The Bosque

I am pleased to announce that "Tame" (SYC001) is the title of the forthcoming (and first-ever official) Sycamore single.

"Tame" was originally performed by the Pixies, and can be found on their classic 1989 release, Doolittle. Written by Black Francis and clocking in at 1:56, it contains a driving bass line (provided by Kim Deal) with quiet verses that turn into chaotic chorus. "Tame" is the song that made me fall in love with the Pixies.

While respecting the original version, the Sycamore version will add a bit more chaos to the chorus and hopefully a bit of whimsy. Prior to recording, Matt and our friend Dave (who is drumming on it) were unfamiliar with the song, but have done a fine job in creating a piece of work that is worthy of the Sycamore name.

"Tame" will be available as a free download and as a free limited edition single on a first come, first served basis. As of now, it is not been decided how many copies will actually be pressed. The final recordings are being done for "Tame," and the single should be ready for consumption in March or April. Stay tuned for more info as it becomes available.

Thank you.

A piece of spam that landed in my inbox yesterday:

Hello,

My name is Mrs. Elisabeth Rothstein, from Australia. Am 58 years old, suffering from long time cancer of the breast. From all indications my condition is really deteriorating and it's quite obvious that I won't live more than 2 months according to my doctors. This is because the cancer stage has gotten to a very bad stage. My late husband died early last year from heart attack, and during the period of our marriage we couldn't produce any child. My late husband was very wealthy and after his death, I inherited all his business and wealth. The doctor has advised me that I will not live for more than 2 months, so I have now decided to spread all my wealth, to contribute mainly to the development of charity in Africa, America, Asia and Europe. Before my late husband died he was a successful business man in Sydney Australia and he deposited the sum of EUR 17Million EUROS in a storage company in Europe some years ago, that’s all I have left now.

I need you to collect this funds and distribute it yourself to any charity homes of your choice. So that when I die my soul can rest in peace. The funds will be entirely in hands and management. I pray God gives you the wisdom to touch very many lives that is my main concern. 40% of this money will be for your time and effort, while 60% goes to charity.

If you are ready to work with me please reply me only to my private email address: xxx@xxx.com

Best Regards,
Mrs. Elisabeth Rothstein

Monday morning, I got myself a nifty speeding ticket from my friends in the St. Louis Metropolitan Police Department. For those of you keeping score, this is now the 3rd ticket I've gotten in 4 years back in St. Louis, to go with 2 additional pullovers.

In 5 years of Philadelphia, I was not pulled over once. In one year in DC, I got pulled over twice: once by Prince George's County, MD Police because we had a taillight out on Putt-putt; once by Maryland State Police because the front license plate was not attached to the front of Putt-putt.

Of course, neither of the recent tix has hit my record, nor will this one. For that matter, only one ticket (running a red light in suburban Ballwin in 1992) has ever been on my record. Every other ticket I've ever gotten (5 over 16 years) has been reduced to a parking violation by a traffic lawyer, as will this one. I don't like paying $70 for a lawyer and $100-150 to the municipality, but I don't want my car insurance going up and my pretty driving record being fucked up.

Now then...did I earn the ticket? Yes...I was pulled over for doing 40 in a 25 mph zone on South Grand in the Grand South Grand business district (between Gravois and Arsenal). Apparently, that part of Grand dropped to 25 from 30 mph 8 months ago (according to the traffic cop). I played dumb and said that I thought the speed limit was 35 (knowing that it was 30...or so I thought). In any case, got the ticket...in record time. Seriously, I got pulled over, he checked my license and insurance, printed the ticket off the computer and I was driving again in 10 minutes.

What I didn't appreciate was the manner in which I was pulled over...he used a full siren and lights, as if he was going to an emergency. Usually, if you're busted by the cops for something like a ticket, they'll pull up behind you at your speed, throw their cherries on and do a quick burst of their siren. Not this guy...he looked like he had just been called to an emergency and came towards me pretty quickly, with lights and siren on. I started to move over to the side of the street to let him get by...but he followed me.

This just seemed asinine. I clearly broke the law, but seriously. The only reason I can think of as to why he handled it the way he did is that he just looked at the car and thought I was a punk kid hot-rodding (because of the type of car I have).

So Officer Ray, who I believe works in the Traffic Division, if you happen to read this...I appreciate the hard work that the men and women of the SLMPD do. But when you handle a situation like this, it makes you and your entire force look like a bunch of fucks. So be cool, and handle the situation differently in the future.

