a broken lull.

Google Earth is the most addictive fun i've had online in months!
chromewaves.net /

i'm still trying to find my city, though. here we go :) i'll post the coordinates when i get details. send me yours if you want to :) shit, there's a point where you can't zoom in anymore. i thought you could all see my red Volks, but no. okay. try to find 45 24'44.62"N 71 55'51.66"W. that big blurry glob? yeah, that's me :) where i'm at. browse the city, look for the parks, the hospitals, the mall, everything. hopefully they get more detailed views in coming weeks. [ yes! - "We offer high resolution imagery (greater than 1-meter) for thousands of cities and more are on the way." and Canada is one of their initial project countries. ]

Spain legalizes same-sex marriage! this has suddenly turned into one unexpectedly heartwarming week.

since i'm into MP3s now, i check out MP3 blog links. here's a Rilo Kiley show from June 18, 2005.
[ what?? both Wilco and My Morning Jacket were in Montreal tuesday night?? shit. audio's available for both shows. ]
largeheartedboy /

oh god, someone actually put Erica Eleniak as a favorite actress. (it's a guy.)
yes folks, as you can see, we're finally gearing up to Big Brother 6!! :P extra points to Michael for putting Crystal Method as one of his two favorite bands. boo to Kaysar for not liking anything - way to commit, dude. Janelle gets points for mentioning three old films as her favorites. and also to Ivette for putting the Neptunes on her list. and yes, i will judge you, reality tv star wannabes, on your favorite films, actors, and bands :) now let's see how they act in real life.
Big Brother starts July 7.

hey, today would also have been my father's birthday. he would've been... now, let's see -- 60 !! wow. ha. Happy Birthday, Dad :)

Posted by Anonymous | 11:09 AM |

yay. after a month and a half, and a few emails, i finally received my Mercury Rev prize pack today!

In a Funny Way (uk single)
THE SECRET MIGRATION (uk limited edition book/cd)
Across yer Ocean (uk single)

woohoo!!
and on top of that, the sky has actually clouded up and the weather feels close to nice today! yeah!

i just heard keys dropping to the floor in the apartment. i thought, could my keys have dropped from the counter just by the force of the fan? i went to check it out only to find the roommate's girlfriend standing in the kitchen! my heart did a hellish 180 in my chest. lol. i wasn't ready to see someone there. she said she even yelled out jmy name when she got in. never heard that. we got three fans working in here :) so that's it. there are some mighty impressive adventures going on today, folks.

Amazon.ca is having a sale to celebrate Canada Day. far as i can see, there's nothing really interesting, though, but you can take a look for yourselves. mymusic is also having one - although more properly geared towards canadian artists.

apparently, the first Franz Ferdinand album wasn't called Franz Ferdinand after all. i actually feel this is a brilliant way to go.

oh shit -- Canada legalizes same-sex marriage. double-yay for being sane about this and actually, finally, voting it into the Charter of Rights. (and a big, smiling, fuck-you to you, Mr. Harper.)

Posted by Anonymous | 1:05 PM |

this is one motherfucking brilliant post, courtesy of goldenfiddle.

Bloc Party will be on Jimmy Kimmel wednesday night.
i am now able to watch that show, thanks to ExpressVu - my previous ABC affiliate had thought it best to skip it. i like the option to choose for myself.

Posted by Anonymous | 12:58 AM |

THE MACHINIST
Brad Anderson, 2004

6.0
i really liked Brad Anderson's Session 9. it had a real creepy atmosphere about it that made the film compelling. The Machinist stars Christian Bale as a, you guessed it, machinist in a factory beset by terrible events. the film is known for having Mr. Bale in a near-cadavorous shape. and although that is quite an astounding feat, the effect is not overused by Anderson, nor does the story even hinge on this "trick". it is but a by-product of the character and never used as a crutch. thankfully so. but what Anderson does have here is a Fight Club-like story (no spoiler here; you'll smell something fishy by the first 10 minutes) that is surprisingly weakly written together. it all looks very good on the page but there's no emotional context to it all (and there's a weird discordant vibe running along courtesy of the Psycho-like score which took the film towards the absurd instead of the creepy). i kept thinking Reznik was an ass for not seeing what was made abundantly clear to us, the audience, pretty much all the way through. we don't figure out all the details but Reznik is so behind all the time that it's a little hard to sympathize with his plight as much we would need to invest ourselves in the film. the film feels like a poorly-written, middle-of-the-road, intellectual trip. the only reason to watch it would be Bale's performance, which, because he is so unrecognizable at first, you can watch almost as a pure performance and not see 'Christian Bale' inside. but in the end, this was a pretty boring film. i just watched it 'til the end to see what it was all about. a good try, but poorly executed.

ps. i'm always wondering what actors bring to these roles, apart from name recognition. well, this is one way of seeing it first-hand. movies are only two hours long; how deep can an actor get, really? in general, we identify with traits, laugh at jokes, and like familiar face; but what do they really do that's so different from role to role? would we recognize their characters outside of their films if they were to utter completely new lines? i would love to think so.

Posted by Anonymous | 12:17 AM |

Garbage : Glastonbury 2005 : Live @ 1:45 PM eastern.
RealPlayer needed.

2:22 PM

and it's ON, baby!

Bad Boyfriend
Not My Idea
Stupid Girl
Sex Is Not The Enemy
Why Do You Love Me
Metal Heart
Cherry Lips (Go Baby Go!)
When I Grow Up
Vow
I Think I'm Paranoid
Push It
Only Happy When It Rains
Right Between The Eyes

wow. i love the new Vow. the band seems to be really into it. and i especially love the breakdown when Duke comes in under Steve's guitar. this was very much a festival setlist. i still don't especially care for When I Grow Up - except for Butch's spare double drum hits in the middle - which i'm always looking forward to.

