kentucky Blog: Love Will Tear Us Apart
Check out the Jose Gonzalez, Calexico, Nouvelle Vague and Hawksley Workman versions

Radiohead in London - Night 1 [Videotape debuts]

Radiohead News | ateaseweb.com
Newest Radiohead song...'Videotape' - not bad...

‘Lost Finale Info’ - Newsweek MSNBC.com

‘Lost:’ TV’s Coolest Show - Newsweek - MSNBC.com: "So, do you wanna know what we know about the finale? Skip this paragraph if you don't—though it's not as if we could solve the whole 'Lost' riddle. But here are some tidbits. "

The Eraser

The Eraser

from Thom Yorke

this is just a note to say that something has been kicking around in the background that i have not told you about.
its called The Eraser.
nigel produced & arranged it .
i wrote and played it.
the elements have been kicking round now for a few years and needed to be finished & i have been itching to do something like this for ages.
it was fun and quick to do.
inevitably it is more beats & electronics.
but its songs.
stanley did the cover.
yes its a record!
no its not a radiohead record.
as you know the band are now touring and writing new stuff and getting to a good space so i want no crap about me being a traitor or whatever splitting up blah blah...
this was all done with their blessing. and i don't wanna hear that word solo. doesnt sound right.
ok then thats that.

i think its out in july and im pretty certain XL are going to put it out.

love thom

Scratch that...Arpeggi (full band) is now #1

Radiohead News | ateaseweb.com: "Arpeggi "

Wow! I liked the Thom solo acoustic version...but now...wow!

My Favorite of the New Radiohead Songs: 15 Step

"Radiohead in Copenhagen "

Great new song...comes with Thom's patented leprachaun dance FREE!

We Are Scientists cover Sigur Ros

Wow...never thought anyone would try to cover Sigur Ros. YANP has the proof that it can be done...

You Aint No Picasso: "We Are Scientists performed on BBC 1 yesterday and rocked the house as usual. But the unusual bit is that they did it by foregoing their normal electric onslaught. Our boys did a completely reworked version of their hit “Nobody Move, Nobody Get Hurt” and threw in a Sigur Ros cover to boot."

Radiohead: Bangers n Mash

Watch Thom get his Phil Collins on!

Apple - Trailers - Superman Returns - Large

Apple - Trailers - Superman Returns - Large

I'm not a crazy Superman fanatic (Batman would kick his ass) but this looks pretty good...too bad I'll be at the Greek Theater with Thom when it comes out... :)

Waste Tickets

Thanks to a little computer ingenuity, a lack of a need for sleep, and 2 credit cards I am now the VERY happy owner of 4 tix to both the first and second Radiohead shows in LA, 4 tix to the first Radiohead show in SD and 2 tickets to the second night of Radiohead in Berkeley. Went to sleep 2 hours ago with my computer running a program called WebMon...basically refreshed the ticket page until it changed (and tix went onsale) at which time it played an alarm (in my case, Journey's 'Don't Stop Believing'). Ain't nothing like a lil' Steve Perry to get you out of bed. Woohoo!!

Lake 'in it up in Fresno

Guess which one of these pics is of me?

Thom and Jonny Play Arpeggi @ Koko

Radiohead Festival Announcement

Radiohead Festival Announcement:
June 29 & 30 Los Angeles - Greek Theater * PUBLIC ON SALE MAY 25

Oh happy day...

Lakers go up 3-1

In case you were also on a lake in Fresno like me and missed this...

ABC.com: Full Episode Streaming

Did you miss Lost, Alias, etc. last night??
ABC.com: Full Episode Streaming

Rolling Stone : Eddie Vedder: Addicted to Rock

Rolling Stone : Eddie Vedder: Addicted to Rock: "In a way, music for me was fucking heroin. It was something I needed. And to see a live show was something I needed, it gave me strength through adolescence and through this young adult life -- to feel like there was a purpose to get through this whole thing. After a live show, the high could wear off in a day or two. The bootleg recordings and listening back at them with your eyes closed and headphones seemed to make a crappy recording actually sound pretty good. It was like getting high again. I was a user."