This is one of the current flyers our company is using...our store is a franchisee:



Okay...Imo's is trying to compete against Subway and Quizno's. That's cool...they should, too. Their sandwiches are fucking awesome...they don't look as pretty as they do in this ad, but they rock. Especially the salsiccia sandwich, which is basically 2 formed pizza sausage patties with pizza sauce and cheese...*drools*

What made me post this is what is written towards the lower-right corner:

"We only use real Provel cheese on all of our sandwiches."

You see, this is a misnomer...or an oxymoron...or both. Provel is not actually cheese...this Wikipedia article describes it pretty well. It's a delicious "cheese"...fuck it, as far as I'm concerned, it IS cheese, just like Velveeta and American cheese. Apparently, it's a St. Louis or Midwestern phenomenon. And it seems to be a love-it-or-hate-it thing...people like April and I worship it. Others call it "the lips and ass of cheese" and refuse to have anything to do with it. Most Imo's stores carry both provel and mozzarella, though you have to request mozzarella on your pizza if you want it. We don't carry it...it never sold well when we did.

Anyway...I think what the flyer meant is that we use actual Provel from Hoffman (who helped create the cheese), as opposed to "pizza loaf" or "pizza cheese," which is what I think my former employer uses.

(In fact...see here...look at the Cecil Whittaker's label. I believe the labels on the cheese blocks before I left were similar to the one shown. Fuck Cecil's...they're an imitator of Imo's anyway.)

Still...I had to chuckle at that flyer...that'd be like Geno's saying, "We only use real Cheez Whiz, not that shit you buy at Aldi!"

Yes, I already know...I'm easily amused. :)

shhhhhhhhhh...

The following news story is being reprinted in full due to the short lifespan of news stories on their respective websites

From today's St. Louis Post-Dispatch: With baseball's All-Star game coming to town in July and Busch Stadium just down the street, a group of friends at the downtown Syndicate Lofts floated an idea: Why not rent out their lofts for the week?

Thousands of baseball fans from across the nation are expected to descend on St. Louis for the July 14 All-Star game and its attendant festivities, such as the Home Run Derby and corporate events.

Already many downtown hotels are booked solid. The Hilton overlooking the stadium? Sold out. The Westin one block from Stan Musial's statue? Good luck, no rooms. Same goes for the high-end Four Seasons and even the Ritz-Carlton in Clayton, where rooms start at $600 a night.

John Brueggemann, who lives in the Syndicate Lofts, said he has heard more and more people talking about renting out their homes for the All-Star game.

"That's kind of the buzz around town," Brueggemann said Sunday.

Amateur hoteliers are jumping at this All-Star opportunity.

A one-bedroom, 1,100-square-foot loft in the downtown Ely Walker building is being offered at $2,000 a night. The posting on the online site Craigslist boasts of the loft's 46-inch flat-screen TV and black leather couches. Dogs and cats are allowed. The stadium is a 10-minute walk away.

Another nearby one-bedroom loft can be had for $1,750 a night. Mark Friederich said he arrived at the price for his place in the King Bee building almost by random. But if someone comes up with the money, Friederich said he would happily move out for a week — and go stay in a hotel in some distant suburb.

Adding to the intrigue, signs promising "Rent your home for the All-Star game for up to $5,000 per day" recently have sprouted in several St. Louis neighborhoods.

The signs are courtesy of a Phoenix-based company that says it acts as a broker between homeowners and sports fans. Keith Johnson — who runs the upstart website MajorEventRentalz.com — said his company works with sports ticket websites to offer private homes for rent. His company handles the logistics and takes a 10 percent cut of the rental fee.

Even when hotel rooms are available, renting a house may be preferable to someone, such as an athlete's family, who "wants to come down but doesn't want to deal with the press and promoters found at the hotels," Johnson said.

For the Super Bowl played in Tampa, Fla., earlier this month, Johnson said, his company struck a deal for a weeklong, $10,000-per-night stay at a luxury home that came with the free use of a Mercedes S500 and six Super Bowl tickets.

The rush to rent to strangers was on display during President Barack Obama's inauguration in Washington. News stories blushed with people eager to hand over the keys to their house. But supply outstripped demand. Many rentals sat empty.

Still, Brueggemann said he knows of friends who rented out their home in Denver for the Democratic National Convention in August. Oprah Winfrey reportedly paid $50,000 to rent one house for a week during the convention.

Brueggemann has not decided whether he will rent out his loft. But he is considering it.

"Everybody needs a little cash in their pockets now," he said.

"You can't eat it, you can't fuck it and it won't get me into heaven."
--Mickey Rourke, as told to Barbara Walters on her ABC special tonight

Okay...well, not quite...but I'm putting the pieces together.

