More fun with iPhone camera applications. This was created using pic grunger and IncrediBooth
This self portrait just with pic grunger alone
Category: Narcipost
Solipsism of all sorts
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Complex Citizen
Took a long time, with a few missteps along the way, but finally got my U.S. Passport today. Yayy…
What is a complex citizen you might ask?
I blogged the details a few weeks ago if you recall…
When the borders between Canada and the U.S. were more open, I didn’t worry about only having a Canadian passport1, but like so many other things, 9/11/2001 changed that.
Anyway, whoo hoo!
Footnotes:- which actually expired a couple years ago, I guess I’ll renew it eventually [↩]
Passport Application Redux
Went down to City Hall again today, changed my drivers license to Illinois1, and then went to drop off my various paperwork to the U.S. Department of State’s Acceptance Facility so that I can get a US passport.
I was born in Toronto, of American parents, but my mom didn’t know she was supposed to register me with the U.S. Consul (with handy-dandy Form FS-240)2, so I’ve been living in limbo most of my life. The rules are fairly plain: if you have parents who are US citizens, you are an American citizen as well, but the challenge is in the proving.
In my case, I needed proof of my mother’s American citizenship (her birth certificate from Neenah, WI), my father’s birth certificate (Chicago, actually)3, their marriage license from County of Santa Clara, CA, my birth certificate (the long form version, which turned out to require a Canadian citizen with certain parameters to vouch for me, luckily Emily Spring qualified), a Notarized affidavit of all locations that my mother had lived before she had me4, which turned out to be quite a lot of places. Oh, and since the name on my birth certificate was different than the name I’ve used most of my life, also a certified copy of my legal name change order, from a Travis County judge’s office, circa 1993.
Yikes. Lots of checkboxes to click. My official category is Complex Citizen, and it’s true. I’ve had a Social Security number since I was 16 or so, and a drivers license since 17, but a passport was a different beast to corral.
We are planning to go to London on business at the beginning of August, so this suddenly became an urgent task to complete. In 2007, when my family had family reunion on the occasion of my grandparents’ 50th wedding anniversary on a cruise ship to Alaska, I had started collecting the needed paperwork, but was unable to collect everything to the US Department of State’s satisfaction in time, plus they delayed the requirement that traveling to Canada required a passport, so I abandoned the quest.
Today, my photograph, actually taken in 2007, was nearly rejected by the Acceptance Facility agent5, but when pressed, she couldn’t say why exactly, so let it go through. However, I had forgotten to bring a check, so had to pace nervously while my partner went and got a cashiers check at a nearby bank. Unfortunately, she filled it out to the wrong entity, but we corrected it with a pen, and after a few moments of discussion, the clerk took all the documents, and gave me a receipt.
In 5 days I can supposedly check the status of my application, and if all is correct, will receive my long awaited passport in 3 weeks.
Footnotes:- even though I’ve lived on and off in Chicago for nearly 15 years, I’ve maintained my Texas license for some reason [↩]
- I don’t blame her at all – it isn’t a topic discussed in school [↩]
- I don’t know my birth father, haven’t seen him since I was an infant, but that further complicates matters [↩]
- originally, she created a document listing the places she had lived after I was born, and not until I was at the Department of State passport counter, did I realize this was wrong. [↩]
- who was in a big rush to leave at 3:30, even though the office is supposed to remain open until 4:30 [↩]
Bitter Foods and Liver Health
At the risk of over-sharing, I’ll just mention that my doctor1 suggested I add bitter foods to my diet to encourage liver health. Glancing at this list, I notice that most of these items are already part of my diet – meaning I like them – so eating more of these things won’t be a burden.
- bitter melon
- citrus peel
- unsweetened chocolate
- dandelion greens
- escarole
- quinine (tonic water)
- mustard greens
- cabbage
- broccoli
- cauliflower
- turnip
- Chinese cabbage
- radish
- horseradish
- watercress
- soy products
- cheeses (some)
- miso
- kale
- arugula
- brussel sprouts
- artichoke
- grapefruit
- zucchini
- radicchio
- bread
- asparagus
- kohlrabi
Unsweetened chocolate is on the list, though that food I’m not planning on eating much of. Also uncured olives are mentioned. You’d have to be pretty damn dedicated to eat one of those: when I was hanging out in Tuscany, the Baccis jokingly gave me a olive fresh off of an olive tree. So astringent that my mouth didn’t recover for hours, took lots and lots of good Chianti before my tongue worked again. They laughed and laughed, and I did too.