That's what I'm talking about. Once again, Eddie speaks the truth.
I wonder if Eddie will be my AA sponsor when I'm too old to go to shows. Don't want to be the grey haired ponytail guy in the back. Mr. Sensitive PonyTail Guy.

RH is rehearsing for their upcoming tour...

DEAD AIR SPACE
This pleases me...

And even more interesting...
Check out the MySpace blog of Radiohead's tour engineer, Graham Lees

The Office: The More You Know...

NBC.com > The Office

DESTRUCTOID - UF: The University of xbox Flash mobbers! (s)

As a memorial to the one time Pam, Jen and I tried to participate in the oh so trendy FlashMob fad (we were 1 min late...and with flashmobs...you just can't be late. They don't wait for you)



This mob was apparently inspired by a BANNED Xbox commercial...

Baaaaaaaarrrrrrrrrrryyyyyyyy...

Rock, Paper. Scissors...street-rumble style!

LAist: Bad Parking/Good Letter

LAist: Bad Parking/Good Letter
I bet he went to SC too.

01:02:03 04/05/06

On Wednesday of next week, at two minutes and three seconds after 1:00 in the morning, the time and date will be 01:02:03 04/05/06.

Road to the Final Four

Drives thru White Castle...

Road to Final Four: dave's future house

...and it only cost $12.

Smelly road to the final four

What is it with people on buses and BO?!? Is there a law against wearing deodarant on buses? I may be the only one arrested... Holding...my...breath. One...more...hour...

Road to the Final Four

...continues by bus from the Midway (airport) point of my journey, Chicago. Hard to tell but yes, that IS White Castle. Thank god for my new cellphone...keeping myself busy. I even just made a nba fantasy trade with paul. Multitasking at its best...

The road to the Final Four

It begins here

American Airlines Sued Over Dog's Death

American Airlines Sued Over Dog's Death:

"A San Francisco man sued American Airlines, Wednesday, March 29, 2006, alleging his dog Willie died following a cross-country flight because airline employees refused to provide a veterinarian and other care after the animal fell ill. Terrence Ing wants to hold the airline accountable for its alleged negligence and to bring attention to a practice he said is all too common."

That's my old roommate and his dog Willie...

Tim McKenna - March Madness Nostradamus

Yahoo! Sports Tournament Pick'em

Who would have guessed that UCLA, LSU, Florida and GEORGE MASON of all the teams in the NCAA would make this year's Final Four???

Tim McKenna, that's who!

Mr. Tim McKenna is in sole possession of 1st place on the worldwide leaderboard over at Yahoo's March Madness Tournament Pick'em. Now he's not perfect (he's missed 16 games total so far and didn't go 15/16 on day one like yours truely)...but guessing that final four...well that's damn impressive. So impressive in fact that people on the Yahoo messageboard are obsessed with the man, the myth, the legend...

Little Known facts about Tim McKenna by: ZagsWinBig (gallatin01)	Mar 27 4:02pm
I sat by him in Algebra-- He's a decent baller, but can't go left The guy just knows the game. Too hard too describe here--

will smith cast as tim mckenna by: bracketology101 (blade91812)	Mar 27 4:14pm
in the up coming movie tim is god

Chuck Norris once by: Hugh Jasscock (busman1950@sbcglobal.net)	Mar 27 4:15pm
jump backwhirl spinkicked George Mason upside the cabeza dropping him like he was Bobby Kennedy, only to have him rise up scream "Tim Mckenna", then proceed to beat the shit out of ole Chuck

Tim McKenna is all that is wrong with our country. by: I Rule (waviclesdammit)	Mar 27 4:19pm
Our young people used to be able to look around them and see wholesome, good values taught wherever they looked. And today's young people look around and all they see is 50 Cent and Tim McKenna.