I'm tired of being a lazy piece-of-shit slob, and I am bound and determined to get Sycamore off the ground this year. Earlier this week, I came up with the idea of recording a cover song. This is the not the first time I've had this idea, but this song is simple, bass-driven and short--only 2 minutes. It's a great song...probably my favorite song by this band. But I can't reveal who it's by...don't want to ruin the surprise.

I started working with GarageBand here on the Mac last night. My mother-in-law has an iMac here at the house...it was actually my suggestion for them to buy it 4 years ago. I got a feel for the basic functions of it, and am now ready to start recording the song. Now it's just a matter of getting the pieces recorded.

The biggest hurdle at this point is drums. We don't have a drummer, don't want to get a drummer yet and don't have decent beat programs to use in place of a real drummer. I've put out some feelers and am hoping to have someone in place to record for us next week. If you know someone that can play along to a song, record it properly and send it to us, PLEASE let me know.

I'm very optimistic about this...I think people will like the song, and I think we will do it justice. Lord willing, it will all work out.

Hey gang,

As you can see, I'm doing a little bit of remodeling here. Trying to make the place look nicer and fresher. Not doing anything too crazy, but hopefully it will look better when I'm done.

The content will not improve, however...no matter how much you beg.

Love,
T-$

I heard about this rant from CNBC's Rick Santelli earlier today...here's the actual clip from CNBC, and below is an interview he did later on MSNBC:



I'll be the first to admit that I'm not sure about this stimulus bill. None of us really knows if it's going to work, and some of the stuff in it sure smells like bacon to me. And I don't like supporting idiots (individuals and companies) that got in over their heads.

But I think something had to be done. This country is a nation of heart-thinkers, not head-thinkers. We use our heads to a point, but we're more emotional than logical. And tax cuts help, but by themselves, they simply don't get the job done. If we go with the "tax cuts are the only answer" logic, then Bush's tax cuts should still be working well for us, right?

And of course...how much money have we put into homeland security and the Middle East? We've been spending money over there like it's going out of style...and there are no guarantees on what happens there in the end, either.

There are a lot of complex issues at play here, and a lot of people involved. I'm not going to even begin to try and understand them all, but the Obama Administration was in one hell of a spot. Had they done nothing, they would have been labeled as do-nothings and being uncaring. So we're on the other end of the spectrum--too much pork, not gonna work, not properly targeted, etc. Everyone is a fucking critic...including me. But I rule. ;)

The most recent posting streak is over after 47 days (12/31-2/16). April reminded me last night around 11:30 to post something, and I was going to...I even remember logging in to do so. But then I didn't...I swear I have adult ADD.

It's all good though...here's post #1 of the new streak. And I really REALLY need to get instructions out to guest hosts on posting. I will finally do so this week.

Overall, the owner of the pizza shop is a decent guy...much easier to work for than the guys at the last shop. But I would say that his biggest deficiency is that he has a short fuse. He flies off the handle very easily, and sometimes overreacts. I have incurred his wrath a few times, though it has been very short-lived and deserved.

Today, it was not deserved...and I made sure he knew so. Because my own fuse has been short lately, and today it went off.

I took a delivery to a customer that had apparently already complained by phone before I got there. I delivered to her last week...and got stiffed. When I got there today, she went inside her condo to sign the credit card receipt...and it was taking her forever to do so. It turned out she was calling the store to complain about her pizza being "ice cold." She finally came back to the door, said she wouldn't sign the receipt and noted that her pizza was cold. I apologized for the problem, but noted that it did not appear cold to me. I wasn't worried about the receipt, because the customer already authorized the purchase.

I got back in my car, and my cell phone rang...it was my boss. He asked about the delivery run I had just taken, and got pissed off at me when he found out that I ran it out of sequence--I did not take the orders in the order that they were received by the store. Usually, my runs are determined by distance from the store. If you're closer to the store, you'll get your pizza sooner. However, orders that are getting old (over 30 minutes) trump all.

I had a delivery that was pushing 40 minutes (first order on the screen), so that went first. Order #3 was not far from order #1, so I took that next. Pissy lady's order then went last (order #2). Based on the status of order #1 and the location of the other 2 deliveries, what I did made the most sense to me. The boss was basically just pissed because the customer got pissed with him. So he got pissed with me.

I've been a bit cantankerous lately. I guess the realization of the move is settling in, and of course, April and I still don't have decent jobs. I was snapping at April and her mom all weekend. Even my brother got on my nerves at work today, which doesn't happen very often.

So I flew back to the store, hopped out of my car and slammed my car door. My boss met me by the back door...he had already calmed down and wanted to clear the air, as he likes to do. I wasn't ready yet.

Boss: "Hey man, it's cool. That bitch was just starting shit."

