Do Crime!

Category: Music

  • We were the one thing in the galaxy God didn’t have his eyes on

    Have you ever felt nostalgic for a moment that didn’t happen? Or picture something in your head that you wished was a real memory, and not your imagination?

    I’m listening to “All Hail West Texas” today, by the Mountain Goats, and the song “Jenny” has me feeling nostalgic for a moment that I never experienced.

    I just have a vision of driving across the El Paso desert at sunrise on a motorcycle. One of those old school ones that have a side car.

    That’s the image in conjures, and the feeling of freedom, and the crushing vastness of the desert bathed in a warm orange glow.

  • Everything comes down to what they say about you when you’re not around.

    The title of this post comes from the song “Dead, Drunk and Naked,” by the Drive-by Truckers. I think about this song lyric a lot. It’s probably one of my favorite lyrics. (Maybe I should start another page of all my favorite song lyrics.)

    It gets followed up with the line “And I wish that he was here now, I’m sure he would be proud, No one talks about me now.”

    When you think about it, that’s all we really are, isn’t it? Our reputation? No one gives a shit about our jobs, or our hobbies, how many video games we’ve played, or what shows we’ve watched on Netflix.

    What they do care about is: Do we show up when they need us? Are we honest? On time?

    This actually has caused a bit of an existential crisis in me lately. I always strive to be the kind of friend I’d like to have. I volunteer to help move, I’m always reaching out to check in, or make plans. I try never to cancel them. But, I’m not grappling with the fact that it may not be entirely altruistic.

    There’s another band, Shelter, who are a “Krishnacore” band, and their lead singer has an interview where he talks about playing music, and whether or not it’s maya or divine. He also tells the story in his book. But, basically, one of his mentors asked him once if he was playing music in worship of Krishna, or if it was because he was trying to be “god,” that is, if he was doing it for the positive attention.

    When I heard him say that, it really sent me into a spiral. Am I trying to be a good friend, or am I performing maya (I’ll be honest, I don’t know if I’m spelling or using this phrase right) by wanting people to talk about me in a positive light when I’m not around. I’m grappling with this, and I’m worried it’s similar to the “nice guy” effect. Which is creepy and gross. I don’t want to be creepy and gross- at least in that “look at me!” kind of way.

    That’s all I’ve got. Listen to The Drive-By Truckers, listen to Shelter. Do crime. Plant a garden where you shouldn’t.

  • Hauling all the groceries in, while taking out the trash.

    The title of this post is a lyric from Modest Mouse’s song “Spitting Venom,” from their album “We Were Dead Before the Ship Even Sank.”

    I think about this lyric quite a bit whenever I’m doing chores at home. It is just an on going, never ending battle. It’s one of those quiet things that I feel like no one ever talked about when I was growing up, and even now, as adults, while I hear the stupid phrase “adulting” a lot, I feel like I don’t here people talk about how such a motionless activity (to borrow another phrase from the song) doing chores really is.

    Lately, I’ve had this desire to really go through the stuff in my home, and get rid of what’s broken, or unused. Some of it I still have an unhealthy attachment to, for no reason. Some of it, I have truly forgotten about.

    I’ve been slowly going through what I can, and getting rid of odds and ends. Do I really need a plastic walrus that I bought for my desk at a job I had in 2013, and has been shoved inside a tote under my home desk ever since I quit that job?

    Yet, as soon as I let things go, it seems like I’m getting more in it’s place. In the past 2 weeks, I’ve acquired a small shelf, a free weight bench and weights, a sleeping bag, a wire rack, and a motorcycle – all for free. Granted, the motorcycle is temporary, as I offered to sell it for a friend who moved to Texas. Yet, it still feels like I’m stuck in place as I try to cast off things I own, that I don’t use.

    It reminds me of the quote from Fight Club “The things you own end up owning you.”

    I’ll continue to try and declutter, and not let more things in. Until then: Do Crime. (Victimless, non-violent.)

  • A Song to Pass the Time

    You ever hear a song, and it just takes you back to a specific time or feeling in your life? This just happened to me this morning on my drive to work. Yesterday, someone gave my wife an old-school punk rock (well, Ska, really) zine. It was about the Bouncing Souls, and Less Than Jake. Less Than Jake is quietly one of my favorite bands, so this morning I queued up Spotify, and damn, if their early albums didn’t take me back to summer break during high school.

    Just endless days of hanging out with my best friends, driving around listening to tunes, hanging out at Starbucks, hanging out in parking lots, basically just being young and care free.

    It’s funny too, where I grew up in North Eastern Pennsylvania, it’s rated as one of the cloudiest parts of the US, but all of my memories seem to be in full sunshine. It seems you
    really do remember things through rose-colored glasses.

    That’s pretty much all I’ve got for today. Listen to LTJ. I suggest the album Borders & Boundaries.