Meyer Lemons
Not sure why bitter foods help the liver, I’ll have to look into that, but since I enjoy eating these things anyway, I don’t mind making the effort to eat more.
My blood work will be completed by next week.
Footnotes:- Dr. Andrea Rentea [↩]
Hooded SwankoPrint!
Developed in SwankoLab for iPhone using Vinny’s BL94, Vinny’s BL04,
Noir Fixer, and Noir Fixer
41 and there’s so much more to do.
Go Ahead Ask Me
I may or may not answer you seriously, but I will answer your question
Colleen and Seth – Colfax 1971
My mother and me, circa 1971 (?), Colfax, California.
Slightly retouched in Photoshop.
maps.google.com/maps?f=d&hl=en&geocode=&time=…
This is probably my favorite photo of my mother. Something about her expression here is just perfect. She isn’t smiling, exactly, nor quizzical.
Not sure exactly the provenance of this photo: think it was taken in Colfax, California, but don’t know where exactly, nor who took it.
The 1959 VW survived several more cross-country trips past this photo, and eventually became reused as the motor for a sawmill in Frostpocket1. Blue in this photo, later painted school bus yellow.
Footnotes:- if memory serves [↩]
Friday Randomizer – Too Drunk to Fuck edition
Come on, you can play along too! Shuffle your music library by song, then post the first ten songs on the playlist. Here’s what my list looks like today:
- Nouvelle Vague– Too Drunk To Fuck
- MC5– Skunk (Sonically Speaking)
- Queen– Leaving Home Ain’t Easy
- Davis, Miles– Mademoiselle Mabry
- R.E.M.– Fall on me
- Clancy Eccles– Be Faithful Darling
- Townes Van Zandt– No Lonesome Tune (with Willie Nelson)
Texas Rain - Mingus, Charles– Fables Of Faubus
- Galaxie 500– Decomposing Trees
- Jones, Rickie Lee– Nobody Knows My Name
Again, for me, I want to post a brief discussion of each song, but entirely too busy with “paying” work to do so. Imagine my sonorous voice droning on…
Friday Randomizer Fun
Nothing great here to hear, but nothing objectionably bad either. I’m too mentally drained at the moment to bloviate about each track, so just imagine me telling you amusing anecdotes as to why these particular songs ended up in my library.
- Luna– Fuzzy Wuzzy
- Wells, Junior– So Tired
- Lennon, John– Born in a Prison
- Iguanas, The– Flame On
- Monk, Thelonious– Eronel
- Watson, Doc– Brown’s Ferry Blues
- Beastie Boys– Do It
- Malathini and the Mahotella Queens– Thokozile
- R.E.M.– I Don’t Sleep, I Dream
- Deadstring Brothers– Where Are All My Friends?
Saturday Song Solipsism Part 2
Haven’t gotten bored with this game yet- lower the lights, go into the sauna-pod, put on the headphones, and hit shuffle on my iPod. Here’s the latest results:
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El Rego et ses Commandos– Vimado Wingnan
Delightful West African release of Afro-funk etc. If The Talking Heads were not listening to artists covered on this album, I would be very surprised. Chiming arpeggio guitars, funk drums, driving bass lines, infectious poly-rhythms, great fun.
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Young, Neil– Through My Sails
A near-Desert Island disc. Still debating whether to splurge on the BluRay Neil Young archive Vol 1 or not. If it doesn’t include regular audio files that can be converted to MP3 and played on an iPod, will hardly ever listen to it. This lovely song is acoustic guitar, with backing vocals by what sounds like Stephen Stills and maybe even David Crosby.
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Observer All Stars, The– Rebel Dance
instrumental reggae, not much dub weirdness, thus not a great tune. Good for meditation though.