Tim McKenna by: Bracket Busters (eaglesnfl52286)	Mar 27 4:21pm
I think Tim McKenna may have just passed Chuck Norris as the greatest person at life. Tim has become the Buddha of college basketball. Actually, he probably just found some way to cheat. Eaither way, that's still cool.

mckenna by: Bracket Busters (eaglesnfl52286)	Mar 27 4:23pm
Tim McKenna went back in time and deflected all three bullets aimed at JFK with his bare hands. He then told JFK that he picked George Mason to go to the Final 4. JFK's head exploded out of sheer amazement

Final Four Here We Come

ESPN.com - Afflalo, UCLA clamp down on Memphis, stamp Final Four ticket

Mark: "Get the ball to Hollins...he's the MVP!...wow, never thought I'd say that."

This UCLA Victory Is Blue Heaven - Los Angeles Times

This UCLA Victory Is Blue Heaven - Los Angeles Times

Run to victory

After Adam Morrison made two free throws with 3:26 left, UCLA trailed Gonzaga, 71-62, but the Bruins closed with an 11-0 run to pull out an improbable win.

• 3:13 — Luc Richard Mbah a Moute makes two free throws. (71-64 Gonzaga).

• 2:09 — Mbah a Moute scores on a layup. (71-66 Gonzaga).

• 0:52 — Jordan Farmar makes a running one-hander. (71-68 Gonzaga).

• 0:20 — Ryan Hollins makes two free throws (71-70 Gonzaga).

• 0:10 — After Farmar steals the ball from J.P. Batista, he passes to Mbah a Moute for a layup (72-71 UCLA).

• 0:02 — UCLA regains possession after a held ball, Arron Affalo is fouled on the ensuing inbounds pass and makes one of two free throws. (73-71 UCLA).

• 0:00 — Batista misses a turnaround jumper from the wing and UCLA wins, 73-71.

More Bruin Love - LAist: OH MY GOD!!!

LAist: OH MY GOD!!!

Best part of this picture (besides Michael Rolle doing god knows what) is all the different expressions in the stands. There are the obviously excited bruin fans (in yellow) that are jumping uncontrollably. There is the black guy in the left corner who's doing the turn around 'can you believe that $h#!'?? Then there's the two guys on the far right that look like they might be unhappy with their decision to get the 'Gonzaga - 2006 Champs' tattoo on their backs.

Gonzaga Bulldogs/UCLA Bruins = Greatest Night of My Life

NCAAB - Gonzaga Bulldogs/UCLA Bruins Recap Thursday March 23, 2006 - Yahoo! Sports
I can't sleep...what a night, what a game. I just went absolutely crazy along with the Q's crowd in West LA. Such a great defensive comback at the end there. I was a little bit worried about playing Memphis but after tonight's test, I'm feeling better. That which does not knock us out of March Madness, only makes us stronger.

GO BRUINS!!!!!

NCAAB - Live Odds - Spreads & Totals - Yahoo! Sports

Thurs - 9:57 pm
Gonzaga
at
UCLA -3.5 136 ov"

Tetris® DS | Do You Tetris With Others?

Tetris® DS | Do You Tetris With Others?

Yeah...so my friends and I are Nintendo DS geeks and we're pretty excited about the release of Tetris DS and Metroid Prime Hunters DS. Save your snide remarks and just watch the damn commercial...

McSweeney's: Let There Be Lite.

"But in time She began to grow wroth. And when Man asked why She was wroth, She would say he ought to know, which only made Her more wroth.

But at last She gave Man a hint, in the form of a wise parable about some rural gentleman who would not invest in a cow because he was getting his dairy produce pro bono.

Man listened carefully to Her words, and pondered them.

Then Man said, 'Are you saying you're lactose intolerant?'

Boy, was She wroth."

Read the full tale at McSweeney's

Things to do before I die: SXSW

So I SHOULD be going to Austin, TX this week for the SXSW but alas, I was a bit late in setting up any travel plans. Dang, and it would have been the perfect time now that my schedule is completely wide open. I've always wanted to go so hopefully I can make it in the near future when listening to unsigned bands while eating free BBQ and drinking free beer all day long is a desirable thing. (Does that ever become UNdesirable?? If so, I don't want to see 31). In honor of the festival, I decided to post 5 my newest, favorite lesser known bands:

Bravo Silva - Strawberry Blonde (mp3)
*i don't know who they sound like...they just sound good.