Posted by Anonymous | 12:00 AM |

good morning, all. i'm still discovering the joys of high speed internet. loving it. so last night the roommate and his girlfriend left me to enjoy the wonders of Bell ExpressVu. a gazillion channels. of course a lot of them are local versions of the big networks, but it's still fun to see new stuff. and i don't have snow in my tv no more! :) oh, the joy. you can't tape a show and watch another channel at the same time, though (if you know how to do this then do get in touch with me), but i found that i'll be able to tape my weeknight shows around midnight anyway when they air in western Canada so the roommate won't have to sit through them every evening. yay. one problem solved. i don't have TLC, though. that's a channel i could switch to whenever nothing else was on. this fall we'll see if i miss it enough to order it for myself (a $12 package should do it). we'll see. so i've come down my cloud about the wonders of satellite tv but i'm still happy because it's half the price i was paying for a bit less channels before.

today the heat is gonna be turned way up on us. around 38C is gonna felt. thank god the ex-roommate had the brilliant idea to go over to my mom's house and lounge around her pool while they're away. yay. gonna enjoy that one. so, on that note - have a great day and enjoy yourselves. and let me know what your plans are for today. ciao! :)

5:51 PM

ah............... [ stretches arms behind head ] .................. summer sure is an entirely different affair when you have all-day access to a pool :) birds were singing, the breeze was blowing, small boats were running up and down on the nearby lake. ah... i love my mom's house when she's away :) so yeah, the ex-roommate and i spent the entire -i said !!ENTIRE!!- afternoon lazying it up around the pool. i believe i got a small sunburn. we'll see the damage later on tonight. got home to find the roommate left. he rearranged his computer desk because he was getting interference but forgot to/did not plug the rooter so i can access the internet. can't find the power cord. oh well. after a minutes of fuming i realized i could just plug directly into the modem. yay! on my way back from my mom's i stopped at Future Shop and treated myself with FAT JOE's ALL OR NOTHING (re: Timbaland). i have no idea if or when the roommate's coming back tonight. i think i'll finally pop in a dvd. it's been a while since i've done it because of the move and it's been sunny and hot out during the day. have a good evening.

8:32 PM

ps. Kathie's right -- this must be the funniest, and most brilliant, thing i've seen on Tom Cruise in the wake of the Katie/Scientology/Engagement/War of the Worlds all-media frenzy.

Posted by Anonymous | 11:06 AM |

i'm taking a shower and going to bed now.

tomorrow is the day we install the Bell ExpressVu dish and finally get some much-needed tv back in here!! i've been off tv for the past week. this will not only be a good thing to have back in the apartment ...but it's also ExpressVu, goddammit!!! satellite tv! i'm excited. this will be my first time owning one of these. we got it incredibly cheap as part of a package deal through the roommate's father. he says it's got 'everything'. i trust him but i just wanna make sure i've got my essential channels. can't wait to see...! :D it's exciting.

6:57 PM

4 hours later and freaking have Bell ExpressVu installed and running!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

woohoo! and -yes- i do have all four major american networks - woo! i was a bit scared i wouldn't. i don't have MuchMusic, though (i do have Vibe). i have about 5 different versions for each network, which is cool for repeats, different shows, or just local news from elsewhere. i'll have to learn how to hook it up so i can tape with my VCR while the roommate can watch another channel. i believe it can be done quite easily; i'll just have to set it up. so that's it. 4 hours outside hanging on a ladder, drilling holes in bricks, trying to figure out where the hole would come out inside the living room. we lost the roommate's girlfriend at one point as she went to sleep it off :) the living room was a mess. i'll tidy it up some more tonight. it is finally done :)

Posted by Anonymous | 2:36 AM |

okay. i'm putting it out there for possible tech geeks who might be reading this. i have a problem. i switched to my roommate's high speed internet this weekend but i kept an account opened with my dialup service because i wanted to keep the email address i've had for 8 years (too many useful friends, services, and stores have that address in their file). but emails i now send through that account bounce back. i suspect it has something to do with the SMTP server at my dialup service and connecting with an outside source. (btw, i do receive emails fine, it's the outgoing mail that bounces back.) i sent an email to the dialup service this morning but i'm hoping some of you can have a quicker answer. huge thanks :)

11:31 AM

forget it. they answered me and, lo and behold, they were right and i didn't need 5 hours of wrangling to correct the matter. it was done in a matter of minutes. yay! thanks for reading this now pointless entry, though :) have a good day.

1:24 PM

okay. second problem -- my roommate's computer screen is being affected my a magnetic field, which is possibly coming from inside the wall behind it. is there a cheap way to counter this? if not we'll switch his desk to another wall but we wanted to know before starting on that.

3:43 PM

hey, ho. slow day today. lots of mix'n'match updates, as you can see.
i just came back from running (iPod+sunshine+no humidity=heaven). earlier, the ex-roommate came over for lunch. her first time back since the new roommate moved in and it's not her apartment anymore (although, i do feel she's still part of it, even with the new roommate). i don't think it felt as strange as she thought it would. oh, saturday we're gona take advantage of my mom's pool. her boyfriend and her are leaving for a two-week vacation. yay. even though i have no money left (payday's tonight at midnight), this afternoon i went out and got some groceries, and these:

BILLY CORGAN - THEFUTUREEMBRACE
FOO FIGHTERS - In Your Honor

Billy's album was a no-brainer but the Foo's wasn't an obvious one. but i've liked the first single from the start, i love me some Dave drumming, and i very much liked what i heard from the second/acoustic disc so i got it.

Posted by Anonymous | 11:01 AM |

Zip.ca caps its unlimited rentals. (but down is up as they still claim them to be unlimited.)
i'll stay with them. of course i will. i'd be stupid not to. they've got great selection and fast service, and the $1.90/disc price tag (if you get up to the caps) ain't too bad a deal. i was probably close to that anyway. i'm just gonna have to check the account more closely, that's all.

Billy Corgan finally releases his new album TheFutureEmbrace today.

1:38 AM

okay. i just got home from work. what the hell is this ??????????????????
you have got to be kidding me. no, i am not being sarcastic. i love me some solo Billy Corgan, but if it's for real it's the most beautiful gift i never even knew i wanted.

