"The surest way to corrupt a youth is to instruct him to hold in higher esteem those who think alike than those who think differently." - Nietzsche

Mar 11, 2010 10:26am
Never again will brilliant shower brainstorms be forgotten by the time I towel off.

Never again will brilliant shower brainstorms be forgotten by the time I towel off.

Mar 10, 2010 4:54pm
SXSW is fast approaching and with a houseful of guests and more parties than one man can RSVP to, I fully expect laws to be broken. This photo is for use on “Wanted” flyers should the need arise.

SXSW is fast approaching and with a houseful of guests and more parties than one man can RSVP to, I fully expect laws to be broken. This photo is for use on “Wanted” flyers should the need arise.

Mar 9, 2010 9:52am
[Flash 9 is required to listen to audio.]

Hank Williams - Settin’ the Woods on Fire

We’ll take in all the honky tonks
Tonight we’re having fun
We’ll show the folks a brand new dance
That never has been done
I don’t care who thinks we’re silly
You be Daffy and I’ll be Dilly
We’ll order up two bowls of chili
Setting the woods on fire

I know little of Hank Williams aside from Wikipedia and 40 songs of his I’ve been playing incessantly. But I think I know what it would be like to meet him and his lyrical love interest from “Setting the Woods on Fire” on this particular night. I’d feel equal parts:

  1. Exuberant
  2. Ignored

The exuberance part, that’s both apparent and difficult to describe without getting saccharine. So let’s skip to being ignored shall we?

I claim the last empty stool at the bar and soon hear a distinctive soft yodel down the line. Wouldn’t you know it! Hank Williams himself is leaning in to the auburn-haired beauty to my left, singing an uncharacteristically sweet love song. I interrupt and introduce myself.

Two whiskeys come and go, and Hank, Millie and I are discussing his upcoming tour schedule. I make eye contact with the young couple as we talk. They look at me, too, like honest men and women do. And yet, their eyes have a depth of field and I’m not the focal point.

“You sure are a swell couple. How did y’all meet?” I ask.

An impromptu duet ensues as they alternate sentences, regaling me with that chance first encounter. I listen and understand their story. It’s a collection of times, places, names and dialogues and a fascinating one at that. (Hank earns his living telling stories after all.)

But I don’t really understand the story they’re telling. Their cumulative shared experience creates a much more detailed narrative through short pauses and facial expressions in a language I can’t understand.

I summon my whiskey courage and ask a fair gal near us to dance. She obliges.

The four of us head out to the hardwood floor where we boogie and we woogie. I dote on my swell new partner, but occasionally sneak a glance at Millie and Hank. They’re lost in each other, and watching them dance is like gazing into a snow globe.

Spending time with two people in love can be sad. You could spontaneously combust like a poorly planned microwave meal and they wouldn’t bat an eye. To them, the entire world is one giant third wheel.

I know, I know. I took probably the only happy song Hank Williams ever wrote and made it sad. This wasn’t meant to be a complaint piece, however…just an observation. To quote Johnny Cash:

“I don’t like it but I guess things happen that way.”

And when I find myself in a snow globe romance, I’ll be ignoring you too.

Download

(Thanks to Sarah and Jason for reading drafts of this)

Mar 8, 2010 3:45pm
Inspired by a similar project I did back in Chicago with Pete and Kaitlyn, we had a few friends over on Friday to paint something together. Cheap beer in one hand, cheaper paintbrushes in the other, we all gathered around the canvas and went to town.
The result is….unique?
Thanks to everyone who helped: Sarah, Lynn, Katie, Shelly, Matt, Kienan, Christine, Christina & Christa.

Inspired by a similar project I did back in Chicago with Pete and Kaitlyn, we had a few friends over on Friday to paint something together. Cheap beer in one hand, cheaper paintbrushes in the other, we all gathered around the canvas and went to town.

The result is….unique?

Thanks to everyone who helped: Sarah, Lynn, Katie, Shelly, Matt, Kienan, Christine, Christina & Christa.

Mar 7, 2010 7:06pm
The consequences of offering $1 beers Monday through Wednesday.
Barton Springs Saloon - Austin, TX

The consequences of offering $1 beers Monday through Wednesday.

Barton Springs Saloon - Austin, TX

Mar 5, 2010 3:02pm
I saw this joke last year on the Internet, I suppose soon after it was written, and I thought it was the funniest thing I’d heard in awhile. I then proceeded to forget both the joke and the source.
I went to great lengths to track it down, including:

Doing Google searches for “Bonnie ‘Prince’ Billy + burrito + joke” and various permutations of those words (you see, I’d confused the subject and the object of the joke)
Scouring through old Tumblr posts and doing searches on the same
Installing a plug-in for Firefox that would let me search my browser history (this wouldn’t solve the problem, but would prevent me from forgetting any burrito/musician related jokes I may come across in the future)
Asking a few friends if they’d heard a similar joke. (They hadn’t, nor did they find it particularly funny. Probably because my version involved Bonnie “Prince” Billy crying into a burrito and making it salty or something…)

I was going through my Delicious bookmarks today when I ran into this gem at long last. I still think it’s funny as hell, but I’m sure that has to do in part with the struggle I endured in search of the laugh.
If you haven’t listened to Bon Iver, check out their live performance of “Skinny Love” on Letterman.

I saw this joke last year on the Internet, I suppose soon after it was written, and I thought it was the funniest thing I’d heard in awhile. I then proceeded to forget both the joke and the source.

I went to great lengths to track it down, including:

  • Doing Google searches for “Bonnie ‘Prince’ Billy + burrito + joke” and various permutations of those words (you see, I’d confused the subject and the object of the joke)
  • Scouring through old Tumblr posts and doing searches on the same
  • Installing a plug-in for Firefox that would let me search my browser history (this wouldn’t solve the problem, but would prevent me from forgetting any burrito/musician related jokes I may come across in the future)
  • Asking a few friends if they’d heard a similar joke. (They hadn’t, nor did they find it particularly funny. Probably because my version involved Bonnie “Prince” Billy crying into a burrito and making it salty or something…)

I was going through my Delicious bookmarks today when I ran into this gem at long last. I still think it’s funny as hell, but I’m sure that has to do in part with the struggle I endured in search of the laugh.

If you haven’t listened to Bon Iver, check out their live performance of “Skinny Love” on Letterman.

Mar 4, 2010 12:37pm
We went to an opening in East Austin two weeks ago for Corinne Loperfido. I came home with a print that night, but regretted not getting this piece. Flash forward to yesterday and Corinne was hand delivering it to me on her ‘92 Honda scooter.
I learned that in addition to being a creative artist, Corinne is an expert on breaking into Austin hotel pools. So if you’re looking for art or a late-night swim, check her out.

We went to an opening in East Austin two weeks ago for Corinne Loperfido. I came home with a print that night, but regretted not getting this piece. Flash forward to yesterday and Corinne was hand delivering it to me on her ‘92 Honda scooter.

I learned that in addition to being a creative artist, Corinne is an expert on breaking into Austin hotel pools. So if you’re looking for art or a late-night swim, check her out.

Mar 3, 2010 10:13am
The moment just past is extinguished forever, save for the things made during it.

- George Kubler (viafrank)
Mar 2, 2010 3:32pm
Feb 25, 2010 4:29pm
This reminds me of when we’d sit across a table from one another and work for 8 hours - and basically not say a word to each other. That was great.

- Peter, in an earnest reply to an email where I shared this video
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