"life sucks, again"

I walked upstream
And I sat in the mud
Life sucks again
Watching trees decompose
And they talk to me
And they smiled at me
-Galaxie 500

...memories of happier times:

1. in high school, during one Good Friday we had off, my best friend & i were going to go to Goodwill and our favorite coffee shop. but instead of both riding our bikes like we usually did, i rode my bike & he rode his rollerblades alongside me. it was a disaster. he was skating across this big busy highway, and i was trying to maintain his slower speed, and we were falling and tripping all over each other. it was kind of scary and really hysterical.

2. it was one of the first warm weekends in the Spring of my second year of college and one of my best friends was having her birthday party at the radio station. we spent the night drinking wine and playing songs on the radio. also, i had a crush on this old guy who had an office near the station and i wrote a note telling his as much to stick under his door. my roommate & i rode our bikes, drunk, back home, which we quickly realized was very, very difficult.

3. last year at this time, i was finishing my Senior Project, staying up all hours of the night like a crazy person to work on it. one Friday night, i'd stayed in to write, and ended up not getting into bed until about 6 am. i had to wake up only 1 or 2 hours later to babysit. despite my only half-alive state, i remember feeling so blissful, sitting out in the kids' big back yard, it was warm, they were running around like mad and i was just sitting there, unable to move, but very happy.

4. in the Spring of my 10th grade year of high school, i heard Galaxie 500's Today for the first time & it changed my life, then and there. exactly 6 years later, as a Senior in college, i read Dean Wareham's memoir which chronicled in detail the history of Galaxie 500, & he changed my life again.


HAPPPEE, SEE:

r.i.p.

one of the greatest establishments in mobile, alabama has closed indefinitely. even though people complained about the lackluster service and the waitresses had meth face, Picklefish is still beloved in this corner of the world and holds a very special place in my heart.



they had some of the best pizza i've ever tasted. they had a fantastic jukebox. i recall playing lots of Elvis Costello & Big Country & Tom Petty & Ramones on it. my (legendary) band in high school, The Right Angles, would go there after every gig we played. we would yell "The Right Angles are leaving the building!" when we left, every time, without fail. we found that very humorous. i'll never know how the Picklefish employees felt about it. i saw the Pine Hill Haints there once. they are an amazing band and their bass player plays the washtub. i have ended up there with friends many many late nights after a show or hanging out downtown having a few brews. also, the one and only time i've ever eaten a FRIED PICKLE was there. a fried pickle is the stuff of dreams.



come back soon please Picklefish!

xoxoxoxoxo.

Stone Roses Season.

When I was 12 years old, I borrowed my dad's copy of the Stone Roses' self-titled debut album. It just so happened to be during Christmastime that I first heard it. I consider it to be my favorite album of all time, but I really only listen to it during a very special time of year. Ever since that first listen, 1o years ago, The Stones Roses has made its appearance every Christmas. Around the beginning of December, it slowly creeps out. And within a few weeks, it is all I listen to. And by December 26th, it's back on the shelf. It's one tradition that hasn't faded away over time. I get excited every December, because I know what that means- It's Stone Roses Season. I am a sucker for the holidays, cheer and fireplaces and chestnuts and spicey smells and all. But nothing says Christmas like the Stone Roses.