Posted by Anonymous | 1:46 AM |

BATMAN BEGINS
Christopher Nolan, 2005

7.0
am i the only who felt this movie was compromised? yes it's darker, yes it's closer to Batman Year One and The Dark Knight Returns, but i kept finding myself not getting into the film. why? well, for starters, Bruce Wayne's training sequence, which starts out fine and although very extensive (even more so by summer blockbuster standards) appears to be over incredibly quickly. it must have been months but it felt like it was over in a matter of days. (and the overbearing score didn't help anything.) then there's the editing of the action sequences which felt all wrong. there was "action happening" all over, in quick cuts and jarring hitting sounds, but i never felt engaged or part of the drama. i found myself stepping back from it and just looking at it. without any awe or respect for the participants. that's a problem when it feels you want to engage your audience in a bit of Hollywood Action. and then you have the odd addition of the honest-to-goodness groan-inducing one-liners. only the incredibly charming Morgan Freeman and Michael Caine were able to get away with those. the rest of the time they were annoying as hell or, as was the case with the final set piece, just plain got in the way what could have been an awesome action piece. speaking of unnecessary additions, i didn't find Katie Holmes to be irrelevant or boring. her character, though, was superfluous. not in the beginning, but it did end up being just another one-dimensional character who's purpose was to serve the hero. maybe David S. Goyer (the Blade films) had something to do with that? god. he didn't shed the hack label i've put on him with this one. now, you may say to yourselves - there must have been some good parts, though, right? well, yes there were. the horrible parts kept imposing themselves along but there were some good things to come out of this film. one, Christian Bale. although the screenwriters (or screenwriter, because i don't believe Chris Nolan had anything to do with the horrible one-liners), did have Bruce getting to know the desperate side of life and his fears, the public Wayne was annoying at best (save for one funny scene at the hotel), third-rate attempts at mimicking the tired and stereotypical Hollywood action hero, which went out with 1993's aptly-titled Last Action Hero. it was tragic to see them trying to lighten up this superbly dark flick with cheap one-liners. it was a farce. the real saving graces, though, (the few of them) were Morgan Freeman, Michael Caine, a dazzling turn by Cillian Murphy, and the surprising return of Gary Oldman. the first two brought class, wit, and effortless charm to the film, while the third went unnoticed by yours truly until i realized which villain he was to become (before realizing who he was, i had an instant vision of who he could become; hopefully the producers or director knew what they were doing when they cast him and will follow up with one of the most inspiring casting choices of at least the past decade), and the fourth gave an elevated, subdued but continually surprising performance as Gordon. the script, by Christopher Nolan and Dave Goyer, does bring up a lot of good content and narrative, and they do put both to good use (especially with Liam Neeson and the themes of fear and loss). it's a fascinating exploitation. there's also the story of Bruce and the loss of his father, which was truly emotional for me, so i guess they did hit a few honest spots here and there. but in the end, i guess the bad parts were what was left in my mouth. i don't even know if i'm glad i saw it in theaters. i'm a bit disappointed (to say the least) and torn (i guess the reason would be that i loved the first half but loathed the second). i loved the idea, the casting choices, and all the pre-release pics while the film was in production. this looked like my kind of film. i was relieved when the release date came. but maybe tonight wasn't my night. i just wasn't into it once it unraveled before my very eyes.

[ holy shit Tom Wilkinson was in the movie! he's the one who gave the superbly unsentimental performance as mob boss Carmine Falcone. kudos to him for that. ]

Posted by Anonymous | 12:36 AM |

ah ........................................ the joys of high speed internet are finally revealed to me :)

hello. i'm back :)
things went super smoothly today. the Roommate had his family and girlfriend with him. we ate pizza, and now it's me, the Roommate, and his girlfriend. we've got most of it down now. there are some boxes left to open up but the big bulk of it is done. no Bell ExpressVU for now, though. we'll have to hook up the dish ourselves. early next week, hopefully. ha. haven't thought about New Lab Girl until just now :) nice change of pace. it's been cloudy as hell today but no rain. i think i'll take a chance and do a quick run outside. that's about it for today. really happy with the high speed :)

Posted by Anonymous | 6:10 PM |

i'm a bit confused. tonight i was truly heartbroken. i was finally starting to make my peace with not having any kind of future interaction with New Lab Girl. before dinner i see her coming at the end of the corridor. of course i made it a point to look at her to see if she would respond. but i got snubbed! she only looked down and seemed dejected. i felt like it was the nail in the coffin, the one that pushed me away. oh, to top it all off, my work partner called in sick tonight. urgh. lol. (that and the fact that i had some more cleaning up to do after work before Future Roommate moves in tomorrow morning.) so i had no one to confide in about my poor miserable soul ::hand to forehead::. i was able to think, though, about other stuff through the evening. thank god for that. at the break i saw Original Lab Girl at their table. couldn't see New Lab Girl but i didn't wanna push it and start looking for her either. towards the end of our break i see a red shirt getting up -- my Girl ;) i looked at her, not wanting to miss a split second of her looking my way this time, and for some reason looking contentedly towards her. i didn't see her looking at me but she had that knowing half smile back on her face! she looked straight ahead but her eyes alight and sweetest, slight smile on her lips. it felt good to see her smiling again and not have that sad expression on her face. the only sure way to understand it all is to talk to her at some point, i guess. of course i felt it was a little bit for me. there was no one else around! and no one smiles like that on their own for that long a time while passing my table :P i'm not saying everything's back on again. it's really not. my imagined relationship has been pretty rocky this week. but i guess i won't be crossing it out this weekend, is all i'm saying. after this confusing week, i can live with that.

btw, where are all the girls on this site? come on. i know you're out there. i'd love to get your opinions on this matter.

Billy Corgan reminisces about sweet childhood adventures.

have a good night. the next time i'll talk to you will be from a high speed connection :) (the new roommate has its advantages :) and now that i think of it, i'm actually looking forward to tomorrow night when i've got a new roommate to live with.)