-
Weezer– O Girlfriend
gah what tiresome 1990s alternative rock crap. If I wasn’t an inveterate pack rat, I’d have deleted this annoyance long ago.
-
Ramones, The– I Don’t Wanna Be Learned / I Don’t Wanna Be Tamed (Demo)
whew, a welcome palate cleanser after the Weezer dreck. The Ramones only play two or three chords, but more energy in their demos than Weezer’s entire recorded output combined.
-
Joe Higgs– My Baby Still Loves me
I lean towards political reggae more than “sweet” reggae, but this is a decent enough “sweet” reggae tune. Can’t always listen to songs of institutional oppression, right? This is a good album to own if you want to branch out beyond Bob Marley, especially since Joe Higgs was extremely influential on creating the classic Wailers sound, mentoring Marley and Tosh in the early 1970s.
-
Funkadelic– Hit It And Quit It
Before George Clinton decided if Parliament-Funkadelic was a rock band or a funk band, they recorded this album. Other than a somewhat annoying organ solo, a great tune. A template for all the Red Hot Chile Peppers and like-minded bands to follow; reverbed-like-crazy rock guitar, coupled with driving New Orleans style funk drums. Still remember purchasing this album from the now defunct Sound Exchange next to Mad Dogs and Beans and Les Amis. Ahh, youth.
- Johann Sebastian Bach – Bach: The Well-Tempered Clavier [Disc 1]
Bach: Well-Tempered Clavier, Book 1 – Prelude #12 In F Minor, BWV 857- Leon Berben
ahh, Bach. - Reign– Padre Nuestro
Silencio= Muerte: Red Hot + Latin Redux
am a sucker for the Red Hot + comps. This a latin dance-club tune, or what I would call so anyway. Good in small doses -
Garcia, Jerry– Gone Home
I don’t know this for a fact, but strongly suspect Jerry Garcia was in the depths of his heroin addiction when this dirge was recorded. Waltz-time, but slower. Though, to be fair, it is a funeral song, and has some fine mandolin bits, and bit of the High, Lonesome wild mercury sound that Bob Dylan is always muttering about. Not a shite song, just wouldn’t be good to listen while biking the lakefront, your bike might keel over.
- Dylan, Bob– You Ain’t Going Nowhere
Genuine Basement Tapes
I wish these delightfully fun tracks would get a proper release. They float around on the internet, but the bit rate is often low. Bob Dylan and The Band hanging out in Woodstock, having a probably illegal amount of fun. Lots of silliness, like in this track, probably one of the ones where the lyrics were written randomly1 by committee2; Richard Manuel backing vocals, and some classic Robbie Robertson guitar work. Wonder if Robbie Robertson’s copyright theft from the rest of The Band is part of the reason these songs have never been given a proper release? - The Mamas & The Papas– California Dreamin’
All Time Greatest Hits
I first heard this band only a couple of years ago, before the whole incestual/attention grabbing news about John Phillips and his daughter, but the song is a classic slice of Americana, evocative of the time in which it was created. Undercurrents of foreboding, minor keys, but so damn catchy.
- just pick up that oilcloth/cram it in the corner/I don’t care if your name is Michael/you’re gonna need some boards/get your lunch/you foreign bib/you ain’t goin’ nowhere [↩]
- this particular Basement track was polished up, all that remains on the Genuine Basement Tape version is the chorus [↩]
Friday Musical Free For All
Immersed myself in my meditative tube, put on my headphones, and hit shuffle on the iPod. Here’s what played:
-
Alejandro Escovedo– Slow Down
I won’t bore you with a tale of Alejandro Escovedo, Miles Davis’ Bitches Brew album, LSD and the (now defunct) Waterloo Records Vinyl Annex, as I think I told it before. Glad Mr. Escovedo doesn’t have to clerk at Waterloo Records anymore though: he played at the Democratic National Convention in Denver if I’m not mistaken.