Editors - Munich (mp3)
*lead singers voice reminds me of the male vocalist of Dead Can Dance (minus the goth)

Hot Chip - Making Tracks (mp3)
*bits of Daft Punk, Beta Band...good grooves, but I like their mellow stuff mostly.

Nightmare of You - I Want to be Buried in Your Backyard (mp3)
*I guess they sound like young, Emo kids...but more melodic, less whine

Voxtrot - Mothers, Sisters, Daughters & Wives (mp3)
*I've run out of adjectives...they are grrrrrrrrrreat!

**If you like any of these bands, support them by buying their music or seeing them live. I don't mind anyone sticking it to the major labels, but you gotta help out the little guys**

Lookin' STRONG!

Look out 63 other teams, UCLA is playing the best basketball they've played in years. After wrapping up the regular season title, the Bruins beat Cal (yet again) to wrap up the Pac-10 Tourney title today. Even more exciting is that they seriously have a chance to go far in the Tournament which starts Thursday. I'm going out on a limb and saying they win it all. They last won the National Championship when I was a wee freshman at UCLA in 94-95. Many years later, as I finish up grad school here at UCLA, I think it would be nice to close out the Era of Eric at UCLA with yet another Championship. Don't let me down Ben Howland.

(By the way, I was just told by a former classmate, that my diploma will have Gov. Arnold's signature on it...sweet, I get a PhD certified by the Kindergarten Cop.)

Why Can't I Be as Smart as You?

McSweeney's Internet Tendency: Why Can't I Be as Smart as You?:

"My brilliance is a tree that grows in the fertile soil of experience, and extends 74 miles into space, where it catches passing satellites, which not only hang from its beautiful branches like multimillion-dollar Christmas ornaments but also impart to my brilliant tree all of their satellite knowledge. This is how I know the license-plate and Social Security numbers of so many young and attractive celebrities, and it's the only reason, despite court orders that may say different. It's also why you get such great cell-phone reception in my presence."

Officially, It's Officially Official

In the eyes of the University, I'm officially a Doctor!

Phase I: Publicly defend my dissertation - DONE (Jan. 19, 2006)
Phase II: File dissertation with university - DONE (March 9, 2006)
Phase III: Leave Campus/Get a Job - ????

Woohoo! As of 4pm today, I'm officially Mr. PhD. It didn't quite hit me until I was called Dr. twice by 2 strangers (the people who helped me file). I've been called Dr. by my friends and family but they always smile or laugh afterwards. This time, two complete strangers said, "Here you go Dr. Walker" with straight faces. Of course, then I started to crack up.

The other interesting thing was seeing all the other dissertations that were being filed. Part of the process is going to the dissertation adviser at the library archives to have her go over the strict details of your dissertation (margins, pagination, etc). The adviser, who has the reputation of being the Dissertation Nazi ("No thesis for you!"), was actually very nice. I can see why she could get all cranky in her little room which was literally filled to the ceiling with vanilla envelopes bursting at the seems with thesis' (Thesi?). Good thing she doesn't have to read them all. But I digress...as I was saying, seeing all these other disseratations was pretty amazing. I mean, here's mine sitting on her desk next to a computer science one on wireless networks in moving vehicles. Or there was the nice girl behind me in line turning in her english thesis on "queer" literature in the 1920's. My point is, isn't it interesting that so many people like myself can waste so much of their lives on such random topics???

Exposition Metro Line Construction Authority

Exposition Metro Line Construction Authority

The Exposition Light Rail line is the newest extension of the 62-station Metro Rail system. The 8.5 mile line runs along the Metro-owned Exposition right-of-way from the existing Metro Rail station at 7th/Metro Center in downtown Los Angeles to Washington/National in Culver City.

Finally! (yeah, I know...totally random things excite me)