Posted by Anonymous | 11:22 PM |

i will take a short break from posting about New Lab Girl. things are still happening and not-happening on that front but because of this week's confusion, i've cooled down a bit and am slowing myself down when it comes to pursuing her. she hasn't been as enthusiastic this past week (i was able to get two smiles last night, though :) maybe she's had a couple of bad days. or maybe she just backed off. one possible reason (the one i'm hoping for) - if she does have a child, and is interested in me, she could be telling herself that no one wants to get involved with a girl with a kid. i'd love to be able to tell her how i feel about that. she sees i'm still interested but may be telling herself i don't know about the kid and that's scaring her. of course that was the most positive spin i could find. first, hopefully she's interested; second, hopefully she doesn't draw back completely and i can get to talk to her at some point. we'll see where it goes but i'm in no hurry anymore. it's up to her (even if i don't know how to let her know that -- any thoughts?). i'll be on stand-by for a bit. because if she's interested, i'm definitely open to seeing if we can work something together. she's the one i'm interested in. i see other girls who seem at the very least intrigued but i wouldn't have any problem holding off flirting too much them if i see there's a real possibility with this one.

i would seriously need your advice on this.
got suggestions?

[ in other news - Future Roommate moves in tomorrow. i've been really apprehensive about it, mostly because i'm used to being on my own in my apartment, but i'm also happy because i'm gaining a good friend. i can't wait for the move to be done so we can talk it out and move on to getting to know each other as roommates. ]

Posted by Anonymous | 11:11 AM |

there is some new development with New Lab Girl. i asked one of our coworkers who works on her department for some info and he seemed a bit jealous about my interest in the girl, so the information i was able to extract should be taken with a grain of salt. but he's also usually a standup guy. so here goes. first off he let me know she was a really nice person. that was my question. i could have asked him her name and her age but i don't wanna know from anyone but her. and here's the big one - she's apparently back from maternity leave. apparently. that would explain why she's "new" to me and maybe put her closer to my age (her face has some maturity to it, which is why it's been hard for me to put an age on her). you know what i said when he told us that? i don't care. seriously. i'm actually one of the guys who loves kids. now, we haven't exchanged one look this week. she apparently checked me out at least once so that's cool. but other than that, we haven't locked eyes once this week. hopefully it's not because she's going back on her (apparent) intentions from last week (those smiles were incredibly sweet and straightforward). since she doesn't seem like a tease to me, i worked out several options. a, she was interested and doesn't have a boyfriend. b, even though she has a kid (apparently), she was interested enough in me to be open about it. c, she was just being friendly. the coworker said they were all very friendly in those labs. but option c seems the least likely to me. maybe it's wishful thinking. i dunno. after a brief 15 minutes of feeling saddened from the news that kinks were thrown in the engine, i actually started feeling better about this new information. if she's interested, it would be much more serious than previously thought because she has a kid. if this is indeed true, she has to have thought about it for a bit before starting something (and of course i'm using 'starting something' very lightly in this situation :) but it's still something. you didn't see those smiles ;) so that's it. that's where i'm at. my intentions have slowed down a bit - because of this new info, but also mostly because of the weird non-contact week i've had with her. she seems down and distant overall compared to last week. but she calls the shots. i'm waiting for the next smile :) that would alleviate my confusion on the matter. (btw, Original Lab Girl seems in high spirits this week. she's contastantly been checking me out. feels like she's catching up on her week off :) although it has nothing on New Lab Girl, it felt good to see that after the strange week i've had, romance-wise.) hey, check out my horoscope :| You will find it difficult to hide the way you feel today. Someone you care about will come to your rescue. The Moon is in Libra making it important that the truth is upheld |: whatever that means, i felt good when read it. holy shit, check out my Friendster horoscope :| Don't be surprised if you're surrounded by admirers today. Your charms are magnetic. Seriously, how cute are you? Whatever you're doing these days is working -- you've got the look, and how. People can't help but notice when you're in the immediate vicinity. So go ahead and work that magic of yours to its fullest extent -- especially when it comes to you-know-who. Like a powerful magnet, all you have to do is point yourself in the right direction, and all the right elements will come calling |:

Posted by Anonymous | 11:25 AM |

LES AIMANTS
Yves Pelletier, 2004

8.5
the english title is LOVE AND MAGNETS. it's a bit less poetic and makes it sound more pedestrian than it really is (the french title is The Magnets but is also a smart play on the word Lovers). the film is about Julie (wonderfully naively played by Isabelle Blais), a quiet girl coming back into her sister's world only to stumble onto synchronicity and attraction. the script by Yves Pelletier is so deftly written that the synchronicity aspect of the story never feel forced or faked. there's a nice organic flow to it all. i should mention that Yves Pelletier was in a comedy troupe years ago and is known as a loose wild child of comedy. he's also traveled the world for the past decade because of his interest in other cultures. this film easily falls into the latter category- being open to the world -rather than childish comedy he's mostly known for. the film, stacked with some of the most well-known quebec actors, isn't always up-to-par with the screenplay and directing, though. some of the performances sometimes feel like good sitcom acting (although, the film is not necessarily a comedy. i'd rather put it in the light drama category) but it doesn't take anything away from the wonderful feeling of the whole piece. definitely worth a rental for you romantics out there.