Me: "I wanna talk to you!"

Boss: "What's wrong?"

Me: "You know, I ain't one of your typical flunkies that works here!"

Boss: "Oh, I know man! It's cool!"

He then proceeded to explain that he knew that the last customer was just being a bitch. I explained why I ran the run the way I did, and that the pizza was not cold. He said he understood and explained again why he reacted the way he did. This is how my boss operates...it's basically the way he apologizes.

And all was right with the world.

I have got to chill the fuck out though. I hate my job, but I simply have to keep it and maintain the good reference until I get a new job. But I don't like it when people talk like shit to me for no good reason...and maybe it'll make him think twice before doing so again.

From MSNBC: Venezuela's elections chief said President Hugo Chavez won a referendum to eliminate term limits, paving the way for him to run again in 2012.

National Electoral Council chief Tibisay Lucena said with 94 percent of the vote counted, 54 percent have backed the president's proposal. That trend is irreversible.

I dunno...FDR would have served 16 years had he not died early in his fourth term. Chavez just seems scary though...and unlike Mahmoud Ahmedinejad in Iran, Chavez actually has power.

I'd love to see the Big O say, "Hey Hugo, let's hang out. Meet me in San Juan and we'll have ourselves a little powwow." Hugo would totally be speechless.

You were a good little bass. But it's time to try my hand--my right hand--at something different.



I traded it in today...I will present the new one tomorrow.

I love you, April.

If you're not there, you're a chronic bed wetting sociopath.

...I'm the miracle worker now!

I stopped at a 7-Eleven on the way home to pick up a can of Amp. I went up to the register, the cashier scanned the can and then I swiped my debit card. I then used the electronic pen and keypad that most 7-Elevens have to enter my PIN and what not. I heard the cashier utter a mild "Whoa!" as I was doing this, but didn't look up.

The cashier then said to the other person behind the counter, "Check it out! He's using the PIN pad!" The other gal replied, "Wow! That hasn't worked in like 2 months!"

I don't know what the hell I did...I just used it as normal. Those pens are pieces of shit...we use them at my shop. They gum up and stick and don't always register what you're targeting. They suck, and really shouldn't be used in a retail setting. My boss is not cheap, but I don't understand why he won't invest in 1) A caller ID box that allows us to go back and look at previous calls and 2) One or two touch screens for ordering. Of course, he won't promote me to manager either, and they could really use another one. But that's another story.

For now, I will sit and bask in the awe of my magic touch. No phone calls, please. ;)

My friend Matt's wife (not Monken, who posts here) is currently battling thyroid cancer. Here's an update from him today:

The Good (which is very good): Is that Em's scan came through clear. This is the scan where they give you this low level radioactive iodine dye. The Thyroid really grooves on iodine and sucks that stuff up (that's why she is on the low iodine diet), so it will light up like Christmas lights. So bottom line they didn't find anything.

The Bad: They also run tests for a protein that only appears if you have thyroid cancer. She is still registering on those test. That means that there must still be some cancer cells floating around somewhere. So they have to nuke it just to be sure.

I don't know Emily...hell, I haven't even hung out with Matt since I moved back home. But she's around my age, and cancer just sucks period! Please keep her in your thoughts and prayers...thank you.

From Heaven & Hell's MySpace blog, posted in full here:

Heaven & Hell - New Studio Album "The Devil You Know" - April 28 From Rhino

HEAVEN & HELL SET TO REVEAL THE DEVIL YOU KNOW

Highly Anticipated New Album From Ronnie James Dio, Tony Iommi, Geezer Butler and Vinny Appice To Be Released April 28 From Rhino

LOS ANGELES --Ronnie James Dio, Tony Iommi, Geezer Butler and Vinny Appice returned to the stage after 15 years in 2007, launching a triumphant world tour as Heaven & Hell. Revitalized and inspired by their time on the road, the quartet recently returned to the studio, recording the band's first album since 1992's Dehumanizer. The highly anticipated album, THE DEVIL YOU KNOW, will be available from Rhino on April 28.

"Everyone had so much fun playing together that we didn't want it to end,"
says the group. "We started writing together and the songs started flowing like we never stopped. We wound up writing and recording an album that stands up to anything we've ever done. We're really proud of the music and excited for people to hear it."

The dark tone heard on THE DEVIL YOU KNOW is clear from several of the album's song titles, such as "Bible Black," "Rock & Roll Angel," "Breaking Into Heaven," "Atom & Evil" and "Eating The Cannibals."

The seeds of the new album were planted in 2006, when Dio, Iommi, Butler and Appice returned to the studio to record a trio of new songs for Black
Sabbath: The Dio Years, a recent compilation of essential tracks taken from the quartet's four albums together. Soon after, the band launched a run of sold-out shows around the world, electrifying audiences with its malevolent metal fury.