- Johann Sebastian Bach – Bach: Cello Suites [Disc 2]
Bach: Cello Suite #2 In D Minor, BWV 1008 – Gigue- Jaap Ter Linden
Cello is becoming one of my favorite instruments to listen to -
Sir Victor Uwaifo & His Melody Maestroes– Akuyan Ekassa
an awesome album, and a great funky tune; guitars, bass, drums, percussion.
-
Freakwater– Put My Little Shoes
other than the nice Carter Family-esque guitar playing1, not a favorite. They have much better songs in their oeuvre, some of which are even on this album, like My Old Drunk Friend which is a classic.
- Swanksalot Orchestra, The– Dancing Bull
Swanky Headroom III
a tune composed, mostly in GarageBand, and not one of my most successful, I’m afraid. Thought it would be fun to record a bunch of guitar riffs and merge them, but it didn’t turn out that well. Oh well, still fun to hear fruit of my labor from 4 years ago. Hadn’t listened to it in a while. -
Orchestral Manoeuvres In The Dark– Enola Gay
Left Of The Dial: Dispatches From The ’80s Undergroundlittle bit of nostalgia for the 80s, though this track is not a huge favorite of mine. Love this Rhino 4 disc box set however, tons of good singles on it.
-
Pearl Jam– Gone
I like the idea of Pearl Jam: earnest, Pacific-Northwesterners, with political views close to mine, but truth be told, have never really have enjoyed listening to their music. Boring to me, this song included.
-
Cale, John– Antarctica Starts Here
quiet, melodic pop tune. No idea what the song is about
-
Lang, Peter– St. Charles Shuffle
John Fahey, Peter Lang, Leo Kottkeflashy acoustic guitar instrumental from an album full of them. Is it a dobro? Steel strings at least.
-
The Melodians– Sweet Sensation
classic reggae tune from The Harder They Come soundtrack, a Jamaican blaxsploitation film that is worth Netflixing if you haven’t ever seen it. The Melodians biggest hit was Rivers of Babylon, Sweet Sensation is solid, just not as good.
-
Devendra Banhart– Lover
Smokey Rolls Down Thunder Canyonfun, bouncy track, a homage to early 70s funky-soul, or whatever the hell it called, complete with slightly risqué lyrics.
- ChickenFat Klezmer Orchestra– Ot Azoy
ChickenFat Demos
Surprisingly good stuff from a local band; need to go see them perform live one of these days. They have several MP3s available at their website, check it out.
Today’s play list had a few duds on it, guess that’s part of the randomizer fun. Better luck next time…
Footnotes:- bass strings of the guitar playing a melody, in other words [↩]
Sunday Song Survey
Today’s edition of Songs That Played During My Meditation Time1
-
The Besnard Lakes– Disaster
The Besnard Lakes Are The Dark HorseLike this pulsing bass line a lot, and actually this song is really growing on me. The band has a new album coming out early next year, I’ll probably pick up a copy.
- Destroyer– European Oils
2006 Pitchfork Music Festival Sampler
I went to the Pitchfork Music fest this year2, I think, but I don’t remember seeing Destroyer. Probably would have been fun, as I like the album this song is taken from. - Louis Jordan & His Tympany Five– You Will Always Have A Friend
Disc E: 1949-1950
you will always have a friend, as long as you have money to spend. True, cynical, but true. Recently picked up a 5 disc box set of Louis Jordan: a slightly forgotten, R&B jump blues jokester from the 1940s and 1950s. Highly enjoyable. This is a danceable calypso-esque song, with horns, drums, piano and percussion. -
Beastie Boys– Get It Together
With Q-Tip providing additional vocal contributions, one of the better tracks on Ill Communication, the last great album the Beastie Boys released, so far anyway. Ma Bell got the Ill Communication. Indeed.
-
Stone Roses, The– Made Of Stone
from one of the many golden eras of British pop, now reissued and remastered.
-
Marley, Bob & The Wailers– Duppy Conqueror
speaking of ululation, this track from one of my Desert Island discs3 has some funky background vocal effects. I suspect Peter Tosh is making sounds with his mouth emulating a cat purring, but who knows. Lovely track, not my favorite on this album, but every song by the classic edition of the Wailers4 is excellent in my estimation.