Posted by Anonymous | 12:45 AM |

ah. and we are back to normal :) at dinner tonight, i only saw New Lab Girl from across the cafeteria. and she looked even cuter than i remembered her! damn. out of the corner of my eye i saw my partner turn to me :P i nodded quietly because of everyone else at our table, especially the ex right in front of me. he got it. damn she looked cute. then the break. she was already seated when we came in so i sat on the side where i'd see her coming as she would have to walk by us. out of the corner of my eye, i saw her getting up. i felt my heart racing (seriously!) in my chest. then i saw her coming and looked up, looked at her face. she didn't look at me but she had that half-smile, happy face going. she didn't have that sad look from yesterday. and i felt that look, this happy face, was directed at me. the girl next to me, a good friend of mine who i'd told as i sat down earlier, quietly told me she'd looked my way when she came our way :P it was right before i looked at her so that's why i missed it. but -- YAY! :P we are back to normal. and she seems to be getting cuter and cuter everytime i see her. is that even fucking possible? well, it looks like it is :) i've rarely been, especially in the last couple of years, as enchanted as i am right now by someone i didn't know.
on that note - have goodnight, everyone :)

12:29 PM

oh, i caught the video for Garbage's Bleed Like Me on Musique Plus yesterday. happy, but not exactly blown away.
did Sophie direct this one? ah, yes she did. ooh, but Shirley co-directed? cool. but i'm still not blown away. it's too awkward and not slick enough. (the Björk-like ending does save it a bit, though.)

with all my shows ending last month, i found my tv-taping drying up rather suddenly and left me with almost nothing to watch as i'm coming back from work each night (with the exception of The Daily Show). but last night i inadvertently taped the first half-hour of Hit Me Baby 1 More Time and rather liked it. it's less cheesy than it looked like. i'm taping those. i realized Big Brother is coming back in a few weeks. that'll busy up my vcr. and tonight i'm giving The Inside a shot. looked a bit too much of a Silence of the Lambs copycat for me, but initial reviews make it sound interesting enough to give it a try.

Posted by Anonymous | 1:36 AM |

okay. i gotta post about yesterday's adventures with New Lab Girl (i just got to :) first, i don't see her during dinner, only the orignal Lab Girl who's apparently back from a week off. fine. then, for some reason i forgot, the partner and i decide to go through the cafeteria after dinner. i spot Original Lab Girl - but - there she is. New Lab Girl, right behind the first one. i think she spotted me but it was hard to tell because i could only see part of her face. no smiles exchanged. now it's break time and i'm anticipating her arrival. around the end of our break she finally enters the cafeteria. as she approaches our table i look up at her. no smile. she looks straight ahead or on the floor. damn. but -- she looks beautiful in this long skirt. wow. i was actually blown away and told the partner how cute she looked. really cute. see, whenever i get enthralled by a girl, i usually tend to forget about her body. i usually focus on the face for some strange reason. i realize my mistake after a while. so i wasn't sure about her. but she's fine. but that skirt... wow. :) but -- no smile. that was weird. at the end of our break we got up from table. a friend/coworker was going in the girls' direction (they were seated at their table) but yelled back my name from across the cafeteria :P nice. now she knows my name. good. we walked back towards each other and talked while Original Lab Girl got up with a friend, leaving New Lab Girl alone at her table while they talked before leaving. New Lab Girl looked at me as she passed us by. i looked at her but not as much as before. she's not the one i'm interested in. New Lab Girl stayed at her table and read. my friend called someone from a phone nearby and she turned around to see when she heard a voice talking on the phone. hopefully she thought it might be me :) but that's the extent of it. hopefully she had troubles of her own. she seemed sad. hopefully it wasn't me (as i'm wont to think about these things). hopefully she didn't hear about me and Original Lab Girl's looking contests and is pissed and feels she's been played like i do this with every girl i meet. god. i'd hate it if she'd feel hurt because of me. i'd be heartbroken knowing i was causing grief to this girl. i dunno, from afar, there's just something about her that's attracting me. hopefully this is just me being paranoid and overzealously thinking this situation, though, and tonight we'll be back where we left it last week :) hopefully. pray for me ;) ladies, i'll need your thoughts on this. (btw, this was tearing me up so much inside last night that, after work, i decided to go back out and run at the city park. it was 1 in the morning. and it felt great. and Kid A was my companion :) there's nothing like winding down from a satisfying run on the side of a lake in the middle of the night while How to Disappear starts playing. magical.)

1:10 PM

this has absolutely nothing to do with the above post, but -- it's raining!!
went out to get my oil changed this morning and it was cooler than the past 4-5 days. but the humidity was still there. i expected the rain to come tomorrow. this is cool :) the next week will cool down. finally.

Posted by Anonymous | 10:17 AM |

god how i missed Billy Corgan's voice! i only realized this this morning as i popped in the Zwan album because it'd been a while since i last played it. his solo album is coming out next week. i was gonna buy it because, hell, it's Billy Corgan and he's my favorite songwriter, but i wasn't necessarily looking that forward to it, you know? but hearing his voice, especially on the Zwan showstopper Of a Broken Heart, made me realize just how much i dug him. Amazon expects a limited edition coming a week later. anyone have any info on this? Pitchfork interviews the man. (wow, he's right about the Saturn Return thing. and i do feel i'm on the smooth tail end of it.)

Posted by Anonymous | 1:01 PM |

MR. & MRS. SMITH
Doug Liman, 2005

8.5
too bad the trailer showed us everything that would unravel in this film. but the ride is a fun one, thanks to Brad, Angelina, and Doug's playful natures, but i kept thinking, during the entire first act, how cool it would've been not knowing where it was going. and it seems the film was constructed as though we didn't know either. it looked like they were playing around with the idea that maybe they were cheating on one another up to a certain extent. but, all of that aside, the film ends up being a wild ride anchored by the lighthearted approach of the director and its two leads. it felt like it was the Doug, Brad, and Angelina show all the way. and i loved it for it. Brad and Angelina, although full blown stars, have never been Hollywood to me. they both have an independent and wild spirit (let's not forget the Johnny Suede, True Romance, Kalifornia, and Twelve Monkeys. Brad Pitt is an actor first before being trotted out in front of the press) that they both brought full on to this project. it would've been a miserable failure otherwise. they effortlessly liven up the sometimes predictable script with grace and charming flair. (btw, this could be the quintessential Brad Pitt performance for what we know of him -- batshit crazy, debonair, comedic, and down-to-earth.) (am i the only one who quickly got bored of the 'sex' scenes - especially the last one? it was either the predictability, a non-existent heat in the scenes, or the fact that the two most perfectly beautiful people in the world were trying to get it on.) the film, although not an action film, does contain some brilliant action scenes (although, at some point and only for a few seconds, it did look like an orgy of 'cool' shots) and the glee with which the violence is done was tremendously effective. Doug Liman manages to maintain the focus of the film on marriage, and rightly so. i kept expecting it to be about a 'bad guy' in the end, but it never took that route. instead, it alwasy came back down to the Smiths relationship (btw, nice William Fichtner cameo. i recognized his voice in the first few seconds. wow, imdb doesn't even list him. i guess he was uncredited). so, this is a lighthearted film dealing with marriage, guns, beautiful people, and a great cheerful sense of humor. glad they didn't miss the boat with this amazing team-up. a very fun time was had.