Oh wow...this is going to fucking rule...I know it!!!

I couldn't sleep last night, so I took 2 Percocet. But I only slept 4 hours, and went through today high as a kite. It was as if everything was in slow motion...thank God we were slow at work. And everyone at work was fucking cranky as hell, so I just sat in my car and listened to The Smiths all day. Plus I opened my mouth and let loose on two separate occasions. But I wasn't rude when I did so...I was polite and matter-of-fact. Fortunately, neither event should get me in trouble.

Oh, wait...that wasn't a dream...

Though I like going to local rock shows, I also dislike going to them.

I've seen quite a few local shows since moving back home (almost) 4 years ago. And pretty much after seeing every damn show, I say the same thing: "I could do this shit!"

I finally decided to re-start Sycamore last winter after a 12-year hiatus...I even purchased music equipment for the first time in 15 years. And I decided to learn to play bass. But this incarnation of Sycamore has suffered from the same issues that afflicted the 1992-1995 version: lack of money, lack of time and lack of commitment. And the last one is the real kicker.

I have all the time in the world, really. I have no kids, a family that will let me pursue my rock fantasies, a 9-5 job and enough equipment to do everything at home, except guitar work. And we have no shortage of capable axemen. My cousin Eric also plays bass, which would work in a show setting. And I know drummers that would probably be willing to play live shows for us.

So, the question I need to answer is...at 33, how much do I want to play music and rock out? If I really want to do this, then I know what I need to do.

Then there is the new conundrum that started over the weekend. I am a natural left-handed player. My friend Brian suggested to me years ago to try and play right-handed when I wanted to learn guitar, but I was having none of it. Especially since Kurt Cobain was God at the time, and he played left-handed. And it's not like there aren't a lack of role models: Jimi Hendrix, Paul McCartney, Tony Iommi...

It's not too too hard to find a left-handed guitar, but a left-handed bass? When I bought my Ibanez Soundgear bass last year, it was one of only two lefty basses in an entire Guitar Center. Today, there were none.

I've been thinking about starting fresh and upgrading the Ibanez, and I mentioned this to my friend Jen the other night, while lamenting about my left-handedness. Her husband Dave (April went to college with both of them) is a musical savant...he plays drums in his current band, but also plays guitar and bass. She mentioned that Dave is left-handed in everything except for playing guitars. She suggested switching to playing right-handed, as it's a hell of a lot easier in terms of finding quality gear at reasonable prices.

It's intriguing me. I'm a lefty at everything except writing, so it might not be such a dramatic switch. May has an acoustic guitar here at the house that I was fiddling with last night, and it felt very bizarre to play it right-handed. But the more I think about it and do air guitar, the more it seems to make sense.

I'm going to play Guitar Hero right-handed for a few days and see how that feels, and I'll keep playing with the acoustic guitar. If it feels more comfortable, then I'll ditch the Ibanez SG and go with a right-handed model...I saw a really nice Ibanez that I liked today, along with a great selection of Squires.

On one hand, I feel like I'm trying to kill off part of who I am. But am I really? It's not like anyone has ever seen me play live anyway...plus my left-handedness is only a small part of who I am.

...the Nomecam!!!

From MSNBC: Christians are soldiering on in the battle over God's existence by putting ads on London's famous red buses urging people to have faith.

The posters are a response to an atheist campaign that told people to stop worrying about religion because God probably doesn't exist.

The Christian Party has paid $22,000 to run ads declaring: "There definitely is a God. So join the Christian Party and enjoy your life," in red, pink and orange letters.

I love this photo with Richard Dawkins (from the article):



Of course, the bottom line is...who the fuck cares? But it's good to see some Christians still get their panties in a wad over atheism.

Uncle Terr-bear and Baby K, February 2008:



Uncle Terr-bear and Baby K, January 2009:



She's already one...and growing fast!

Taken by Samson Halieyesus, from the AP and MSNBC

Who's really America's team now?

Pittsburgh 27, Arizona 23.

That's the Steelers' 6th Super Bowl in 7 tries, including 2 in the past 4 games.

To their credit, the Cardinals hung tough and almost pulled it off. Kurt Warner will always be a money quarterback...it just wasn't his game today.

GO STEELERS!!!

Quit trying to wear dreads. They just don't look right on you...in fact, they make you look like a tool.

Also, the hippie thing was not cool in 1994 and it isn't now.

Lastly, chuck the glitter...that was maybe cool for 2 minutes about 3 years ago.

Love,
T-money
xoxo