- O’connor, Sinead– All Apologies
Universal Mother
and speaking of trills and spills, love how O’Connor’s Irish brogue is noticeable on words like marriage, buried. Also imagine she sings in the son I feel as one, instead of the Kurt Cobainin the sun I feel as one, but I could be wrong. -
Callahan, Bill– Diamond Dancer
Bill Callahan’s5 decent, observational song about a girl who danced by herself so hard she became a diamond, gave the world her light. His baritone is so emotionless, he probably irritates you or enthralls you, depending upon your mood.
-
We The People– You Burn Me Up And Down
Nuggets: Original Artyfacts From The First Psychedelic Era, Vol. 4
Florida based garage rockers, a favorite song from my favorite compilations of garage rock, the Nuggets series. -
Butthole Surfers– Mexican Caravan
Psychic … Powerless … Another Mans SacI came of age in Austin during the Butthole’s heyday, so of course I love this song and this band. Not everyone loves psychedelic punk rock songs about scoring Mexican heroin, that is their loss.
-
The Black Keys– Stack Shot Billy
Modern garage rock, slightly derivative6 but still quite fun. One could compile an eclectic mix of Stagger Lee songs, ranging from the original recorded versions of bluesmen from the 1920s and 1930s, to the R&B versions in the 1950s to the 1960s British blues-rockers to The Clash to Nick Cave and the Bad Seeds to The Black Keys. That Stagger Lee is a bad motherfucker.
all in all, a pretty good meditative soundtrack
Footnotes:Saturday Song Solipsism
Another edition of Songs That Randomly1 Played While I Was In My Meditation Pod. I’m not good with “Best Of” lists, as my taste are too mercurial to lock down, so these meditations will have to suffice…
-
Calexico– Corona
One of my favorite new(ish) discoveries, and not just because Calexico were chosen to be the house band for the Bob Dylan soundtrack album, I’m Not Here. This is a cover of a great Minutemen song, from their best album,
and just not any cover, but a conjunto-esque mariachi version with fiddle, horns, etc. that swings. Highly enjoyable.
- The Dillards– Lemon Chimes
Where The Action Is!: Los Angeles Nuggets 1965-1968
I love garage rock, love these Rhino compilations, though this song has more of a bluegrass vibe. Written by Dewey Martin, later of Buffalo Springfield. 2:37 seconds only – must have been released as a 45 single. - Johann Sebastian Bach – Bach Edition, Vol. 4 – Cantatas, Vol. 1 [Disc 3]
Bach: Cantata #72, BWV 72, “Alles Nur Nach Gottes Willen” – Alles Nur Nach Gottes Willen- Ruth Holton, Sytse Buwalda, Etc.; Piet Jan Leusink: Netherlands Bach Collegium, Holland Boys Choir
I bought a lot of new-to-me classical music last year, not least of which was the set this piece came from, The Complete Bach2- 155 CDs worth. Still haven’t finished playing the entire thing, much less converting all the discs to MP3. - Green Day– Last Of The American Girls
21st Century Breakdown
Don’t understand why this band is so celebrated. Singer’s voice is irritatingly thin3, and the music seems very paint-by-numbers. Boring, in other words. -
Nelson, Willie– Laying My Burdens Down
One of my favorite purchases in 2009 is this Willie Nelson album. Naked is not quite accurate description, Willie Nelson and long-time harmonica player Mickey Raphael just removed the schmaltzy strings and slick backup vocalists, and left vocal, bass, drum, and slinky jazzy guitar, remixing from the original multitrack tapes. Awesome in fact. Get a copy if you don’t have one.