Posted by Anonymous | 11:26 PM |

another crummy, sticky, hot summer day. the heatwave should get the hell out by wednesday. at least, that's if it doesn't get delayed another day or two when we actually get there. cool down, summer, cool the fuck down. (why can't it rain?) my little 5,000 btu A/C is doing its best (along with the help of three fans) but it comes this close to losing its edge every day. at least my bedroom's nice and cool. that's at least something. i don't know how folks without A/C deal with this kind of heat. especially when they're trying to sleep at night.

been very lazy. actually sitting down in the living (in my boxers and a t-shirt because i'm affording myself a seriously lazy afternoon) and actually listening to an entire album (the books - LOST AND SAFE. really good. but you can't listen to this with anyone else, which is a shame, really, because since i've had Really Cute Lab Girl on my mind i thought this would be great music to share with someone special. but it can't be done. but i'm really enjoying the album nonetheless. i shall now wishlist their previous works - for future reference only, though. i'm keeping a short leash on my money right now). oh, the ex stopped by and we agreed to go see Mr. & Mrs. Smith tonight in an air-conditioned theater tonight. yay! :)

5:13 PM

it's confirmed -- we're going at 7 :)

i've been simultaneously sadly watching lions taking down young elephants on Be the Creature on the CBC and a repeat of Canada's Walk of Fame (George Chuvalo rocks!) from last week on CTV. right now i'm taping the Walk of Fame thing because it's Kiefer's time. and Daniel Lanois should also be up soon.

Posted by Anonymous | 3:18 PM |

HOOP DREAMS (THE CRITERION COLLECTION)
Steve James, Frederick Marx, and Peter Gilbert, 1994

8.5
back in the 1990's, a three-hour documentary about two inner-city kids, and their families, who's dream was to play in the NBA emerged onto the national scene. Hoop Dreams follows 14-year-olds Arthur Agee and William Gates over a period of 5 years, with all the twists and turns, excitement, failure, desolation associated with the disadvantaged in a capitalist system, and comes out as both a sobering and inspiring look at life in America. the filmmakers brilliantly navigate through all the different characters and their extended families, weaving with such ease that they actually manage to escape the difficult nature of a three-hour running time (especially for documentaries). the film never repeats itself and is filled with such real-life twists and turns, engaging and emotional characters that you will not miss those three hours when the end credits roll and will actually be clamoring for more. Gene Siskel was right -- this film screams for an update. the Criterion disc contains two commentaries - one by the filmmakers and a second one by Arthur and William. these promise to deliver. there was also talk of revving up again for a second feature. i don't know where it stands for now but hopefully it will come. desperately moving, this movie takes you from the heights of excitement down through the most desolate of places. i didn't know where it was going but was hoping that the filmmakers knew what they were doing. they did. a masterfully told wild ride.

ah, here's the exciting update i was talking about (scroll down to the fourth post -- spoiler warning, though).

Posted by Anonymous | 12:49 AM |

home from work again. seems i can't ever go straight to bed. aw, well. this week was a strange one for me. i've talked about the various crushes and flirting going on with me at work. i talk about them because i've never been used to it, never been used to having such direct attention given to me by a stranger. especially not recurring attention from particular girls. this is relatively new territory for me. so please don't take the following as idiotic bragging. it is not. i am simply constantly surprised and taken aback by this new activity in my life. i am a romantic. this is an unashamedly gushing description of events. warning -- do not read if you don't wanna hear about stupid crushes. there. done.

and the story goes...

so i've got this one crush/flirting going on with Lab Girl. that one's been going on for a few months now. it doesn't feel like it but i guess time flies and it might've started last fall. i overheard her talk about a boyfriend this year so i've been happy just exchanging glances. the second girl i noticed a while back but she seemed shy. i also overheard her talking about her boyfriend (no, i'm not stalking these girls. lol :) you hear a lot of people talk when you work at a big hospital). this was a couple of months ago. two weeks ago i run into her and she beams a smile, says hi, and moves on. that day i managed to run into her a couple more times and made it a point to say hi with the nicest smile :) that seemed to work. my partner told me that she even looked back at me and smiled while we were walking behind them after dinner. now, the third girl. (i'm not running a harem or trying to build up a resume or nothing. i'm just laying these out so you can follow.) she came into the picture about a month ago. maybe two months. anyway. i noticed her because she was a new lab girl (yeah, working with the original Lab Girl) and was amazingly cute. not model-like, there was just something about her. my work partner agreed. but that was that. i was busy exchanging glances with Lab Girl and being happy with that. now, i don't remember the first time we came in contact but i'll tell you about the one i remember most vividly. this week -i guess this was two days ago- we ran across the lab girls as they ended their shifts. my work partner and i were walking along this corridor when three lab girls come into it ahead of us, coming our way. i immediately notice Very Cute Lab Girl (the new one) on the right. i wait until we are closer to meeting them before looking at her. when i do i notice that she is looking straight at me. she then flashes one of the most beautiful smiles i've even seen flashed at me. of course i smiled back. it's all so seamless. inside, i am dumbfounded, though. i let them get further along before asking the partner if he saw it. i turn to him and he's looking at me with the most bewildered, knowing smile i've seen from him. lol. he saw it. (short history on the work partner - he's my age, happily married to his seven-year girlfriend for one full year.) and he is impressed. he's been with me from the beginning on this new adventure. there's something about her face. she just beams. not in a happy-giddy way, there's just a glow lying underneath. but when she smiles. especially when it's directed at you. man, i was in heaven :P sorry. i'm gushing - a bit. but it was exciting!! this girl, this girl whom i'd noticed weeks ago out of a room full of people, was directing attention at me. it was strange. so i've been trying to look at her whenever we cross paths for the past two days. we mostly run across each other once at dinner and once during our break. my partner told me she looked at me last night during our break. she came into the cafeteria and i looked at her when she was close by but she didn't look at me. the partner told me she looked at me, shyly, and flashed a smile, though. i'd just stopped looking at her when that happened.. tonight i made it a point to look at her when she left her table. (quick sidenote - the first time i thought i noticed her 'flirting' with me was when she passed our table, never looked up but had that half-smile on her face as she was passing us by. i felt it was directed at me.) i looked at her and looked at her but nothing. i was just about to stop it when she looked up, shiftily caught my eye and looked down again. but she looked up again as she realized i was looking at her. our eyes locked and we smiled at each other. it was such a knowing smile/moment. aw, god. for a couple of seconds i was actually transported somewhere else, fully in the moment :P as i was coming down my high i looked at my partner (so far he's the only one who knows about this one) and giddily smiled back at him :P that's where i left it for tonight, for this week. i didn't wanna push it anymore. we'll see how it goes next time. i'm in no hurry. and this is satisfying me for now. i must admit i'm a bit scared and weary of starting a new relationship right now. this one, though, as much as i know nothing about her, is definitely making my head spin a little :)

sorry to purge this onto you, but i had to share it, or at the very least, think it out loud one more time (the work partner has been a wonderful sounding board for these adventures :) thank you all and have a good night.

Posted by Anonymous | 1:57 AM |

WISCONSIN DEATH TRIP
James Marsh, 1999

8.5
director James Marsh oversees an elegiac, sometimes poetic, retelling of the final decade of the 19th century in the lives of the residents of Black River Falls, Wisconsin. wonderfully narrated by Ian Holm, the story follows newspaper accounts of the town that include murder, loss, suicide, love, death, and everything in between. the recreations are nothing of the crappy America's Most Wanted kind. they include photographs and beautiful black and white imagery to plunge you back into a weird little time in the town's history when things seemed to go bad for some unknown reason. and although the stories could be depressing, the tone of the film is still kept light. James Marsh also knows when to pull out of the water for a breath of fresh air and flawlessly controls the flow of the film. also, notice the gentle score throughout the film (including one cool surprise). it feels as though i have discovered a fresh new voice in film (even though the film was made in '99) and will gladly follow him for some years to come. i just looked up his filmography and found out that he was an associate editor on Howards End and that he has a Gael Garcia Bernal film coming out this year (The King). can't wait to see what he does with it.

Posted by Anonymous | 2:45 PM |

... fucking creepy.

hello, all. i'm home from work. it's late but i feel like going out for a run before going to bed. i'm loading up the iPod with X&Y. goodnight.

Posted by Anonymous | 1:37 AM |

woo-hoo. i got my an air conditioner for my apartment! (re: bedroom.) it's a small 5000 BTU one and it'll probably only cool down my room, but with some fancy fan work, we'll probably be able to cool up some of the rest of the apartment as well. it's nothing fancy but it'll do for the money i have (those things costs money!!). at least i'll be able to sleep at night and not wake up because it's hot and sticky all summer. and hopefully i'll also get used to having an a/c machine in my window. i had it boarded up with cardboards for the past few weeks anyway. hopefully it doesn't look too cheap :)

and here are my Future Shop purchases:

THE WHITE STRIPES - GET BEHInD mE SATAn
Daniel Lanois - Belladonna
COLDPLAY - X&Y (two copies. one for the ex-roommate for her birthday this weekend.)

fyi, every album i got had the 2 for $20 sticker on them except for the Coldplay. but it scanned as part of the sale at the register. i also got the ex-roommate this cool, huge remastered edition which i won't talk about here in case she's reading this :) (probably not but i don't wanna spoil it.)

Posted by Anonymous | 1:07 PM |

there you go -- 20th Century Fox empowering Brett Ratner to shit in our collective mouths with X-Men 3.

of course the Canadian Walk of Fame is both a good idea (by promoting Canadian culture within our own country and unearthing some cool talents outside of the obvious choices) and a shitty one (copying the tired Hollywood Walk of Fame where you buy your way in?). but i must say that my heart warmed up when i saw Kiefer at the ceremony last night :) (Daniel Lanois is one of the inductees this year!!! whoa. i haven't seen him in the promos. very cool.) ah, the ceremony airs tonight on CTV.

in other Kiefer news, our man has a recording studio, Ironworks, and has been collecting Gibson guitars for over 20 years! my favorite acoustic guitar, and the one that's gonna make my collection someday (along with Duke Erikson's red Gretsch), is still Billy Corgan's black Gibson.