- John Barry– Boom
Boom! Soundtrack
As much as I love Richard Burton and Elizabeth Taylor, haven’t yet managed to sit through this film. - Jerry Jeff Walker– North Cumberland Blues
Vanguard Visionaries – Jerry Jeff Walker
Surprisingly good, funky blues-rock with a nicely insistent bass line. Let’s have another round… - Terry Hall & Mushtaq– Ten Eleven
Music is your Radar
part of an Uncut Magazine sampler put together by Damon Albarn celebrating Honest Jon’s Records. Terry Hall4 sings the chorus in English, Mushtaq5 sings the verse in Arabic6. Quite good in any case. I just ordered a copy of the album it came from, The Hour of Two Lights. - Johann Sebastian Bach – Toccata and Fugue in D Minor for Organ, BWV 565- Klemens Scnorr
The 99 Most Essential Pieces of Classical Music
thought this was the Ozzy Osbourne song, Mr. Crowley7at first, probably because I think it is nearly the same opening riff, plus lots of trills / triplets / whatever-they-are-called. -
13th Floor Elevators– The Kingdom Of Heaven (Is Within You) (stereo edition)
The Psychedelic Sound of the 13th Floor ElevatorsMy birthday splurge was the limited edition remastered version of all extant 13th Floor Elevators songs in a beautiful box set. Austin garage rock legends,8 this song has, as most do, some weird stuff going on in the background, and ends with a patented Roky Erickson scream.
-
K’naan– 15 Minutes Away
one of the weaker tracks on a pretty good album (blogged about here). Something about being broke, and getting money from Western Union, 15 minutes away. I prefer the more political-oriented songs, this song sounds like filler.
- again using the iTunes smartplaylist, This Years Models; criteria – added to library this year, more than 4 plays, not played in last 19 days [↩]
- blogged about it here [↩]
- hey, I own every Bob Dylan album, and his voice is, shall we say, unique. So it isn’t just musicality that matters [↩]
- of The Specials, et al [↩]
- of Fun-Da-Mental [↩]
- I think: album blurb says: In 2003, Hall collaborated with Mushtaq of Fun-Da-Mental on the album The Hour of Two Lights which contains contributions from a twelve-year-old Lebanese girl singer, a blind Algerian rapper, a Syrian flautist, Hebrew vocalists, a group of Polish gypsies and Damon Albarn. [↩]
- a song about English occultist Aleister Crowley from Blizzard of Oz [↩]
- influences include: LSD, Gurdjieff, the General Semantics of Alfred Korzybski, the psychedelic philosophy of Timothy Leary, Tantric meditation, you get the idea [↩]
Wednesday Musical Meditation
Another installment of the music that plays during my evening meditation session1
-
Felice Brothers– The Big Surprise
are they really brothers? More alt-country, but this album and band has really grown on me.
- Joni Mitchell– Coin In The Pocket Mingus
Charles Mingus talking about always having a little coin in his pocket. Not rich, but enough. - Psycho Acoustic Sounds– Covered Wagon
Godzilla vs. Ralph Records
just like it says. Quick, full of energy, fun, but not music to play during family dinners. - Ludwig van Beethoven – Symphony No. 4 in B-Flat Major, Op. 60: II. Adagio- London Symphony Orchestra
I don’t know all that much about classical music, still, even after listening to it for more than half my life, but love this symphony. Also, in part because of my lack of musical training, I often visualize playing electric guitar in accompaniment – mostly on the sustained notes – whatever they are, oboe? French horn?
-
Les Boukakes– Kallouha
MarraRaï, with linky funk-esque verse, and heavy rock choruses. Not sure of the language, sounds Arabic, North African, or similar. Awesome. Get this if you can find a copy2.
-
Joni Mitchell– A Chair In The Sky
a very jazzy number, with fretless bass, slightly amorphous melody, some scat-singing by Joni Mitchell, an organ or vibes player that I could do without. All in all, an interesting song, but not a toe-tapper.
-
Cluster– Rosa
German instrumental electronica from 1974, always want to astral-project over meadows when listening to it.
-
Andrew Jenkins– Alabama Flood
People Take Warning (2 of 3) Man Vs. Nature
“People Take Warning! Murder Ballads & Disaster Songs 1913-1938” (Various Artists)
tale of an Alabama flood, accompanied by guitar, fiddle and back-up vocal. How do they all fit into the can?
- They Might Be Giants– Withered Hope
The Else
meh. Not TMBGs best work, imo, lyrics are not sparkling. The Dust Brothers drum loops are ok.