Mos Def to perform with Garbage at AmsterJam in New York August 20. hopefully this is recorded à-la Jay-Z/shitty Linkin Park. btw, how fucking cute is Shirley in this pic? :)

Posted by Anonymous | 11:13 AM |

wow. things went very well this morning. Future Roommate actually waited an extra hour to call me up so i could sleep in (because of last night's celebrations) and stores wouldn't open up until 10 am anyway (we were renting a rug cleaning machine). i wasn't sure if Cute Girl was coming because he didn't mention her, but yeah, she was there. but she wasn't as energetic as she could be. she was just cool. she also left for 45 minutes to pick up her younger brother and sister (which she was telepathically babysitting :) that left us some time to finish up, and because she'd left with his car, we had time to sit back, relax, and enjoy our early afternoon by drinking iced tea and talking a little. it was nice. not as frantic as i feared it would be. very nice. the ex and i are planning on doing something this evening. something quiet, i hope. the weather's hot but not as humid or heavy as i thought it would be. i guess working up a sweat this morning (oh, i also cleaned up all the bare floors after Future Roommate and Cute Girl left), and my body's subsequent cooling down, does have its advantages.

holy shit -- the Future Shop 2 for $20 next tuesday includes Daniel Lanois's Belladonna !! in-store only, though. i guess a trip to the store, instead of pre-ordering the set, will be in order :) now which cd, between the White Stripes and Coldplay, am i gonna get with that? (Belladonna is the priciest of the three.) ah, Coldplay's will be a buck cheaper than the White Stripes. there you go.
btw, Coldplay's Live 2003 is also in that in-store-only list. (wow, this is a cd+dvd thing? i didn't know that. thought it was just a dvd. i guess it's a steal for $10. the version available through this sale is the cd, not the cd/dvd version. shit. i didn't know there were two editions available. how shitty is that?)

Posted by Anonymous | 3:37 PM |

hello. back from our dinner with our coworker who's leaving us monday (for another department at our second hospital). she's been with us for years (came to the hospital a year after i did, i think) and has been a great friend. so we thought we'd surprise her with a nice dinner and drinks. everything went well (even heard this one girl/coworker telling another i looked cute :P caught her but wasn't sure about what she'd said so i asked her but she wouldn't repeat it, just smiled and retreated) but a lot of us were spent from the amazingly hot summer day we were treated with today (i went out biking with the ex-roommate and it was tremendous. hot, but really cool). i got back home, ate mcdonald's (shouldn't have), and dozed off. oh, i also left my car at my mom's house so her boyfriend could wash it and wax it. it looks stunning now :) Future Roommate was at the dinner with new girlfriend Cute Girl. she takes up a lot of space. and they informed me she would be here tomorrow morning with Future Roommate to help clean up the rugs. ugh. i hope this is not where it's going. i'll want to get an evening off -alone- with Future Roommate once he moves in just so we can finally settle into this thing. i'm not moving in with Future and Cute Girl here. she's really nice and i like her a lot but i wanna make that clear. that's it. i should be off to bed soon as they're gonna wake me up at 9 tomorrow morning :)

Posted by Anonymous | 12:44 AM |

new Criterions announced for August 05.

293 THE FLOWERS OF ST. FRANCIS Roberto Rosselini, 1950
302 HARAKIRI Masaki Kobayashi, 1962
305 BOUDU SAVED FROM DROWNING Jean Renoir, 1932

they also seem to be playing around with Louis Malles' AU REVOIR LES ENFANTS. that was to be #293. it may pop up as the fourth disc for august.

Posted by Anonymous | 3:01 PM |

hey... nothing major to update you about. today's was a weird day. even though i only got to bed at 3 this morning (not that late considering i get home from work at about 1:20), i actually slept all the way through to 1 pm !!!!! it's been ages since i last did this. i even woke up with a headache this morning but somehow managed to quickly fall back asleep. i woke up, thought it was the usual 10-11 am only to see that it was atcually 1 in the afternoon. holy fuck. i had errands i'd put off for a few days to do. so i got up, got dressed and immediately did all of them. happy to report i got everything i wanted (food and music). here's the music part (for those interested):

MAXÏMO PARK - A CERTAIN TRIGGER - LIMITED EDITION, 2cd
COMMON - Be - DELUXE EDITION, cd/dvd

both were cheap enough and i was glad to just find them (most importantly the Maxïmo Limited Edition).

just got back from work. ended up following the ex who was coming back from a party with her roommates. followed them home and talked on the porch for half an hour with just the ex. it was nice. oh, at work, my crush just got more damn amazing today. (girls - summer just fits you.) god. as far as i know she's got a boyfriend, though, so we'll just leave it at the staring at each other from time to time phase. which is fun enough anyway for now:) and i learned tonight that saturday i'll be riding bikes with the ex-roommate. yay. while my mom's boyfriend washes and waxes my car (he's the one who insisted i could take their car to the ex-roommate while they did this; i wanted to at least stay and help a little). i guess today was a good day :)

on that note - good night, all.

10:20 AM

Future Shop will let you leave with Coldplay's X & Y and The White Stripes' Get Behind Me Satan for a measly $20 next week tuesday (June 7). (that was just the most interesting match - check out the link for more options.)

Daniel Lanois will have a new album out next week. i had no fucking clue. and i'm the one walking around with one of his t-shirts on every week. there was absolutely no buzz on this album but it sounds damned interesting -- 'an instrumental record that captures the often tense emotional dynamics of Eno’s pioneering albums. Anchored by Lanois’ emotive pedal-steel guitar'. i'm such a fan of his pedal-steel guitar playing. i'm there.

Posted by Anonymous | 2:05 AM |

Canada's own Natalie Glebova has been named Miss Universe 2005 !
i don't follow these things but thought it was cool that a Canadian won Miss Universe.
goldenfiddle |

even i'm starting to foam at the mouth -- Brad Pitt and Gael García Bernal in Alejandro González Iñárritu's Babel.

speaking of Gael, i just looked into his upcoming projects and he has some damn interesting stuff coming up. amongst other things, he's got Michel Gondry's The Science of Sleep (with Emma de Caunes, Charlotte Gainsbourg, and Alain Chabat) and he'll reteam with Diego Luna for Carlos Cuarón's Toto (yes, that is Alfonso Cuarón's brother :)

oh, holy shi... Roseanne - The Complete First Season is coming to dvd !!!! (this might not be new news but it is to me :) great news. i loved that show. loved it! (the pot episode is a classic.) i lost my father around the last couple of years of the show, and i always had great affection for John Goodman and Dan Connor because of their similarities with my father. that very last episode killed me. i love this show. whew!! i never thought i'd want to buy any sitcom on dvd ... but this might be it :)

Posted by Anonymous | 11:00 AM |